Ch. XXXVII.] 



DAIRY IMPLEMENTS. 



409 



The churns are closed vessels, into which the cream, or the whole itiiik, 

 being put, a piston, or a wheel in the form of a fan, is quickly and regu- 

 larly moved, either up and down, or by turning, according to its form, so 

 as to separate the butyraceous, or oily particles of which the butter is com- 

 posed. They are generally made of the best oak, and of various sizes, 

 from ten to fifty, or a hundred gallons, when wrought by the hand, and 

 even to double that size in those large dairies in which the entire of the 

 milk is churned, and in which it is worked by the aid of a small horse-gin, 

 similar to tl.at which moves the threshing- iriill*. 



That ancient implement called the ])lu?)ge-churn — as described in No, 1, 

 — which acts by means of a long handle furnished at the inner end with a 

 circular flat bottom, which is perforated, and worked up and down by the 

 dairymaid, is still the one most commonly in use, as acting more efficiently 

 than any other, though it is so tedious and laborious in its operation that in 

 many large dairies the harrel-churn — as depicted in No. 2, — has been 

 adopted, in consequence of the superior ease with which it can be worked. 

 The axle by which the wheel-fans are moved passes horizontally through 

 the barrel, and is made to revolve by the action of a toothed wheel at one 

 end, which is worked by another large flj'-wheel turned by the handle fixed 

 on one of its spokes. On this, however, an improvement has been made 

 by working it vertically by means of a small cylinder on the upper part of 

 the outside of the frame, round which a cord is wound which passes through 

 two holes, and are fastened to the lower part of the frame, as a treadle- 

 board, — in the manner delineated at No. 3. The common barrel-churn 

 can be turned by any one ; but this fixed cJmrn is generally worked by a 

 man, who stands with each foot upon the treadle-board, and by alternately 

 throwing his weight on each flap, he draws down the cord on each side, 

 and thus causes the axle and fans to turn backwards and forwards in the 

 churn : it is a simple contrivance, but is seldom used t. 



* For a jlate and (.lescriptiGii of one cf these, see Low's Elements of Practical Agri- 



cuUure, p. 526. ■ c l^ c c ^\ 



f Plates of Mr. Bowler's chum, which obtained a prcmnim trom the boc. lor the 

 Enc. of Arts ; and also of a very ell'ective machine which was invented in Philadelphia, 

 may be seen in the Complete Grazier, 6th edit., p. 1(10. There is likewise an accoimt, 

 with a plate of a cradle-chm-n, which is said to act uncommonly wtll, in Smclairs Code 

 of Husbandry, 3rd edit., p. lo'-J ; and we Ifarn that an ingenious plan has been adopted 

 in Canada, of making a churn in the manner of a rockinf,'-horse, upon which a child is 

 put astride, and thus makes the bulter -vvhile amusing himself. 



