No. 4.] EEPORT OF DAIRY BUREAU. 229 



portance of the meeting would warrant, additional speakers 

 have been employed. Professor Conn of Connecticut, one 

 of the most advanced bacteriologists of the age, came to 

 Massachusetts under the aus])ices of the Bureau, to explain 

 to a meeting of butter makers his experiments and con- 

 clusions. Experiments have been tried at the West Dudley 

 creamery with some of his culture, at the suggestion of the 

 Bureau. 



Babcock Milk Tester. 



Work in illustrating the importance of the Babcock milk 

 tester has continued. Much eflbrt has been expended in 

 impressing the fact that milk should be valued by the 

 amount of solid matter that it contains, — the Babcock 

 tester furnishing an accurate, cheap and simple means of 

 ascertaining this information. As a result of this influence, 

 several agricultural societies have based their milch-cow 

 premiums in a measure on the quality of the cow's product. 

 During the year the acting executive officer has tested 448 

 samples ; 5 more have been referred to a chemist for fuller 

 examination. Most of these tests were made publicly, as 

 object lessons in the course of addresses on the character of 

 milk. 



Some of these samples were taken for the purpose of 

 studying abnormal conditions. For instance, a sample from 

 a sick heifer from a fine butter family tested as low as 1.8 

 per cent, of fat. The milk from the top of a can tested 8.2 

 per cent, of fat, while that from the bottom of the same can 

 tested only 2 per cent. Milk from strippings and the last 

 of milkings ranged from 7 to 3 2 per cent. The following is 

 the result of the ordinary samples : — 



2.6 and 3.0 per cent, of fat, .... 1 per cent, of samples. 

 3.2 and 3.4 per cent, of fat, .... 8 per cent, of samples. 



[Below the legal standard, 9 per cent, of samples.] 

 3.6 and 3.8 per cent, of fat, on the line of the 



legal standard, 20 per cent, of samples. 



4.0 and 4.2 per cent, of fat, 

 4.4 and 4.6 per cent, of fat, 

 4.8 and 5.0 per cent, of fat, 

 6.2 and 5.4 per cent, of fat, 

 5.6 and 5.8 per cent, of fat, 



18 per cent, of samples. 

 13 per cent, of samples. 



13 per cent, of samples. 



14 per cent, of samples. 

 7 per cent, of samples. 



