FIRST CENTURY OF DAIRYING IN NEW SOUTH WALES. 



kin-own ; they are single cells belonging to the IOWCRT type of plant life. 



The milker must be aware of the -iact that he m:iy spoil the milk 

 by untidiness and carelessness. He must be himse f cleanly, and 

 should wear neat clothes and a clean apron. In what contrast to this, 

 as it would seem, simple rule is the manner in which many of our 

 milkers usually appear in the cow sta'Is. 



'The milker must be particularly careful to clean his hands previously 

 to milking. They invariably come in contact with the milk during 

 the milking, and by this means may cause a direct infection. After 

 having milked a cow he ought to carefully rinse his hands in clean 

 water. 



Many good dairymen as-ert that milking cught in no case to be 

 done with wet hands. The milkin-g with wet hands, however, is so 

 common that we just as often hear it asserted that it is impossible 

 t milk cows properly with dry hands. 



Th,e manner of milking varies with different milkers. Some milk 

 holding the teat between the forefinger and thumb ; others prefer to 

 use the whole hand in the operation. The milk, they say, is not 

 formed in the teats, and the elaboration of the milk is not therefore 

 forwarded by stretching them. 



The milkers should closely observe the appearance of the milk dur- 

 ing milking, to see whether it is normal when drawn. If it has an 

 unusual appearance it should by no means' be mixed with the rest of 

 the milk. 



As soon as the milk is brought into the milk room it ought to 

 be strained through a fine strainer. By straining the milk in a cur- 

 rent of fresh, pure air, the milk is freed from many .forms of bacteria, 

 as also from its cowy odours. 



What every dairy -farmer and creamer^ man most always keeps in 

 mind during the continued treatment of milk is that if the milk is 

 to be subjected to a process of manufacture it must be kept at the 

 temperature most suited for the different manipulations ; but when 

 left to itself the milk should always be kept as cool as the con- 

 of the niiik robin will permit. 



A milk cooler of an approved make should a ways be kept in prac- 

 tical use, either for cooling milk for town or city distribution, or for 

 coolin^ cream immediately it is separated from the new warm milk 

 as it is being milked from the cows. 



A very common and strong infection of the milk which takes 

 place both in the cow stalls and the dairy is the one caused by care- 

 lessly cleaned milk pails and cans. Kven the first vessel which holds 

 the milk when drawn from the rdder the milk pail often leaves 

 much to be wished -ior as far as cleanliness is concerned. 



In many places it is the custom to use boiling water to which soda 

 has been added, for cleaning milk pails and cans. The indiscriminate 

 use of soda cannot be commended, as it often only neutralises or 

 hides the acid that may be in the vessels for that particular time only. 

 Absolute sterility can, of course, never be readied i.i a businesslike 

 practical dairying, but it is neverthele>> the duty o" every dairyman 

 to try to reach a certain degree of sterility in the milk can and pail-.. 

 The means at hand for checking the development of bacteria arc 

 (i) Scrupulous cleanliness throughout the cow stalls, milk room, 

 cooler, and separator ; (2) cooling the milk or cream as quic!:!y as 

 possible ; (3) light, fresh and dry creamery rooms. 



A cow that is a good milker is probably one that has been bred 

 for tint purpose ; or in other words, there are certain types of animals 



280. 



