244 SIBERIA 



quantity was ready for the market the best half of it 

 would have turned stale. For this reason they were 

 making the butter and afterwards melting it down, 

 and packing in large barrels holding about 2^ cwts. 

 each. This used to be the method of preparing 

 Russian butter before the Siberian railway was con- 

 structed. The butter was melted down into barrels 

 and conveyed to the fairs for sale. The reason for 

 melting the butter was that after it cooled again it 

 could be kept for months ; but the deterioration, both 

 in the quantity and quality, was very considerable. 

 The owner of the Chiranchanka creamery informed 

 me that he experienced considerable difiSculty in in- 

 ducing the peasantry to send their milk to him to be 

 made into butter, as they did not understand, and 

 were suspicious of, the separator, and were afraid that 

 they would never see their money after the butter was 

 disposed of. As he was short of capital and could 

 not pay cash for the milk, he was unable to obtain a 

 sufficient quantity to keep the creamery going. The 

 place itself was in an exceedingly dirty condition and 

 resembled a coal -house more than a creamery. A 

 few years of education will effect a great alteration. 

 Whatever instruction in dairy farming the peasants 

 receive is imparted by Government officials. The 

 priests in Siberia do not, so far as I can see, do any- 

 thing to aid the development of the industry. If the 

 priests in Siberia were only one-half as zealous and 

 intelligent as those in Ireland, to whose efforts the 

 development of the Irish creameries is largely due, 

 Siberia would make rapid strides, but everything 

 appears to be left to the Government. The priests 

 should be encouraged to study dairy farming, in order 

 to be able to teach the peasantry. By this means 

 the Siberian moujiks would very soon become pros- 

 perous and pelf -dependent, and able to hold their 

 own with the agriculturists of other nations. 



