850 
The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
June 1021 
THE MILK 1'AIL.—Milk pails, especially those 
•which have a half cover over them or a wire mesh 
strainer, should be well washed under these hidden 
parts. If any of the seams in your milk pail start 
to split open have them promptly soldered, even if 
the pail does not actually leak. 
BOTTLERS AND SEPARATORS.—Other machines 
with which your creamery may he equipped must 
also he given scrupulous care. The bottling machine 
has not many complex parts, so it is easily cleaned. 
Have a brush to run through each of the tubes. 
Filler tubes are fine refuges for bacteria, and cannot 
be neglected. After your machine is well scoured 
out add to the general discomfort of any remaining 
bacteria by means of a pail of scalding water. 
Almost, every person is versed in the cleaning of the 
separator. As long as all of the plates are clean and 
shiny your separator will run well, but as soon as 
any rust or old milk gets on them it will not sepa¬ 
rate to 100 per cent efficiency. 
MILKING MACHINES.—Milking machines may 
be the weak point in a dairy, or may not. It is 
essential to make one man responsible for cleaning 
them. These machines are the natural enemy of the 
low bacteria count. Every tube through which milk 
passes must be brushed out with brushes provided 
for that purpose, and they must be brushed out. once 
a week regularly. It. is poor policy to try to save 
time on this operation, as it. is one of the big secrets 
of clean milk. Clean out the traps each day if there 
are any on your machine. Just before milking any 
rubbery odor can be washed out of the tubes by 
passing lukewarm water through them. After milk¬ 
ing rinse out with clean water and keep the teat 
caps completely covered with a sterilizing solution. 
When putting them down try to get all of the air out 
of the tubes, so that the solution can come in con¬ 
tact with all parts of the rubber. 
KEEPING DIRT OFT.—Straining milk is of the 
greatest importance. There is nothing much more 
disgusting to a customer than to pick up a bottle of 
milk and see a chunk of dirt in it. It is especially 
hard to keep milk free from dust when milking 
machines are used, as they will suck up any kind of 
dust. This dust is the hardest to get out of the milk. 
In the absence of a clarifier there is only one way 
that I know of. and that is by passing it through 
cotton. This operation will take out every last bit 
of dirt. Re sure that the can you strain your milk 
into is clean, or all of your work will be lost. It is 
a good plan to flush out all milk containers just 
before using them, even if they have previously been 
thoroughly scrubbed. Milk will follow the path of 
least resistance, so that if there are any holes in 
your straining apparatus, or any leaks, the milk will 
surely go through these loopholes. 
COOLING.—Cooling milk is one of the prime fac¬ 
tors which determine whether your milk is to be 
good or poor. However, it is usually one of the neg¬ 
lected necessities. Bacteria will multiply at, the rate 
of about one division every 20 minutes, while the 
temperature remains above 50 degrees F. Let. us 
suppose that your can has but a thousand bacteria 
ir. it. If if. is not cooled below 50 degrees F. in 20 
minutes you will have 2.000, then 4.000, and so on 
the number doubles itself. But if it is cooled down 
it will stay sweet before the bacteria can multiply 
enough to make the milk sour. This fact cannot 
readily be appreciated, because those bacteria can¬ 
not lie seen. But if you are having any trouble in 
keeping your milk sweet look at the 
cooling system. Are you cooling if 
down as low and as soon after milking 
as possible? An aerator is a good piece 
of apparatus with which to cool milk, 
but I think it can as well be cooled if 
it is left, in the can and set right into 
a tank of ice water. This is not very 
effective unless it is stirred every few 
minutes. This latter method of cool¬ 
ing appeals to me because it. saves pass¬ 
ing the milk through another piece of 
apparatus, and even though the aerator 
be perfectly clean the milk will pick 
up some bacteria on the way through. 
Incidentally it is one less piece of ap¬ 
paratus to wash. 
BOTTLING.—Milk, if it is to <- take” 
with the customers, must be bottled 
and delivered in good condition. A 
good cream line is especially desirable. 
I have found that the maximum cream 
line can he obtained if the milk is bot¬ 
tled just as soon as the steam goes off. 
If this is done the bottles must imme¬ 
diately be put under ice water. If the 
milk is bottled while it is still steaming 
it will have a peculiar taste. After 
bottling wash off all the bottles, as any 
milk left on the outside will collect 
dirt and make a poor-looking bottle. 
BACTERIAL COUNT.—The Board 
of Health allows a count of 300,000, 
but that does not. mean that a man 
should aim at 209.000. Rather, he 
should, aim to make it as low as pos¬ 
sible. Milking machines, as I have 
said before, can cause a very high 
count unless cleaned thoroughly and 
regularly. Another bad thing is the 
bad habit of wet hand milking. This 
should not be tolerated around any 
barn any more than should any man 
be allowed to milk a cow with dirty 
hands. These are but a few of the 
precautions which must always be taken. Each one 
must be rigidly observed if a good standard is to be 
maintained. One omission one day may throw all 
of that day’s milk off. So, for your own sake, 
produce clean milk. georoe Webber. 
