204 THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



The foundation should be of brick or stone, and carried up sufficiently to preserve the 

 timber from decay; the floor covered with hydraulic cement concrete three inches thick, and 

 finished with a light coat of clear cement and sand in equal parts. The windows should 

 be on the north side, and protected by a wire gauze screen against flies. A space of two 

 feet should be left above the ceiling, and through this a ventilator be passed, which is closed 

 by a trap door that can be raised by means of a cord reaching down below. The walls and 

 ceilings should be plastered, and a hard-finishing coat of plaster of Paris, costing only a few 

 dollars extra, will add much to the cleanliness. Lime wash will be always peeling off and 

 the scales will fall down upon the milk occasionally. The hard finish is less porous than the 

 lime, which is an advantage. 



A brick, stone, or concrete milk house will be preferable where the material can be pro 

 cured easily; stone or concrete will be the cheapest where the stone or gravel is abundant, 

 and either is better than brick both for winter or summer use. If the walls are lined inside 

 by means of furring strips four inches thick, upon which the laths are nailed, a considerable 

 air space will be secured, and this will help greatly to preserve an even temperature in the 

 house. The outside of the milk house should be painted or washed white, as this reflects the 

 heat and keeps the inside much cooler than bare bricks, stone, or boards would. 



For a butter dairy a churning-room will be required, and this room should be provided 

 with a sink and water for washing pans and utensils. To secure drainage the floor should be 

 raised at least a foot above the level of the ground, and the surface outside should be graded 

 up to the door-step, which should not be raised more than seven inches. It is very incon 

 venient to have steps up to a dairy, because in winter these are slippery with snow and ice, 

 and it is a severe tax on any person to carry heavy pails up a number of steps. The sink in 

 the churning room should be provided with a pump from a cistern or well close by; a cistern 

 is the best because it will receive the water from the roof and keep the ground dry about the 

 foundation. 



A drain should be provided in the corner of the sink. Above the sink some racks may 

 be made to hold spare milk pans, pails, etc. The milk-room is reached by a few board steps, 

 with a rise of not more than seven inches each. The shelves are ranged around the sides, 

 and a wide, low table is in the middle for the cream jars and to do the skimming upon. If 

 deep setting is practiced, less room will be required. But it will always be well to estimate 

 for the largest possible amount of space and room in a dairy, and then make it still a little 

 larger. In my experience in planning dairies for myself and others, I have never yet found 

 one too large, but many that have soon proved too small.&quot; 



That well known writer, Mr. Henry Stewart, gives an excellent plan for a milk house 

 which may prove of value to many dairymen contemplating building one it is as follows: 



&quot; If the first requisite of good butter is the cow, the second is the dairy-room or house, 

 for it is useless to produce good milk if it is spoiled in the keeping. A dairy-room should 

 have an even temperature, and in the winter may be kept at about 45 to 50 degrees. One 

 that is partly underground and has an apartment over it for churning and washing pans, etc., 

 is preferable, as it will need no artificial heating by a stove. I prefer one with brick walls, 

 whitewashed with lime, plastered overhead, and with a cement or flag-stone floor; that has 

 the windows above ground and facing the south and west; the windows covered with fine 

 wire gauze outside and hinged at the top, so that they may be opened by raising and hooking 

 up the sash. The window, being close to the ceiling, ventilates the room completely. 



My own aim in a dairy house is a building having a brick basement in a hill-side, with 

 ice-house in the rear, having a chute on the bank through which to put in ice ; and the milk 

 room in the front, with porch for airing the cans and pails. Over the milk-room shall be the 

 churning and washing room, provided with water heater, and with an elevator for passing 

 cream and butter up and down, and stairs leading below ; also a sink with taps from a tank 



