416 



by the use of fresh quick-lime, which quickly absorbed 

 the moisture and kept the air pure and fresh. Wood was 

 used for fuel in the stoves, and the thermometers were 

 frequently consulted to keep the temperature even and 

 steady. All these precautions cost nothing but thought 

 and a little — a very little — time, but they go far to 

 making the business of winter dairying profitable and 

 pleasant. 



Most of the troubles incident to winter dairying arise 

 from neglect to keep the temperature even, and in over- 

 warming the cream. Sometimes a farrow cow may do 

 much mischief, because her milk contains a large pro- 

 portion of albumen, which coagulates on the first appear- 

 ance of acid in the cream and forms white flakes which 

 cannot be separated from the butter. Overfeeding, by 

 producing disorder of the udder and ropiness or thick 

 clots in the milk, which may pass through the strainer 

 into the churn, also produces these troublesome white 

 specks. Keeping the milk at too low a temperature and 

 for too long a time, when there is not enough of it for a 

 churning two or three times a week, is also a source of 

 trouble. Then the excess of acid curdles the milk in the 

 cream and the whey separates. This neglect of the right 

 temperature then makes it necessary to warm the cream 

 for churning, and this is usually done by setting the jar 

 near the stove or in a pan of hot water, by which a por- 

 tion of the cream is made too warm and the cnrd becomes 

 hardened in small flakes. The too acid cream often 

 foams in the churn and the butter does not come, or if 

 the cream is too cold the butter will not gather. 



Temperature is the active agent for good or bad in win- 

 ter dairying, and the neglect of it is the cause of nearly 

 every trouble which arises. The strict observance of the 

 principles set forth in treating of the various subjects 

 in this and previous chapters, is essential to success at 

 any time in dairy operations, but much more in the 