Oil is Cheaper Than Machinery 
T HE above advice was given the writer before he 
became a tractor owner. Ninety per cent, of all 
tractor troubles, particularly in the early life of the 
tractor, is due to improper lubrication. Conse¬ 
quently most careful attention should be gives to 
its use. . 
I asked the farmer who gave me the early advice 
what oil he used, and the amount. He poured a 
little from the can, and told me the oil cost him 00 
cents a gallon by the barrel. He further told me 
that in his tractor he was using from a gallon to 
two gallons daily. Had I been told that it would 
require that amount of oil for any tractor I would 
not have given the tractor any consideration. My 
“Dry” Refreshments for the Hay Field 
H IGH-GRADE MILK.—Clean, high-grade milk is 
generally accepted and defined as milk having 
a low bacteria count, no sediment, and free from all 
odors and undesirable flavors. Because of the gen¬ 
erally poor market for milk at present-, many small 
dairies are springing up over certain sections of the 
State. This greatly increases competition, and the 
man who wins out is the man who produces a really 
high grade of milk. Even in the face of competition 
he can name his price and be fairly sure of the back¬ 
ing of his customers. The bottle of milk which one 
sees on somebody’s doorstep is the result of a num¬ 
ber of chain-like processes. No one of these can be 
omitted without lowering the general quality of that 
bottle of milk. Each of the links must be carefully 
watched if the chain as a whole is to remain intact. 
AY ASHING UTENSILS.—Washing cans seems to 
come under the first consideration. To wash them 
properly it would seem as though two washing tanks 
should be provided, one a wash and one a rinse tank. 
Hot or warm water is of course quite necessary. A 
good soap powder or cleanser or plain soap is an¬ 
other essential. Scrub every one of the creases in 
the can. The top especially should be scrubbed, as 
the cream settles and deposits a layer 
of grease up here. The bottom creases 
should not be neglected, as any small 
quantities of milk settle into these and 
sour. Watch the cover also, for there, 
too. are many hiding places for bac¬ 
teria. It is important not to call the 
can clean until it smells perfectly 
sweet. This is quite a sure test for 
cleanliness. Steam is a great thing in 
finishing up cans. It kills all bacteria 
which may he left in the can after 
washing, and so keeps out the bacteria 
count a great deal. In the absence of 
steam a good odorless disinfectant is 
quite necessary in the rinse water. 
CLEANSING R< )TTLES. — Bottles, 
too, are very important articles, both 
from a standpoint of bacteria and sedi¬ 
ment. It. goes unsaid that, a turbine 
bottle washer is superior to hand wash¬ 
ing. At any rate, the bottles must be 
well swabbed out. taking great pains to 
get out. every bit of old milk which may 
be left in the bottle. I would lay 
special emphasis on this last statement, 
as this old milk has millions of lactic 
acid bacteria in every cubic centimeter. 
These bacteria are the ones which are 
responsible for the souring of milk, so 
with any of this old milk left in your 
cleaned bottle your count will not be 
very low. Put plenty of a good cleanser 
in the wash water. Soap powder does 
not seem to be as effective for washing 
bottles as a soda-ash cleanser, because 
it leaves a soapy scum on the bottles. 
Rinse the bottles in a tank of clear 
water, and rinse them well, so that no 
small particles of dirt or dust are left 
in them. These specks will settle to 
the bottom of the bottle when it is 
filled with milk. If the rinse water is 
cold the bottles will shine like dia¬ 
monds when removed from it. If steam 
is not available for sterilizing put a good sterilizing 
agent in the rinse water. Such a disinfectant can 
be easily and cheaply made by soaking a can of 
chloride of lime in a gallon of water. Mix them 
well and let stand for a few hours. Use only the 
clear liquid off the top, which will be yellowish. 
This can be used only in a cold rinse water. Dry 
the bottles by turning them upside down in a milk 
crate. In any event, do not turn them upside down 
on a flat surface. The bottles will not dry, and the 
odor of the surface on which they are inverted will 
permeate the inside of the bottle. 
CARE WITH STRAINERS.—None of the milk 
utensils can be safely disregarded. The first thing 
which I think of is the strainer or strainer cloth. 
The strainer cloth can do a lot of damage with the 
bacteria count if it is not thoroughly washed and 
boiled out each day. All of the milk passes through 
this cloth, so it above all things must be clean. The 
same applies to the wire mesh in the strainer. Milk 
will cake between the meshes unless these meshes 
are well cleaned each day. 
How to Produce Clean, Hi^h-Grade Milk 
