BUTTER. 



'ike penalty. And by .jS Geo. III. c. 75. every maker 

 fliall mark in like manner his place of abo^le, or tiwellir.g, 

 after his name, on the fame penj'ty. By,;6 Go. III. c. 86. 

 every dairy-man, or f'.-Her of bntter, or perfon picking butter 

 for i^ale, fliall pnck it in fiich vefTtls, properly foaked and 

 feafoned, branding his name afttr fuch leafoning on the 

 bottom within, and on tlie top without ; and alfo on tht out- 

 fide of the top, and on the bonge or body thertof, ttie true 

 weight or tare of fnch empty VLiTtl fo fcafoned, and his name 

 on the bodv, acrofs two different Haves ; and he fliall dif- 

 tinflly and at full length, imprint his name npon the top of 

 the bntter in fiuh vtifel when tilled ; on pain of forfeiting 

 5 1. for every fiicli offence : the qnantitics to be packed, fhall 

 be, exclufively of the tare of the vcffel, in every tub not Icfs 

 than S4lb. ; tirkin 561b. and half firkin 281b. of good and 

 merchantable butter ; and no bntter wh'ch is old or corrupt, 

 fhall be mixed or packed up into any fiich veffcl, with that 

 which is new churned ; nor fhall any whey butter be packed 

 or mixed with that which is made of cream ; and no bntter 

 fliali be faked with great fait, but with tine fmall fait, ar.d 

 not intermixed with more than is needful for its prefcrvatiou, 

 on pain of forfeiting 5 1. Any fraud with regard to the 

 vcffel or butter, marks or ftaves, &c. fhall render the perfon 

 concerned in it liable to a forfeiture of 30 1. for every fnch 

 offence. Faftors buying or felling bntter in vcffcls nut le- 

 gally marked according to the afts, fhall forfeit 20 s. for 

 every fuch offence : and cheefemongers and otlier dealers in 

 bntter, having in their poffefiion any vcffel containing butter 

 for iale, not externally marked, fliall forfeit 10 s. for every 

 fuch offence : and they are required to deliver the full quan- 

 tity, or be liable to an attion for recovery of fatisfaftion with 

 colts : nor fhall they repack butter for fale, on pain of for- 

 feiting 5 1. for every tub, firkin, or half tirkin fo repacked. 

 Foreign butter, however, may be repacked in fuch veflcls, the 

 name of the original feller being erafed, and the name of the 

 perfon felling being marked with an iron brand, in words at 

 length, together with the words, " foreign butter," upon 

 the body of every fuch vcffel : counterfeiting, or forging 

 marks fubjetls to a penalty of 40 1. All penalties above 

 J 1. are to be recovered in the courts at Wellminfter ; and 

 thofe not exceeding 5 1. may be determined by one juilice, 

 and levied by diltrefs and fale of the olTender's goods, for the 

 ufe of the informer ; or for want of fufficicnt dillrefs, the 

 offender may be committed to the gaol or houfe of correfiion, 

 without bail, for a time not exceeding 3 calendar months, 

 nor lefs than 28 days. Every information or profecution 

 mull be commenced, within four months after the offence 

 committed. 



The llatute 4 W. c. 7. regulates the fhipping of bntter 

 and cheefe for London ; the perfon fhipping fhall receive 

 for his pains 2 s. 6d. for every load ; and if he fliall make 

 default, he fhall forfeit on conviflion before one juftice; for 

 every firkin of butter 10 s. and for every weigh of cheefe '',s. 

 half to the poor, and half to the informer, to be levied by 

 the conflable by diftrefs and fale. He fhall keep a book of 

 entry, for receiving and fhipping the goods, under the 

 penalty of 2s. 6d. for every firkin of butter, &c. The 

 mailer of a fhip refufing to take in butter or cheefe, before 

 he is full laden, fhall forfeit tor every firkin of butter _5 s. 

 and for every weigh of cheefe 2 s. 6 d. This aft does 

 not extend to any warehoufe in Chelliire or Lancailiire. In 

 the aft of 8 Geo. c. 27. there are fpecial direftions. concern- 

 ing the fale of butter in the C'ty of York ; and in 17 Geo. II. 

 e. S. concerning the fame in New Malton. 



