1892 
477 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
nated  the  Walter  Grape ;  it  flourished  on  his  place 
admirably — the  circulars  he  sent  out  were  not  exag¬ 
gerated.  In  those  days  there  were  not  many  horticul¬ 
tural  novelties,  and  it  went  all  over  the  country.  But 
it  would  not  flourish.  To-day  I  do  not  know  of  a  place 
where  it  is  grown,  except  the  original  vine  on  the  old 
Cuywood  home  at  Marlboro.  There  it  grows  and 
thrives  and  is  really  an  excellent  grape.  But  it  wouid 
not  grow  elsewhere,  and  Mr.  Caywood  was  roundly 
abused  for  disseminating  what  he  really  believed  to 
be  a  valuable  grape.  Since  then  we  have  learned  the 
lesson  that  a  new  variety  must  be  tested  under  varying 
conditions  ere  we  may  assume  for  it  any  special  value. 
However,  any  harm  then  done  by  Mr.  Ciywood 
was  amply  atoned  for  in  his  later  years.  He  gave  us 
the  Marlboro  Raspberry  and  the  Minnewaski  Black¬ 
berry,  and  the  Duchess,  Ulster  Prolific  and  Nectar 
Grapes.  To-day,  in  a  list  of  about  a  dozen  varieties 
of  grapes  in  my  home  garden,  the  Ulster  Prolific 
stands  at  the  head.  It  is  perfectly  hardy,  vigorous, 
productive,  and  the  fruit  is  handsome  and  of  high 
quality.  There  are  sections  where,  I  am  told,  this 
vine  lacks  vigor  and  does  not  flourish.  F. 
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The  Making  of  Good  Cheese. 
IXSTKUCTIOX  FKOM  AX  EXPERT. 
In  the  making  of  cheese  the  first  thing  necessary  is 
good,  clean  milk,  free  from  animal  taint  and  barnyard 
odors.  It  is  impossible  to  make  a  fine,  clean- flavored 
cheese  from  impure,  tainted  milk.  The  first  thing 
after  the  milk  is  placed  in  the  vat  is  to  gradually  heat 
it  up  to  a  temperature  of  80  degrees  Fahrenheit.  The 
heating  is  accompanied  by  careful  stirring,  in  order  that 
it  may  be  uniform  all  through,  and  also  to  keep  the  fat 
evenly  distributed  through  the  mass.  When  this  point 
is  reached  the  milk  should  be  carefully  examined  to 
determine  its  condition  as  to  ripeness.  This  may  be 
determined  by  the  expert  maker  by  the  sense  of  smell, 
but  very  much  the  best  way  is  by  the  use  of  what  is 
termed  the  rennet  test.  For  this,  each  person  can  fix 
a  rule  for  himself,  and  note  the  time  it  takes  a  given 
quantity  of  milk  to  thicken  with  the  use  of  a  certain 
amount  of  rennet  extract.  The  rule  used  by  a  large 
number  of  cheese  makers  is  11  ounces  of  milk  in 
which  is  put  one  cubic  centimeter  of  rennet  extract. 
With  this  rule,  when  the  milk  is  of  a  proper  degree  of 
ripeness  it  should  begin  to  thicken  in  about  two 
minutes.  This  test  is  founded  on  the  well-known  fact 
that  with  the  beginning  of  the  development  of  acidity 
in  the  milk  the  activity  of  the  rennet  is  increased. 
The  object  of  ripeniug  the  milk  before  adding  the 
rennet  is  to  have  a  sufficient  amount  of  acidity  devel¬ 
oped  so  that  the  curd  will  work  along  in  good  time 
and  make  a  good,  solid-cutting,  well-flavored  cheese. 
