140 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Butter is one of the staple productions of our state; and every 
hint that serves to improve its quality, or increase its quantity, must 
be useful. There are various methods of making’ butter, as from 
new milk, lobbered milk and cream; and there is certainly a great 
diversity in its quality. The cause of this difference may partially 
be owing to the season, the feed and the breed of cows, but most 
is owing to management. Our dairy women are very much like 
their good husbands, apt to be somewhat conceited, too wise to learn, 
and generally believe their own mode the best, and never suspect¬ 
ing that philosophy or science can have any sort of connection with 
this humble branch of household labor. All seem to be agreed, 
however, upon the following points: 
1. That cleanliness is the first requisite, for many and very obvi¬ 
ous reasons. 
2. That every sort of liquid should be separated from the butter— 
because if such is suffered to remain, it soon becomes rancid, and 
taints the mass. 
3. That the salt used to preserve it should be pure, because bad 
salt will not keep it sweet—rock salt, and that produced by solar 
evaporation, being deemed best. 
4. That no more salt be used, than is necessary to render the 
butter palatable—all excess being injurious to the taste, and an im¬ 
position upon the buyer. 
5. That the vessel in which it is packed should be incapable of 
imparting to it any bad flavor—wood abounding in pyrolijrnic acid, 
and red earthen being improper—-the first giving a bad taste, and 
the latter, by reason of the decomposition of the glazing, which con¬ 
tains lead, being in a measure poisonous. 
G. That when packed, the external air should be wholly excluded 
from the butter—because the air soon induces rancidity. 
Our dairy women have added two other rules, which they deem 
all important to the preservation of good butter, but which I am in¬ 
duced to think are but little known and less practised, viz: 
7. That no water be suffered to come in contact with the butter 
in any stage of the process—because it tends to lessen the essentia] 
volatile matter which gives to butter its rich peculiar flavor. 
8. To have the salt incorporated with the butter in the first ope- ! 
ration of working, and after an interval of twenty-four hours, to ap¬ 
ply again the butter ladle until the whole of the liquid is expelled. 
By this operation the salt is dissolved and effectually blended with 
the butter, which is freed more effectually from buttermilk. 
And we will add two other rules, viz: 
9. When the cream is employed, it should be somewhat sour, 
though not stale, as in this state the butter more readily separates 
from the serous or cheesy matter. 
10. That the temperature of the cream, wl en submitted to the 
churning process, should not be below 52, nor above 62 degrees—a 
lower temperature rendering the separation difficult, and a higher 
one essentially impairing the quality of the butter. A thermometer 
with a sliding guage, adapted to this and other household purposes, 
will cost $2 or $2.50. The temperature maybe regulated without 
bringing water in contact with the cream, by setting the churn in a 
tub of water, either hot or cold, as may be required to change the 
temperature of the cream. 
We sat down to write merely an introduction to two tables, which 
we are about to copy, and which indicate the temperature at which 
cream may be most advantageously wrought into butter. It may be 
said that these will serve but little purpose, as a thermometer is sel¬ 
dom seen in a dairy house; yet it will show the importance of keep¬ 
ing one. 
The Highland Society of Scotland offered a premium on experi¬ 
ments on the temperature at which butter can be best procured from 
cream. The following tables show the result of a part of these ex¬ 
periments. The detail may be found in vol. vii. of the Society’s 
transactions, p. 194 to 201. 
o 
5? 
Date of ex¬ 
periment. 
No. of j Mean jTime occu- 
gallonsj temp, (pied churn. 
Quantity of j Quantity of 
butter obt’d|inilk churnd 
1825 
hours. 
min. 
lb. oz. dwt. 
lbs. oz. 
1 
August 18. 
15 
55° 
4 
0 
1 15 7.5 
8 9 
2 
“ 26. 
15 
60 
3 
15 
1 15 3.2 
8 8 
3 
“ 30. 
15 
62 
3 
0 
1 14 0 
8 8 
4 Sept. 4.... 
15 
64 
3 
1 
1 12 12.7 
8 8 
5 
“ 9.... 
15 
70 
2 
30 
1 10 10.6 
8 7 
OBSERVATIONS. 
“ The butter produced in the first experiment was of the very best 
quality, being rich, firm and well tasted. 
“ The second experiment yielded butter of a good quality, and not 
perceptibly inferior to the former. 
‘•In the third experiment, butter of a good quality was obtained, 
but of an inferior consistency. 
“ The fourth experiment produced soft and spongy butter. 
“ The butter produced in the fifth experiment was decidedly infe¬ 
rior in every respect to any of the former specimens.” 
| Number. | 
Date. 
Heat of cream] 
Scotch pints 
of cream. 
Deg’s of heat 
when butter 
came. 
Quantity of 
butter, 16 
oz. to the 
pound. 
Time of chur¬ 
ning. 
W’tof cream. 
Heat of air at 
8 P. M. 
1 Jun. 13 56° 
16 
60° 
161bs. 8oz. 
lj hours. 
4 to pint. 
56® 
2 
20 
52 
16 
56 
161bs. 
2 hours. 
do 
52 
3 
24 
52 
16 
56 
161bs. 
2 hours. 
do 
52 
4 
July 12 63 
16 
67 
151bs. 8oz. 
30 min. 
3 to 14 
70 
5 
Oct. 20 50 
16 
531 
151bs. 12oz. 
3 hours. 
4 1 
50 
6 Aug20i53| 
16 
57 J 
161bs. 5oz. 
lh. 15m. 
4 lbs. 
No. 1, shows the greatest quantity of butter produced by the above 
heats. 
No. 2, the best quality of the butter. 
No. 3, the fine flavor and quality of this butter could not be sur¬ 
passed. 
No. 4, the quality soft, white and milky. 
No. 5, quality injured by long churning. 
No. 6, quality most excellent, high in colour and flavor, and solid 
as wax. 
From the experiments, as shown in both tables, it would appear, 
that the proper temperature at which to commence churning butter, 
is from 50 to 55°, and that at no time in the operation ought it to 
exceed 65° or fall below 50°. 
THE COLUMBIAN STRAW CUTTER, 
Fig. 44. 
Being recommended for its durability, is described as follows :■—Three 
knives are placed diagonally on two wheels, two feet in diameter, 
and attached thereto by screws. As these wheels revolve, the knives 
pass the bed shear. Being graduated by these screws, they can be 
set so perfectly to the shear, that not a single straw can pass uncut. 
It receives a layer of hay or straw, eighteen inches in width, and of 
good thickness, perfectly to the cutting point, feeding itself by means 
of a couple of small rollers. 
These machines can be seen at W. Thorburn’s Agricultural Re¬ 
pository, corner of North Market-street and Maiden-lane, or at the 
factory in Syracuse. 
STOCK, IMPLEMENTS AND SEEDS. 
O’ To facilitate the wishes of our customers, who are desirous 
of purchasing choice live stock, implements, seeds, &c. we will re¬ 
ceive, if sent us free of charge, and enter in a book of reference in 
our office, from those who have these for sale, memoranda of cattle, 
sheep, seeds or implements, the owner’s name, residence, price, &,c. 
As a compensation to the clerk, for making the entries and answer¬ 
ing inquiries, a charge of twenty-five cents will be required for each 
