88 MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 



goes down. If the tube is let down quickly, or with the end 

 closed., and then allowed to fill from the bottom of the pail, it 

 is possible to get a sample much less rich in fat than the top 

 would yield. If there is more than one pail of cream, a portion 

 should be taken from each lot weighed out. If a tube full from 

 even- pailful more than fills the sample bottle, then all the por- 

 tions drawn should be mixed in a dish large enough to hold 

 them, and the bottle filled from the mixture. In anv case, 

 enough should be taken to fill the sample bottle to prevent 

 churning on the road. 



Cream that is sour should not be sampled, as it is impossible 

 for a collector to get a fair sample of it in any reasonable length 

 of time. If it has become thick, it cannot be easily mixed by 

 the collector so it will be uniform, and cannot be sampled with 

 the tube. Creamery managers should insist that patrons keep 

 their cream sweet until it is taken by the collector. This is 

 essential not only to correct sampling, but to make a good 

 quality of butter. 



Composite Sample. The composite sample is made up from 

 the small samples taken by the collector and is the one from 

 which the portion is taken for the test. Pint fruit jars are good 

 receptacles in which to put these samples, and each one should 

 be numbered with the patron's number, the same as the small 

 bottles used by the collector. 



The small samples are taken even- time the cream is collected 

 according to the directions previously given, and as soon as they 

 arrive at the factor}- they are emptied into the fruit jars having 

 corresponding numbers. The jar should be closed tightly to 

 prevent evaporation. These accumulated small samples consti- 

 tute the composite sample, and the per cent of butter fat found in 

 this sample, will be the average per cent in all the cream fur- 

 nished by the patron having that number for the period. A 

 test can be made once in four weeks or oftener. 



Valuing Cream. When cream is bought by weight, accord- 

 ing to the plan previously outlined, valuing it or fixing the price 

 of each patron's product is very easily accomplished. Each lot 

 collected is weighed and sampled. The weight is recorded and 

 the sample goes to makeup the composite sample previously des- 

 cribed. At the end of the month the sum of the weights found 



