Miscellaneous Implements Exhibited at Shrewsbiiri/, 1914. 157 



The Milk Strainer, exhibited l)y W. H. Smith & Co., 

 Whitchurch, Salop, Stand 201, seems a very practical and 

 useful article. The straining surface, instead of being flat and 

 directly under the stream of milk being poured into the can, 

 has a curved surface, consequently the stream of milk clears 

 the impurities off the surface of the strainer and so avoids any 

 clogging of the holes. 



On the stand of the Dairy Supply Co., Museum Street, 

 London, W.C, was exhibited the Milk Steriliser by means of 

 the ultra violet rays of light. Unfortunately, it was impossible 

 to try this implement, as the dynamo used for producing the 

 electricity had gone astray on the railway. Briefly, the action 

 may be described as follows : — The milk in a thin stream 

 passes over a corrugated surface similar to that of the ordinary 

 milk-cooler ; in its passage it is exposed to the action of rays 

 which are beyond the violet rays in the spectrum of light. 

 These have been found to kill bacteria of all kinds. 



Granted that it is possible to kill in milk all bacteria, the 

 question arises whether it is advisable to do so, because there 

 are certain bacteria which have useful functions, and if, in a 

 given quantity of milk, all the bacteria are killed, it would 

 appear to be necessary to re-introduce the benevolent ones. 

 Before this apparatus comes into general use this point should 

 be carefully considered. 



Philip Pierce & Co., of Wexford, exhibited on Stand 260 a 

 Spacing Machine for turnip and mangold seeds which is very 

 worthy of mention. Instead of the seeds being delivered in a 

 continuous stream down the shoot the feed is considerably 

 slower and interrupted at easily adjustable intervals, so that 

 a group of seeds only is delivered at a time. It may be said 

 that the machine, which costs 'M. 10s., seems practical and 

 good and well worthy of trial. 



Messrs. Drake & Fletcher, Maidstone, Stand 291, exhibited 

 a Grading Machine for sorting all manner of fruit. There is 

 a travelling rubber band with holes of various sizes, through 

 which the fruit being sorted can pass into separate compart- 

 ments. Great care has been exercised in the design ; for 

 example, where the fruit is liable to injury by coming in 

 contact with a corner, it is protected by forming the corner 

 of rul)ber or a soft brush. The capacity of the machine is 

 from 90 to 100 bushels per hour and the price 32Z. 



The Topping and Tailing Machine, exhibited by Teasdale 

 Bros.. Ltd., of Darlington, Stand 305, deserves favourable 

 mention, but it is evident that this machine could not be 

 tried until the autumn. 



The Darby-Maskell Motor-Plough Syndicate exhibited the 

 same machine as last year, which was so fully described in 



