THE PRINCIPLES OF BUTTER-MAKING 135 



brought into direct contact with the air, and 

 consequently is oxidized or ripened with greater 

 perfection : on the other hand, where cream is 

 obtained through the medium of the separator 

 it is kept in bulk and is less throughly oxidized, 

 because in passing through the machine it has 

 been in contact with the air for but a few seconds, 

 while the air does not so thoroughly affect the 

 mass of cream which is kept in a particular 

 vessel as it does when the same cream is raised 

 over a large area on the milk in a number of 

 vessels. It is next to impossible to describe the 

 exact flavour and appearance of cream which 

 is just ripe for churning. Those who desire 

 to know what it is like should take a lesson 

 from an expert and fortunately there are now 

 plenty of teachers in almost every county in 

 England. 



When ripe the cream is passed through a 

 strainer into the churn, and churned at a tem- 

 perature which varies in accordance with the 

 season of the year. In summer it may be 

 churned at 56 F. and in winter as high as 64 

 F., but the exact degree depends upon the heat 

 of the atmosphere, as we have suggested : a 



