542  Hess  Home-Made  Milk  Refrigerator.  {^gS* 
THE  HESS  HOME-MADE  MILK  REFRIGERATOR.1 
Milk  that  is  not  kept  cold  is  a  dangerous  food  for  babies.  Every 
minute  that  the  milk  is  much  above  the  temperature  of  ice  the  germs 
of  disease  are  increasing  in  it  at  an  alarming  rate.  Very  many 
babies  die  of  summer  complaint  merely  because  they  have  been 
given  milk  that  has  stood  for  hours  in  a  warm  room.  Keeping  the 
bottle  in  a  refrigerator  containing  a  small  piece  of  ice,  does  not 
make  milk  a  safe  food.,  for  the  temperature  in  these  boxes  is  often 
55  to  60  degrees  Fahrenheit ;  that  is,  far  above  the  freezing  point. 
Many  mothers  who  have  refrigerators  are  unable  to  buy  enough 
ice  in  summer  to  preserve  the  milk  in  them  for  twenty-four  hours. 
This  should  not  be,  for  anyone  can  make  at  home  a  cheap  but  ex- 
cellent milk  refrigerator,  requiring  very  little  ice.  A  simple  re- 
frigerator of  this  kind  uses  less  than  five  cents'  worth  of  ice  every 
day,  keeps  the  milk  below  40  degrees  (that  is  near  freezing  point) 
so  that  mothers  having  one  may  be  sure  that  the  warm  weather 
cannot  spoil  the  baby's  milk.  Such  an  ice  box  is,  therefore,  eco- 
nomical, and  protects  the  baby. 
How  to  Make  One. — Get  a  wooden  box  at  a  grocery  store,  such 
as  a  soap  box,  fifteen  inches  in  depth.  Buy  a  covered  earthenware 
crock,  tall  enough  to  hold  a  quart  bottle  of  milk.  Also  get  a  piece 
of  oilcloth  or  linoleum  about  a  foot  wide  and  three  feet  long.  Sew 
the  ends  together  to  make  a  cylinder  which  will  fit  loosely  around 
the  crock.  Place  the  crock  inside  the  oilcloth  cylinder,  and  stand 
them  in  the  center  of  the  box.  Now  pack  sawdust  or  excelsior 
beneath  and  all  about  them  to  keek  the  heat  from  getting  in.  Com- 
plete the  refrigerator  by  nailing  a  Sunday  paper  or  two  other  news- 
papers to  the  wooden  cover  of  the  box.    It  is  now  ready  for  use. 
How  to  Use  It. — In  the  morning  as  soon  as  you  receive  the 
milk,  place  it  in  the  crock ;  crack  five  cents'  worth  of  ice  and  place 
it  about  the  milk  bottle.  Place  the  cover  on  the  crock  and  the  lid 
on  the  wooden  box.  No  matter  how  hot  the  day  has  been,  you  will 
find  some  unmelted  ice  in  the  crock  the  next  morning.  Remove 
the  crock  every  morning  to  pour  oft  the  melted  ice. 
1  Reprinted  from  Public  Health  Xczcs,  July  (the  monthly  publication  of 
the  Department  of  Health  of  New  Jersey). 