-  The  general  principle  underlying  the  manufacture 
of  cheese  depends  primarily  upon  the  action  of  the 
rennet  in  coagulating  the  casein  of  the  milk  and  in 
that  way  holding  a  larger  proportion  of  the  fat.  The 
sugar  and  albumen  of  the  milk  are  principally  carried 
off  in  this  way.  The  rennet  is  principally  obtained 
from  the  mucous  surface  of  the  fourth  stomach  of  a 
suckling  calf.  It  is  preserved  for  use  by  carefully 
cleansing  without  washing  it,  and  it  is  then  rubbed 
with  salt  and  dried.  When  wanted  for  use  it  is  soaked 
in  weak  brine  and  the  liquid  thus  obtained  is  used  to 
coagulate  the  milk. 
When  the  latter  is  found  to  be  in  proper  condition, 
sufficient  of  the  rennet  solution  is  added  to  cause  the 
milk  to  begin  to  thicken  in  from  15  to  18  minutes.  It 
is  then  allowed  to  stand  until  the  curd  is  firm  enough 
so  that,  by  laying  the  back  of  the  fingers  and  hand  on 
it  next  to  tne  side  of  the  vat  and  gently  bearing  it 
away,  it  will  cleave  off.  For  cutting  the  curd,  knives 
containing  several  blades,  about  half  an  inch  apart, 
are  used.  When  cut,  the  curd  is  left  in  small  cubes, 
each  not  more  than  half  an  inch  in  diameter.  It  is 
necessary  to  use  every  care  that  the  pieces  of  curd  may 
be  even  in  size,  so  that  the  heat  and  rennet  will  act 
together  and  on  all  alike,  producing  an  even  curd, 
without  which  it  is  impossible  to  make  fine  cheese. 
The  main  loss  of  fat  takes  place  in  the  process  of  cut¬ 
ting  and  handling  immediately  following.  The  glob¬ 
ules  of  fat  on  the  exposed  surfaces  are  easily  detached, 
hence  the  necessity  of  carefully  handling  uot  to  man¬ 
gle  and  bruise  the  curd,  and  thus  increase  the  amount 
of  fat  lost. 
As  soon  as  the  curd  is  completely  cut,  it  is  stirred 
very  gently  for  10  or  15  minutes,  until  the  outside  of 
the  pieces  show  the  appearance  of  a  slight  film  and  the 
whey  commences  to  separate  freely  from  the  curd. 
The  latter  is  then  gradually  heated  to  a  temperature 
of  about  98  degrees  Fahrenheit.  During  the  process 
it  is  kept  in  constant  but  gentle  agitation.  The  heat¬ 
ing  stimulates  the  action  of  the  rennet,  which  shrinks 
the  casein  and  expels  the  moisture  from  the  kernels  of 
curd.  It  is  very  important  at  this  time  that  just  the 
right  amount  of  moisture  should  be  separated  from  the 
curd.  If  too  much  is  driven  out,  there  will  be  a  loss 
in  yield  and  a  coarse,  liard-textured  cheese.  On  the 
other  hand,  too  much  moisture  makes  a  cheese  that 
cures  too  fast  and  which  will  get  off  flavor  quickly, 
for  the  reason  that  the  retention  of  so  much  moisture 
causes  the  conditions  that  are  the  most  favorable  to 
the  development  of  the  bacteria  of  putrefaction.  When 
the  curd  has  become  sufficiently  firm  and  dry,  it  is 
allowed  to  settle  on  the  bottom  of  the  vat  and  stand 
until  there  is  a  sufficient  development  of  acid.  To  tell 
exactly  when  it  is  the  proper  time  to  draw  the  whey 
from  the  curd,  requires  the  best  judgment  of  the 
maker,  as  it  is  one  of  the  critical  points  in  the  manu¬ 
facturing  process.  The  most  common  test  used  to  de¬ 
termine  the  proper  time  to  draw  off  the  whey  is  known 
as  the  hot-iron  test.  A  portion  of  curd  is  squeezed  in 
the  hand  until  partially  dry,  then  placed  against  hot 
iron  and  carefully  drawn  away  ;  if  the  curd  sticks  to 
the  iron  and  is  drawn  out  in  fine  threads  about  one- 
fourth  of  an  inch  long,  the  whey  is  generally  ready 
to  be  drawn ;  if  the  threads  are  shorter,  it  is  allowed 
to  stand  until  a  satisfactory  test  is  obtained.  This  test 
is  supposed  to  indicate  the  amount  of  lactic  acid 
present. 