Butter, in its reference to dirt and mcJicine, may be re- 

 garded as refembling in its fenftble qualities, and in confe- 

 tiuence of a chemical analyfis, the expreffcd and unftuoiis 



oils of vegetables, and animal fats. Butter, by dlftilla- 

 tion in the water bath, gives out a port'on of watery fluid, 

 that cither remained i.iterpofcd lict.vien its parts from the 

 firil, or wa^ taken up during the waflii^ig which it undiigoes 

 in the pruccfs of making. A fhongcr heat, caref\illy ma- 

 naged, expels tirft a llropg acid of a penetrati ig Imell, which 

 is followed by a concrete coloured oil, poffeffmg the lame 

 odnir. Very little coal remains: tlie acid appears to be of 

 the fame nature as that dillingnifhed by the name of the 

 acid of fat ; and it may be alio obtained from butter by 

 means of lime or an alkali. See Fat and Oil. Bntter, 

 like the other mild and fat oils, is liable to a change called 

 " Rancidity ;" and it becomes rancid fooner than moft 

 other fat oils, probably on account of the water, which may 

 favour the developcment of its acid. Wafliing with <vater, or 

 ardent fpint, rellores it in fome nieafure to its former flate, 

 by currying off the difengagcd parts of the acid. Butler, 

 not well freed from l!ic n\ilk, more readily becomes rancid, 

 than that which is more entirely feparated from it ; and 

 butter by being melted, and freed from a depofit which it 

 makes, on being kept fen- fome time in a melted Hate, may 

 thus be longer preferved from rancidity. By the application 

 of fait, the rancidity of butter is obviated ; and the more 

 perfeft the fait is, the greater is its efficacy, and a lefs 

 quantity will fuffice : and if at the fame time we affill its 

 antizymic power, by the addition of a fmall quantity of nitre, 

 fngar, and honey, we may then preferve butter very long in a 

 condition fit to be ufed as an aliment. The rancidity of but- 

 ter, according to the experiments of Parmcntier and Deyeux, 

 ( Memoirs qui a remporte le premier prix, &c. 1790,) is 

 found to proceed entirely from the coagulable, or cheefy 

 matter which is mixed with it. The quantity of this mix- 

 ture is increafed by the economical method of warming the 

 milk, in order to increafe the quantity of cream, and by Itt- 

 ing the cream remain for too long a time before it is 

 churned. Thus the cream that rifes without the aid of 

 warmth, and that is formed into butter, while pcvfeftly frefli, 

 will yield the moll delicate kind, and may be preferved for 

 the lorgeft time. Whether the oily part of milk is moft 

 faiely employed in the ftate of cream, when it is joined with 

 fome portion of the eafeous and fcrou3_parts, or when it is 

 more entirely feparated from thefe in the ftate of butter, is a 

 queflion that has not been abfolutdy detetermined. Dr. 

 Cullcii (Mat. Med. Vol. i. p. 319.) exprcH'cs his opinion, 

 tliat a quantity of oil in the flate. of cream will be more 

 eafily digefted than an equal quantity of the oily part in the 

 ftate of bntter. Some difference, however, in this matter 

 may arife from the difference of ftom.ae'hs, more or lefs dif- 

 pofed to digelt oils; and perfons have been known, who- 

 conld digeft cream better than butter. Ar. other difference 

 may alfo arife .f^rom the ftomach being more or lefs difpofed 

 to acidity ; and in the more acefccnt ftomach, cream may 

 be more oftenfive than butter. Butter, as a wholcfome ali- 

 ment, flionld be frefli and free from rancir'ity, and rot fried 

 or burnt ; otherwife it will diforder digelUon, and be injuri- 

 ous. As to its medical effeft, butter, as well as the other 

 olea blanda, or mild oils, is confidorcd as a laxative. To- 

 this purpofe Dr. Cullen obferves, that a perfon-, being ad- 

 viled to take as a medicine, every morning, four ounces of 

 frefh butter, found its conftant effeft to be that of producing 

 a llool or two more than ufual. By fome it has been fup- 

 pofed, that it has a tendency to ftop in the capillaries and 

 glands, and to foul the vifcera ; whence proceed blotches 

 and cutaneous difeafes. 



Butter, clar'ijicd, is newly churned butter, without fait, 

 melted over a clear fire, and having the cnrdly part (kimmtd 

 off. Two fpoonfuls of the clarified r:mainder have been re- 



commendtd. 



