THIRD ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART IX. 567 



First — The temperature of the milk when separated ought to be uni- 

 form. If there is a variation of ten or more degrees when the milk is run 

 through the separator at different times, the richness of the cream will 

 vary with the temperature. In some cases the milk may not be separated 

 as soon after milking as at other times, on account of some delay at the 

 farm, and when the separator is finally started the milk has cooled off con- 

 siderably below the proper temperature of separation and the test of the 

 cream is thereby changed. 



Second — The speed of the bowl has considerable influence on the rich- 

 ness of the cream and if for any reason this speed is not uniform, or is dif- 

 ferent at one separation than at another, the test of the cream will be 

 changed by this irregularity. 



Third — Cream changes in richness with the amount of milk separated 

 per hour. If at any time the separation is hurried by crowding more milk 

 through the bowl than it is customary to separate, the test of the cream 

 will be changed. 



Fourth — The cream screw in the separator bowl is placed there for 

 the purpose of changing the thickness of the cream when desired. This 

 screw can be regulated so as to make a thick or a thin cream and it will 

 perform its work if all the other factors of separation are uniform. 



Fifth — The amount of skim milk or water run through the bowl when 

 the separation is about finished will influence the test of the cream, de- 

 pending upon whether the bowl is flushed out with a little water or if a 

 large quantity is used. 



After the operator of a hand separator becomes aware of the effect 

 which each one of these things has on the test of the cream, he can, if he 

 wishes to do so, run the separator each time so that his cream will have 

 a uniform test. Now, it so happens that when milk is separated at the 

 farm there are a great many things that interfere with the regularity with 

 which the separator is operated. At some farms the separator is started 

 up when the dairyman begins to milk and it is allowed to run from the 

 beginning to the end of milking. Each cow's milk is poured into the re- 

 ceiving can on the separator and the milk is separated by the pailful. In 

 such cases the separator skims for a few minutes and then runs empty. 

 This alternation of skimming and not skimming has considerable effect 

 on the cream separated, and a cream more nearly uniform in composition 

 can be obtained by arranging the milking so that the separator will be 

 running at full capacity until the milk has all been through it. In other 

 cases the dairyman gets rushed and tries to hurry a lot of milk through the 

 separator in a short time, thus changing the rate at which the milk is 

 skimmed, and the effect of this fluctuation will be noticed in the test of 

 the cream. 



If the users of hand separators are careful to regulate the skimming- 

 each time so that it is done in the same uniform manner they can depend 

 upon getting cream that will be uniform in test. The points which need to 

 be especially watched are the speed of the bowl, the temperature of the 

 milk, and the amount of milk skimmed per hour. 