After  the  whey  is  drawn  from  the  curd,  the  process 
of  manufacture  may  be  varied,  one  method  of  treat¬ 
ment  making  what  is  known  as  stirred  curd  cheese, 
the  other  method,  a  Cheddar  cheese.  In  the  stirred 
curd  process  the  acid  development  is  carried  farther 
in  the  whey  before  it  is  drawn  off  and  afterwards  the 
curd  is  kept  stirred  and  the  kernels  kept  apart  until 
salted  and  put  to  press.  In  the  Cheddar  process  after 
the  whey  has  been  drained  from  the  cui'd,  the  latter  is 
packed  on  the  sides  of  the  vat,  leaving  a  space  in  the 
center  for  the  whey  to  drain  off  more  readily.  After 
a  little  time  the  curd  is  cut  up  in  pieces  convenient  to 
handle,  and  turned  over  from  time  to  time  to  allow 
the  whey  to  drain  off  more  perfectly.  When  the  curd 
becomes  pretty  well  freed  from  whey,  the  pieces  are 
doubled  and  the  process  of  doubling  is  continued  at 
short  intervals  until  the  whole  forms  a  compact  pile. 
It  is  held  there  until  the  curd  begins  to  feel  mellow 
and  has  a  stringy,  fibrous  texture,  when  it  is  put 
through  the  curd  mill  to  tear  it  in  pieces  so  that  it  can 
be  salted,  after  which  it  is  put  to  press.  With  good 
milk  fine  cheese  can  be  made  by  either  plan,  but  tak¬ 
ing  into  account  all  the  changing  conditions  the  cheese- 
maker  must  meet,  I  have  no  doubt  the  Cheddar  plan 
is  the  safer. 
The  average  amount  of  milk  required  to  make  a 
pound  of  cheese  is  a  little  over  10  pounds.  The  best 
apparatus  for  a  small  dairy  is  a  small  self-heating  vat, 
that  is,  a  fire  underneath  the  vat  surrounded  with 
water  and  connected  with  the  water  surrounding  the 
vat.  For  the  factory  a  boiler  and  steam  pipes  con¬ 
nected  with  the  vat  are  used.  geo.  a.  smith. 
Cheese  Instructor  N.  Y.  State  Dairy  Commission. 
What  About  Raspberries  P 
B.  F.  M.,  Pequonnoc  Bridge,  Conn. — I  have  an  acre  of 
very  fine  soil,  dry  and  protected  from  north  winds 
with  plenty  of  suu.  I  wish  to  cultivate  raspberries  on 
it.  What  is  the  right  time  to  set  them  out  ?  What  are 
the  three  best  varieties  for  market?  What  kind  of 
fertilizer  should  be  used,  and  how  much  per  acre? 
What  berries  are  best  adapted  to  this  climate  ? 
Axs. — We  would  prefer  to  set  them  out  in  early 
spring.  Preferably  our  choice  of  fertilizers  would  be 
raw  bone  flour  and  unleached  wood  ashes,  if  the  latter 
can  be  bought  for  a  reasonable  price — if  not,  use  muri¬ 
ate  of  potash  instead.  The  quantity  of  fertilizer  must 
depend  upon  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  one’s  purse. 
You  may  use  all  the  way  from  25  to  100  bushels  of 
ashes  per  acre ;  100  to  000  pounds  of  muriate  ;  400  to 
1,000  pounds  of  bone.  As  to  varieties  :  the  Cuthbert 
is  the  best  late  red;  Golden  Queen  the  best  yellow; 
Turner  is  a  fine  early  red  for  home  use  ;  Hansell  a  fair 
early  market  red;  Shaffer  is  an  excellent  purple; 
Souhegan,  Progress,  Lovett’s  Early,  Kansas  and  Pal¬ 
mer  are  all  good  blackcaps. 
