MILK 217 



pail which is both effective in excluding dirt and bacteria and which 

 is at the same time practical has resulted in the development of a 

 number of styles of covered milk pails. The purpose sought in all 

 of these is the same; namely, to reduce as far as possible the area 

 through which dirt and dust can fall into the pail. The amount to 

 which the opening can be reduced is necessarily limited because 

 a certain sized opening is necessary for the practical operation of 

 any pail. 



The following gives, in a condensed form, the results of some 

 carefully made experiments with several kinds of covered pails : 



The use of the covered milk pail is of great advantage in any 

 stable in excluding dirt and bacteria from the milk. The relative 

 advantage gained by the use of the cover depends upon the sanitary 

 condition of the stable. 



The special form of cover does not seem to be important pro- 

 vided it is a device practical for use and the area through which 

 dirt can gain access to the milk is reduced as much as possible. 



Whether or not a strainer on the covered pail is desirable 

 depends upon the style of the straining device. 



The use of the strainer in a pail where the dirt which falls 

 into the opening is likely to be driven through by the succeeding 

 streams of milk is not desirable. Its use tends to increase the germ 

 content of the milk and injure its keeping quality. 



In pails where the dirt which falls in does not remain where 

 the succeeding streams strike against it a strainer cloth aids in 

 keeping down the number of bacteria which gain access to the 

 milk. The North pail is an illustration of this type. 



The use of absorbent cotton as a strainer is a decided advantage 

 in preventing the entrance of bacteria into the milk. (Conn. 

 B. 48.) 



COW-TESTING ASSOCIATIONS. 



Opportunity and Need. According to the Twelfth Census the 

 average production of butterfat per cow in the United States in 

 1900 was 145 pounds, which compared with the average produc- 

 tion of 224 pounds of butter per cow in Denmark is entirely too 

 low. The Bureau of Statistics of the Department of Agriculture 

 reports that on January 1, 1910, there were 21,801,000 milch cows 

 in the United States, and if it were possible to inaugurate a system 

 whereby the average production per cow might be increased even 

 one pound of butterfat in a year, this increase would amount to 

 21,801,000 pounds, which at the price of 30 cents a pound would be 

 worth $6,540,300. If such an increase could be brought about by 

 better selection of cows and feeding stuffs, the sum mentioned could 

 be figured practically as clear profit. Investigations by experiment 

 stations and breeding associations show that there are a large num- 

 ber of cows which yield greatly in excess of this average, some reach- 

 ing an amount as high as 800 or 900 pounds of butterfat in a year 

 one cow even 998 pound-. This being the case, there must be a 

 large number of cows which yield less than 145 pounds of butterfat 

 in a year. 



