BREEDS OF DAIRY CATTLE 151 



some milkers and the cows they handle which produces this result. 

 It is certain that change of milkers, manner or time of milking, 

 irregularity, or any disturbance at milking time, may be expected 

 to cause loss of butter fat in the milk. In short, it pays, and pays 

 well, to have milking done in the very best way, by the very best 

 milkers that can be found. A superior milker should be appreciated 

 and retained as persistently as a superior cow; the former is the 

 more difficult to replace. (Agr. Dep. F. B. 55.) 



Results Obtained by Machine-Milking. Two milking machines 

 were installed more than a year ago and they have been used con- 

 stantly since. No special experiment was attempted with the ma- 

 chines except that of using them under practical conditions and ob- 

 serving the results. The same class of men were employed to oper- 

 ate the machines that had been employed for hand-milking. The 

 class of farm labor in Tennessee has had practically no experience 

 with machinery. 



During the first six months four different men operated the 

 machines, and none of these men handled them long enough to be- 

 come well acquainted with the method of operation. During the year 

 and a half that the machines have been in use, seven different men 

 have been employed to operate them, and three successive months is 

 the longest period any one man has remained in charge. The 

 machines have consequently not been given the advantage of an ex- 

 perienced operator. The only stripping done after the machine has 

 been to try each teat as soon as the machine was removed to see if 

 the cow was milked dry. 



These records for machine-milking are with cows of all ages. 

 There seems to be little relation between age and the way the cows 

 respond to the machines. Heifers had extremely small teats, however, 

 and considerable trouble was found in fitting them with cups. The 

 No. 00 cup that is being sold now will no doubt give better yields 

 with this class of heifers. There were three heifers on the machine 

 this year that have never been milked by hand. They have held 

 up well in milk up to the present time. One lost 131 pounds in five 

 months and another 59 pounds in seven months, and the other was 

 30 pounds higher during her fourth month, 67 pounds higher dur- 

 ing her fifth month, and 16 pounds higher during her sixth month 

 than during her first month of lactation. 



No udder troubles occurred that could be ascribed to the use of 

 the machine. Wo 'had a few cases of slight inflammation during the 

 last six months, but in each case the cow had a skin trouble which 

 appeared before the inflammation. In each case there were skin 

 eruptions on the udder. When the machines were properly handled 

 they were not painful to the cow and did not injure the teats or the 

 udder. 



Conclusions. 1. Under the conditions existing during the test, 

 machine-milking has been at least equal, if not slightly superior, to 

 hand-milking. 2. Under average conditions a cow is milked as 

 clean with the machine as by hand. An expert operator can milk 

 cleaner with the machine than the average man will by hand. 3. If 