Chemicals  and  Strawberry  Stubble. 
H.  P.  Nichols,  Nichols,  Conn. — I  notice  in  recent 
Rural  articles  on  plowing  under  crops.  What  is  the 
value  of  an  old  strawberry  bed  plowed  under  ?  As  I 
am  principally  eng  ged  in  fruit  growing,  I  would  like 
to  know  if  this  will  supply  sufficient  vegetable  matter 
to  keep  the  land  in  good  condition,  as  I  use  commercial 
fertilizers  almost  exclusively. 
Axs. — We  cannot  tell  you  any  more  than  we  can 
give  the  value  of  “muck”  witnout  having  a  sample 
analyzed.  It  will  depend  upon  the  amount  of  mulch 
used,  what  that  mulch  is  and  whether  the  bed  is 
heavily  grown  with  weeds  or  grass.  If  the  berries  are 
heavily  mulched  with  stable  manure  and  all  weeds 
grow  after  the  last  picking  there  would  be  a  big  mass 
to  turn  under — plenty  of  organic  matter  to  go  with  the 
chemical  fertilizers.  If  you  can  get  a  copy  of  the 
Connecticut  Station  report  for  1879,  you  will  find  on 
page  G7  an  excellent  article  on  this  matter.  Pierre,  a 
French  chemist,  madeaeareful  estimate  of  the  amount 
of  manurial  matter  in  an  acre  of  strawberry  plants — 
leaves,  stems  and  runners,  at  the  middle  of  August. 
He  found  the  following  in  an  acre  : 
Organic  matter  (without  nitrogen) . Pounds.  1,2'vS. 4 
NltroRen  . \ .  “  88.5 
Phosphoilc  acid .  “  85. a 
Lime .  . .  11  11)2.7 
Potash .  “  89.1 
This  is  for  the  plants  alone  With  the  roots  included 
these  figures  would  be  nearly  doubled  and  a  heavy 
mulch  and  a  crop  of  grass  and  weeds  would  make  a 
still  better  showing. 
A  heavy  clover  sod  with  no  second  growth  will  con¬ 
tain  in  stubble  and  roots,  about  2.000  pounds  of  organic 
matter,  23  pounds  of  nitrogen,  six  of  phosphoric  acid 
and  15  of  potash.  A  heavy  second  crop  will  of  course 
greatly  increase  these  figures  ;  so  that  the  strawberry 
bed — especially  if  well  mulched  with  manure — will 
provide  all  the  organic  matter  needed.  Many  straw- 
berry  growers  follow  that  crop  with  cabbages  and 
grow  excellent  crops. 
Hot  Weather  Ti’eatment  for  Milk. 
Several  Subscribers. — Give  in  a  few  simple  rules  the 
best  way  of  handling  milk  in  hot  weather — 1,  to  keep 
it  sweet  for  shipping  to  town;  2,  to  get  the  best  re¬ 
sults  for  blitter  making.  Describe  the  plan  to  be  fol¬ 
lowed  where  one  has  ice  and  modern  conveniences  and 
also  where  these  are  lacking. 
