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THE AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 



pare it in the manner and shape preferred 

 there ; and if for London, try and study 

 the best means of manufacture that will 

 cause it to give best satisfaction there. 

 The hard matter in connection with this 

 is to secure reliable reports as to how the 

 butter suits the consumers. 



The account sales serve as the best in- 

 dicator ; but very often a 112s. report 

 accompanies a 105s. price. It is con- 

 sidered business to take steps to secure 

 the continuance of butter through one's 

 hands, no matter what the quality of it is. 

 The opinion of the consumer, if not 

 flattering, must therefore be withheld, or 

 trimmed into such shape so as not to run 

 the risk of losing that brand another 

 season. Producers are often naturally 

 suspicious that a report drawing attention 

 to faults is framed to justify low prices. 



This is a delicate and important point, 

 that may eventually call for a more satis- 

 factory method of dealing with that 

 would be more agreeable and satisfactory 

 to all parties. 



Too many of our butter-makers miss 

 this great point altogether. They strive 

 to make an article that pleases themselves 

 — an article which, at the time of manu- 

 facture, is good and nice. 



They do not follow it up, and try to 

 find out how it stood the journey to the 

 consumer, and what effect the variations 

 in temperature had on it. Rarely do they 

 closely inquire as to how it stood the tests 

 of the buyers, and suited the consumers. 



From this it will be seen what an im- 

 portant part the care of the milk takes in 

 making good butter. It is little use to 

 expect to make choicest butter from milk 

 any proportion of which is not good. 

 However the question has to be faced as 

 it is, not as it ought to be. In many 

 localities it is moie than a man's position 

 is worth to refuse milk and cream not 

 first class. 



The following extract from a factory 

 manager's letter will serve to illustrate 

 how matters stand : — 



" I am not at all surprised to hear you 

 complain about our output being Ijad in 

 flavour. I am far from satisfied with the 

 general quality of our ex])ort make ; biii 

 I can assure you that 1 have done my 

 level best with the material I am obliged 

 to handle. 



"Eighty per cent, of our business is 

 hand or turbine separator trade, and 

 during the summer months I find it is 

 impossible to make anything like a first- 

 class article. 



" Some of the suppliers are far from 

 being clean, whilst others keep the cream 

 too long on hand, and give it no attention. 

 A few of my suppliers are very careful 

 people, whose cream always reaches me 

 in the best of condition, but the majority 

 are hard to do business with. 



" The small separators are rapidly in- 

 creasing, and are accountable for so much 

 bad cream. They have come to stay in 

 some districts, so I think it is time some- 

 thing was done to protect the export trade. 

 I cannot remedy the evil at the factory, 

 neither do 1 think any man can do so. 

 The cream is gone too far for that ere it 

 reaches us. I have been amongst my 

 suppliers, giving them any useful hints I 

 knew of 



" The results were an improvement for 

 a few days, but they soon fell back to 

 their old groove again. If I reject their 

 cream someone else will take it, so I have 

 to try and hold all kinds, good, bad, and 

 indifferent. I think the Government 

 should take some steps, and enforce 

 stringent measures to rectify the matter. 



I regret to say that most of the sup- 

 pliers are indifferent, and do not care 

 what harm they do, so long as they get 

 rid of the cream 



"Eventually (if not protected) I am 

 afraid the whole industry will suffer 

 through this means. It is no itse in 

 waiting for anyone else to make a move, 

 and I do not think any other person's 

 protest will carry so much weight as 

 yours. I stand on delicate ground, and 

 dare not take up the cudgels against my 

 own suppliers, and so I am in hopes you 

 will take some measures to cope with this 

 evil before our next export season com- 

 mences." 



We are sorry to say that the above 

 letter presents an exact statement of the 

 position of affairs in a few cases. It is 

 not general as yet, tut is growing, and 

 has a strong tendency to spread. To put 

 it plainly, much harm has already been 

 done to our export trade through the 

 breaking down of the original co-opera- 

 tive system in some localities. A little 

 further on and it will mean the forfeiture 



