SOURCES OF IKFECTIOK IN THE STABLE. 65 



be spread around in the air and fall down on the cows, on 

 the clothes and hands of the milkers, in the milk-pails, 

 etc. The fact that many of the worst enemies of the 

 milk are included among the bacteria adhering to these 

 particles makes the matter still worse. Within a short 

 time some of them produce putrefactive fermentations in 

 the milk, while others do not show their injurious effects 

 until later on viz., in the products of the milk. During 

 their presence in the milk bacteria of the latter kind 

 lie in a torpor-like inactivity, from which they do not 

 awake until they find conditions more favorable to their 

 growth ; they then obtain power to conquer other bacteria 

 found in the same medium, and soon give rise to their 

 special fermentations. It ought to be remembered that 

 the longer the manure remains in the warm cow-stable, the 

 richer it will be in bacteria, and above all in spores of 

 bacteria, and therefore the sooner it is removed the better. 

 On some well-conducted farms I have seen this rule ob- 

 served so carefully that the manure has been carried away 

 as soon as it falls to the floor, an arrangement which can 

 be carried out cheaper than many persons think. If the 

 principle taught cannot be so scrupulously followed, it is 

 necessary to prevent as far as possible the infection eman- 

 ating from this source by other precautions. The ma- 

 nure should be removed from the stable several times 

 during the day, and it must be arranged so that a suffi- 

 ciently long time will elapse between this operation and 

 the milking. 



Dangers of Infection from Fermenting Foods. Another 

 quite common condition on our farms which is deleterious 

 to the quality of the milk is that fermenting or spoilt 

 cattle-foods, etc., are kept in the stable or in its immediate 