Axs. — When  milk  is  to  be  shipped  for  city  consump¬ 
tion,  it  should  be  most  carefully  and  thoroughly 
strained  immediately  after  milking.  It  should  next 
be  aerated  thoroughly  by  any  process  at  command, 
but  some  method  is  essential  if  we  are  to  have  it  in  the 
best  possible  condition.  As  soon  as  it  is  aerated  it 
should  be  cooled.  Most  milk  shippers  have  a  supply 
of  ice  and  a  large  tank  into  which  the  cans  of  milk  are 
set.  Ice  is  put  in  the  tank  and  the  milk  is  rapidly 
cooled,  being  stirred  at  fi’equent  intervals  to  prevent 
the  cream  from  rising.  Where  ice  is  not  at  hand,  a 
spring  of  cold  water,  standing  at  48  or  50  degrees,  will 
answer,  though  it  is  not  so  reliable.  Many  Orange 
County,  N.  Y.,  milkmen  rely  on  springs,  especially 
where  they  can  have  a  stream  of  the  spring  water 
running  steadily  into  the  tank,  but  even  then,  in  very 
hot  weather,  their  milk  will,  on  occasion,  spoil  en 
route  to  the  city.  Thorough  aeration  will  do  much 
towai-d  keeping  milk  sweet.  When  milk  is  to  be  made 
into  butter,  aeration  is  not  desirable,  unless  in  cases 
where  vegetation  imparting  disagreeable  odors  to  the 
milk  has  crept  into  the  pastures.  In  such  a  case,  a 
slight  aeration  would  improve  the  flavor  of  the  butter 
with  only  a  very  small  loss  of  cream.  Where  a  cream¬ 
ery  is  at  hand,  the  milk  is  at  once  put  into  it,  and 
thoroughly  iced.  This  brings  the  cream  rapidly  up; 
ordinarily  it  will  be  ready  for  skimming,  if  desirable, 
in  eight  hours.  No  butter  maker  to-day  is  in  a  situation 
to  compete  with  the  best  trade,  if  he  is  obliged  to  do 
without  ice,  though  there  are  many  dairies  where  no 
ice  is  used  that  turn  out  excellent  butter.  Springs 
can  be  used  with  deep  cans,  as  in  the  case  of  milk,  or 
it  may  be  set  in  shallow  pans  on  racks  in  the  coolest 
cellar  at  command.  In  neither  case  will  success  be  as 
complete  as  if  ice  had  been  used.  The  milk  will  coagu¬ 
late  before  the  cream  is  separated  and  there  is  con¬ 
sequent  loss.  It  is  important,  when  cream  is  raised  in 
the  old-fashioned  pans,  that  the  cellar  be  as  well 
ventilated  as  is  compatible  with  coolness.  It  should 
be  used  only  for  a  milk  cellai- — nothing  else. 
Miscellaneous. 
Barbed  Wire  Fence  — J.  H.  G.,  Taylorsville,  Ga. — 
Cattle  are  seldom  badly  hurt  on  a  barbed  wire  fence 
unless  they  are  driven  violently  into  it  through  fright. 
Colts  are  often  severely  cut.  We  would  not  use  it  for 
horse  pasture. 
Crimson  Clover. — C.  J.  M. ,  Bardstown,  Ky. — Crimson 
Clover  ought  to  do  well  in  your  latitude.  It  prefers  a 
mellow  soil  not  too  wet.  There  is  some  misunder¬ 
standing  about  the  best  use  for  this  plant.  In  a  recent 
letter  Prof.  W.  F.  Massey  says  of  it :  “  Oats  and  peas 
did  splendidly  this  spring  at  the  North  Carolina  Sta¬ 
tion.  I  have  not  heard  Prof.  Emery’s  estimate  of  their 
value  as  compared  with  Crimson  Clover  as  forage. 
The -latter  is  out  of  the  way  earlier,  but,  like  Orchard 
Grass,  comes  at  a  bad  hay-curing  season  being  gener¬ 
ally  here  the  last  week  in  April.  I  am  inclined  to 
value  this  clover  more  highly  for  green-manuring  than 
for  hay,  although  when  successfully  handled  it  makes 
a  fine  crop.” 
L.  J.,  Richford,  N.  Y. — Mr.  D.  C.  Lewis  uses  the 
Mapes  fertilizers.  On  such  land  as  you  describe  he 
would,  after  thoroughly  preparing  the  soil,  use  500 
pounds  of  fertilizer  with  the  wheat  and  sow  Timothy 
seed  with  it.  Next  spring  he  would  sow  clover  and 
reasonably  expect  a  good  meadow. 
