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THE AMERICAN FARMER. 



that of the curd. The rapidity and character of the ripening process depends much upon 

 the quality of the milk, the method of curdling, the amount of whey remaining in the curd, 

 quantity of salt used, and the treatment the milk and curd have received generally. 



As a general rule, the less whey the curd contains, and consequently 

 the more hard and compact the curd is, the more the air is excluded, the 

 | less rennet and the more salt used in proportion to the curd, the more slow 

 will be the curing process; while the more moist the curd is, or where the 

 conditions opposite to those above mentioned exist, the sooner will the 

 ripening process commence and be completed. Cheese curing rooms should 

 be of a uniform temperature, not exceeding 75, nor below 60 F. The 

 best cheese may be spoiled by having the temperature of the cheese room 

 either too high or too low, or, if the temperature varies largely at different 

 times. Cheese should be turned often, and also be well rubbed with hot 

 whey butter while curing, especially in the early stages. A cheese is con 

 sidered cured or ripe when the flavor peculiar to cheese has become well 

 developed. 



Cheese-making on a Small Scale. Where but two or three 

 cows are kept, it is better for the farmer to buy his cheese than to attempt 

 to make it on the farm. Where a farmer lives remote from a cheese fac 

 tory or market, it would be a good plan for several small farmers to unite in 

 cheese-making, delivering their milk daily at some central neighbor s house 

 where the cheese is to be made, the labor involved being no more to handle 

 ten or fifteen pails of milk, than four, while the cheese would be of much 

 CHEESE TRIER, better quality than if the curd were kept from different milkings until a 

 sufficient quantity were obtained to make a cheese of suitable size. 



If this method is not followed, and the farmer perhaps prefers to make a few cheeses 

 from his own cows exclusively, it may be done very easily from the milk of from four to six 

 good cows. We have eaten excellent cheese made from so small a dairy, when under proper 

 management. Twenty-five gallons of milk will, on the average, make a cheese of about 

 twenty pounds weight. A hoop eleven inches in diameter, and about the same height, will 

 answer for a cheese of this size. The other requisites are a cheese-tub to &quot; set &quot; the milk in, 

 a basket, and strainer cloth for draining the curd, and a press of suitable size to accommo 

 date the size of the cheese to be made. 



A kettle or boiler is sometimes used for setting the milk, but a wooden tub is better 

 than metal, since it is a poor conductor of heat, and the milk will consequently retain the 

 heat longer. But a metal-lined tub of wood is better still, because the metal will prevent the 

 milk and whey from soaking into the pores of the wood, and the non-conducting wood will 

 hold the heat. The milk may be heated by a common cooking stove, care being used not to 

 burn it. We would recommend the use of a thermometer in testing the degree of heat, 

 which should be from 80 to 84. The rennet should previously be prepared, according to 

 directions already given, and be ready for use. A good rennet, properly prepared, will cur 

 dle about 2,000 quarts of milk, but there is much variation in strength. The quantity to be 

 used must be determined by experimenting and testing its strength, and should be sufficient to 

 cause curdling to commence in fifteen or twenty minutes at the above mentioned temperature. 

 When firm enough to separate readily, cut it into columns about an inch square, with a knife 

 that will reach to the bottom of the tub, and leave it twenty or twenty-five minutes for the 

 whey to separate, first covering it well to prevent the escape of the heat. 



After standing the above length of time, the whey should be separated from the curd in 

 sufficient quantities to cause the latter to settle considerably. The whey should then be care 

 fully dipped from the top, after which the columns of curd may be carefully broken with the 



