MILK 233 



for 30% cream or thereabout, and their skimming efficiency de- 

 creases as the per cent of fat in the cream increases. 



Thus the use of the hand separator in the place of the gravity 

 systems of creaming, will effect a saving of $3.50 to $7.00 worth of 

 butter fat from one cow in one year. 



With the separator a richer cream and a better quality of cream 

 and skim milk can be produced than with the gravity systems. 



Of the gravity methods the deep setting system is the least ob- 

 jectionable. It produces a more complete separation and a better 

 quality of cream than either the shallow pan or the water dilution 

 systems. 



Any neglect to thoroughly clean the separator after each sepa- 

 ration reduces the skimming efficiency of the machine and lowers 

 the quality of the cream and butter produced. Wash the separator 

 after each separation. 



A trembling machine, insufficient speed, sour, curdled, slimy, or 

 cold milk, and over-feeding the separator caused a loss of butter fat 

 in the skim milk amounting to from 8 to 12 pounds of butter per 

 cow in one year. 



Other things being equal, high speed and a small rate of inflow 

 tend to produce a thick cream. Insufficient speed, a trembling ma- 

 chine and a large rate of inflow result in a thinner cream. (Ind. 

 B. 116.) 



BABCOCK TEST FOR BUTTER PAT. 



How to Use the Babcock Test. Before the Babcock test was in- 

 vented, twenty-two years ago, no simple, accurate method was known 

 by which the farmer could measure the richness of the milk or cream 

 which he sold, or of the skim milk which remained. At creameries 

 and cheese factories, each patron was paid in proportion to the weight 

 of milk delivered. It was then commonly supposed that 100 pounds 

 of milk from one cow would make as much butter or cheese as an 

 equal weight of milk from any other cow. Cows were valued accord- 

 ing to the number of pounds of milk each produced. 



It is now well known that the weight of butter or cheese that 

 can be obtained from a given quantity of milk depends to a great 

 extent upon the weight of fat present in the milk. For this reason, 

 milk and cream are now both weighed and tested for fat by the 

 Babcock test at most factories, and patrons are paid according to the 

 test, that is, according to the weight of fat delivered by each. 



The relative value of different cows in a herd is now determined 

 by weighing and testing the milk of each. Many cows produce a 

 profit of from $25 to $50 per year, but in almost every herd, cows 

 are found whose milk does not pay for the feed consumed by them. 

 By replacing the poorest cows with better ones, the herd will be im- 

 proved. 



In separator skim milk there is only about one-eighth as much 

 fat as there is in milk skimmed from crocks or shallow pans, but 

 even separator skim milk should be tested for fat frequently to see 

 if the separator is skimming as closely as it should. Ordinarily sepa- 

 rator skim milk tests about five-hundredths (.05) of one per cent, but 



