lO STORKS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 



farmers in methods of scientific study, the cooperative ex- 

 periments bring new and valuable informatio'n regarding the 

 economical feeding of cows for the production of milk and 

 butter. The results of the experiments point to the value of 

 rations with a narrow nutritive ratio, that is with liberal pro- 

 portions of protein, for the production of milk and butter; and 

 wherever a wide ration has been found in use an increase in 

 the amount of nitrogenous feeding stuffs has been proposed, 

 usually with profitable results so far as the short experiments 

 have indicated. It is encouraging to observe that dairy farmers 

 are becoming more and more familiar with such facts, a num- 

 ber of farmers having been found who were feeding rations 

 with narrow ratio and large quantities of protein. 



DAIRY BACTERIOLOGY. 



The work upon the bacteria of milk has been continued dur- 

 ing the present year by Prof. Conn, aided by Mr. Esten, at 

 Wesleyan University. Mr. W. A. Stocking has also been 

 emploj'ed by the Station and his whole time devoted to carr}^- 

 ing on the experiments in dairy bacteriology at Storrs. The 

 experiments conducted by Prof. Conn and his associates during 

 the past two or three years are in a new field of inquiry. The 

 topics that have been investigated are the sources of bacterial 

 contamination of milk in ordinary dairying and the practical 

 methods of reducing this contamination, and the question of 

 the growth of bacteria in milk under normal conditions. The 

 latter subject has a very practical bearing upon problems asso- 

 ciated with the healthfulness of milk and with the ripening of 

 cream and cheese. It is hoped that the results of the experi- 

 ments will ultimately give to dairymen a more satisfactorj^ 

 explanation of the relation of the different species of bacteria 

 to the quality of their products. The results which are given 

 in this Report afford interesting suggestions regarding the 

 dairyman's methods of handling bacteriological problems in 

 the future. Perhaps the most significant is the suggestion 

 that the lactic bacteria are rather an advantage than a dis- 

 advantage to the dairyman since they protect the milk, cream 

 and cheese from the action of other bacteria. 



