542 Somersetshire Farm-Prize Competition, 1875. 
in the most perfect order, it being the same, or very nearly so, 
as that adopted at Marksbury, the full details of which are well 
described by Mr. J. C. Morton, in his paper " On Cheese- 
making in Home Dairies and in Factories " (see this Journal, 
2nd series, vol. xi., part I., page 272), that it would appear super- 
fluous to repeat it here. The only difference in the manufac- 
ture is that a portion of the whey is heated for the " scald " 
by being placed in tin vessels and floated in the boiler until the 
temperature is increased to 130°, and then poured into the cowl 
to get the whole up to 100^ Fahr., instead of hot water being 
let into a space around and below the cheese-tub, there being no 
apparatus of that kind used in Mr. Gibbons's dairy. 
The cheese is made once a day. The evening's milk is put into 
the cheese-tub, and a portion into other vessels when the weather 
is too hot to allow of the whole quantity remaining together 
in the tub. The morning's milk is added. Part of the even- 
ing's milk having been previously skimmed, the cream and a por- 
tion of the milk are heated up to 100° Fahr. by being put into 
tin vessels and floated in the boiler ; the warmed milk and cream 
are then poured into the tub to raise the whole to 80° or 82° Fahr. 
The rennet, made from the best Irish veils, is added at the rate 
of about half a pint to 100 gallons of milk ; it takes about an 
hour to coagulate, when the curd is cut by a long knife, in lines 
through the whole depth, into squares of 3 or 4 inches. The 
curd is then broken up with the hand and the skimming-dish, 
and gently worked with the curd-breaker, which is made with 
four fingers of brass with wire worked across it. Great care is 
taken in this process, so that the whey does not lose its colour. 
The curd is broken into small pieces about the size of cherry- 
stones. It takes fully half an hour to get it to the proper state. 
A portion of the whey is then drawn oft" and heated, by floating 
the vessels in the boiler, and is then returned to the tub to heat 
the mass to 100^. The mess is then stirred for half an hour by 
hand and skimming-dish, until the curd is reduced to separate 
pieces not larger than peas. When the whey has wpU settled, 
it is drawn oft" by a tap at tlie bottom of the tub (a fine zinc sieve 
being placed before the tub to prevent any curd from passing 
off) ; it runs away by a trough to the whey-house into vats, in 
which it remains until the following day, when it is skimmed, 
• making butter of about half a pound per week per cow, or some- 
what less. When the whey is drawn oft" and the curd has liecome 
tolerably dry, it is cut into several pieces, which are thrown one 
upon another, and left for some little time to thoroughly drain 
and get together, when it is cut again, and left a few minutes to 
cool ; it will then turn slightly acid, but it must not become too 
much so. The curd is then broken up by hand into pieces, 
