856 THE PEOPLE'S FARM AND STOCK CYCLOPEDIA. 



twenty-four hours in one gallon of warm water, rubbing and 

 working often to get out the strength. Add as much salt as the 

 liquor will dissolve, strain, let settle, and it is ready for use. If 

 to be kept some time add the juice of a small lemon and about 

 one-fourth ounce each of cloves, cinnamon, and sage. Bottle it 

 and keep in a cool, dark place. The rennets, if dried and 

 salted, will gain strength and can be used a second time. 



In setting the milk, the temperature should be about ninety- 

 six degrees. The new milk will be nearly the right tempera- 

 ture, but the milk which has stood over night must be warmed, 

 and the better way to heat it is by setting a tin pail of boiling 

 water into the tub. The cream may be remove^ from the night's 

 milk and used for making butter. The night's milk should be 

 heated while the cows are being milked, so that the rennet can 

 be put in before breakfast, as it is important to get the work 

 done during the cool of the day. 



It will require some little experimenting to ascertain how 

 much of the rennet liquid to use; but if made as directed, try 

 a table-spoonful for each three gallons of milk. If it is much 

 over a half-hour in "coming," increase the quantity; if much 

 less, decrease it. The tub should be covered with a cloth, to 

 keep it from cooling while the milk is curdling, and it should 

 not be jarred by walking over a springy floor. When the milk 

 has curdled, so as to appear solid, cut carefully with the curd- 

 knife into strips an inch wide, and then across, so that at the 

 top it will look as though divided into inch squares. In many 

 dairies a knife with horizontal blades an inch apart, like the 

 bars of a gridiron, is used to cut the curd so as to divide it 

 into cubes an inch square. As such a knife would cost but lit- 

 tle, I would advise that it be procured. It could be made of 

 tin; or a light frame, with fine wires stretched across, would an- 

 swer. I only used the strips of tin for a knife, and then, after 

 the whey began to separate, and the curd hardened a little, 

 lifted it gently from the bottom with a ladle. 



All the handling of the curd, in the early stages, must be 

 done with great care, or the whey will be milky in appearance, 

 showing that the cream is being washed out. As the whey be- 



