74 : MARKET DAIRYING 
to the top of the fat column. Farrington suggests add- 
ing a few drops of fat-saturated alcohol to the top of 
the fat as a means of removing the meniscus. Ordinary 
alcohol has a solvent action on butter fat, hence the neces- 
sity of using fat-saturated alcohol. 
Hunziker* after a thorough investigation of the sub- 
ject, has found “glymol” best suited for the removal of 
the meniscus. Glymol is known commercially as white 
mineral oil and is used for typewriters, sewing machines, 
etc. It will give satisfactory results without the addition 
of coloring matter. It may be colored, however, by plac- 
ing a small cheese cloth bag containing “alkanet root” 
in a bottle of glymol for a day or two. One ounce of 
alkanet root will color one quart of glymol. 
A few drops of the glymol are sufficient, and should 
be carefully added to the top of the fat column before 
reading the test. 
To get accurate readings the bottles should be read 
while the temperature of the fat is between 135° and 140° 
F. The bottles should be taken from the tester and placed 
in a water bath having a temperature of 140° F. and 
kept there several minutes, or long enough to cool the 
fat to 140° F. The water in the vessel should extend 
to the extreme top of the fat in the bottles, or preferably 
a little above. Accurate readings cannot be obtained by 
reading the bottles directly from the tester; the first 
bottles removed have too high a temperature while those 
removed last have too low a temperature. 
*Bulletin 145, Indiana Experiment Station. 
