442 
The Practice of Stilton Cheese Making. 
to carry the edges of the strainering), in which a piece of wet 
strainering about 48 inches square has been previously placed to 
receive it. One piece of strainer will hold the curd of about 
seven gallons of milk. 
When the curd is all in the draining- trough, tie the four 
corners of the strainer loosely together : let the whey stop in the 
trough half or three-quarters of an hour before drawing off. 
The curd must then be tied closer together ; this is done by 
placing the four corners of the strainer together. 
In tying up the curd grasp the strainer with the left hand 
close to the curd, and with the right hand take one of the loose 
Fig. 3.— Vat. 
corners and bind the whole tightly together under the left hand. 
This apparently simple operation will require some practice before 
it can be neatly and deftly done. Very great care must be taken 
not to crush the curd at any time, or the whey will run white, 
which must not be allowed. The main object is to keep the 
whey as green as possible. 
The tying will want repeating three or four times during 
the day, until the curd is sufficiently firm to cut into blocks the 
size of half a brick, which will be from six to seven hours from 
ladling. The pieces must be laid over the bottom of the trough, 
and in two hours each piece must be carefully turned over, and 
the whole covered with a light cotton cloth until the following 
