

New YorK AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 249 
lated on the outer surface of the cheese. When the surface of 
the cheese is well cleansed, it is carefully wiped dry with a linen 
towel and placed upon a shelf in the curing room. In being 
placed on the shelves, the cheese should be placed in contact so 
as to support one another, until they have flattened out at both 
ends so much that they can stand upright alone. Then they are 
placed far enough apart to allow a little air space between them. 
Another method of securing the flattened ends is to support each 
cheese on opposite sides by wedge-shaped pieces of wood. After 
they are placed on the shelves in the curing room, they are — 
turned once a day and rubbed with the bare hand during the 
first month, twice a week during the second month, and once a 
week after that. When any slimy substance appears on the 
surface of the cheese, it should be washed off at once with warm 
water or sweet whey. The special conditions of the curing room 
will be noticed in detail below. . When the cheeses are about two 
months old, they can be prepared for market, which is done in 
the following manner: They are first made smooth on the 
surface by being turned in a lathe or in some other manner, after 
which the surface is colored. For coloring, some carmine is dis- 
solyed in alcohol or ammonia to get the proper shade, and in this 
color-bath the cheeses are placed for about one minute, when 
they are removed and allowed to drain, and as soon as they are 
dry the outside of each cheese is rubbed with boiled linseed oil, 
in order to prevent checking. They are then wrapped in tin-foil, 
which is done very much like the bandaging. Care must be 
taken to put the tin-foil on so that it presents a smooth, neat 
appearance. ‘The cheeses are finally packed in boxes, containing 
twelve cheeses in each box, arranged in two layers of six each 
with a separate partition for each cheese. 
4 
9, CuRING-ROOM. 
Much more attention must be given to the conditions of the 
curing-room as regards moisture and temperature than in the case 
of Cheddar cheese. The curing-room should be well ventilated, 
should be quite moist and its temperature should be kept between 
32 
