OUR DAIRIES

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume VI, Issue 586, 24 February 1882, Page 2

OUR DAIRIES

No. B.—-Mr Nakbey's, at Long Bay,

It is a very pleasant ride from Akaroa up the German Bay Hill, past the side school and Mr Chappell's. and along the Long Bay road to Mr Narbey's. We miff Mr B. Mahnaneho at work fencing in Mr Lyon's splendid estate of nearly 3000 acres. Mr Narbey's homestead is right at the end of Long Buy, and close to the sea, being very prettily situated. The produce ia till shipped, Dominique coming round at in tervsils in the Petrel to Luke it away. There is a substantial house, good st<>ckyard and sheep pens, and the old dwellinghouse has been turned into a convenient woolshed. The dairy, large, airy, and commodious, has been built specially for the purpose. It comprises two large eompartir.ents, the dairy proper and the cheese luoni, and the former contains every requisite for the important work of cheese making. Mr Narbey's dairy was long the largest on the Peninsula, over a hundred cows being milked, and last season fourteen tons of cheese were turned out. This year, however, the whole of the calves have heen reared, and a number more sheep have been put on the place, so that only 70 cows are being, milked, from which about 12011) of cheese is made daily. The Long Bay estate is nearly 1000 acres, and besides this Mr Narbey has 400 acres in Paua Bay. On this 1400 acres, much of which is excellent land, about 2000 sheep and 200 head of cattle are running, and of course a few horses. The run is fenced into convenient paddocks, and can be worked easily, thanks to the great amount of labor that has been expended on it. Mr Narbey is now hard at work ploughing, and hopes to get a large piece of land sewn down in grats this coming season. _ The implement he is at present using is an ordinary one, but h> intends to procure one of the new hill-side ploughs, and to cultivate a great part of his estate. Long Bay has been long occupied. It was one of Mr ilhodes , stations about the time the French landed at Akaroa, and afterwards Mr Win. Birdling was overseer there. Large numbers of pigs used then to be kept on the place, and about seven acres ;of land were in a state of cultivation. It s no w 28 years since Mrs Narbey settled iv Long Buy, and Mr Narbey has been there 2G. During the whole of this time dairy work has been going on. Originally the cheese used to bo made Dunlop fashion, and Mrs Nurbey is still of opinion that the old fashioned system produced, an equally good article. The storekeepers of Akaroa, however, preferred cheese made by the. new system, so it wass adopted years ago. As before stated, more than seventy calves were reared this year. They were all fed on now milk, getting about a gallon a meal, and were actually weaned on new milk at three and up to four months old. The consequence- is that they are really a splendid lot of youngsters. Mr Narbey now superintends the making of the cheese. Mrs Narbey having retired | alter many years' work :it it, and his system of working is i\s follows. The mil is set in pans, and in the morning it i H i

skimmed and the cream warmed and added. After the new milk is put in, the whole is set at about 81—a little warmer if the weather is cold. Hansen's Extract is used, and sour whey is added in proper proportion. It is generally then left for an hour, after which it is cut across with a knife, and when the whey rises, about a quarter of an hour later, some of it is taken out and wanned to 140 deg. After stirring this in. it is allowed to settle, and then some more whey is taken and warmed to 150 deg, and, after heing well mixed with the curds, it is all allowed to stop for an hour, at the expiration of which the whey is run off. The curd is then bruised in the big tub with the lid of the dripper till it becomes quite firm. It is then placed in the dripper and the lever applied for the first time. After ten minutes pressing it, is taken out and cut up SMiall, after which it is again pressed for a quarter of an hour and cut up fine for the second time. Twenty minutes more pressing, and it is again broken up Qne and pressed. It is then taken out of the dripper arid cut up small for the fourth time and allowed to stand for a quarter of an hour on the table and afterwards ground. After grinding it is again placed in the dripper and more weight applied for twenty minutes. It is then ground for the last time, salted and put in the chessets. These are of different sizes, tsome holding 301K others 431bs, and others 581bs of cheese. No cheese less than 30tt>s in weight are made. At present two 581bs chessets are filled daily. After remaining in the press the usual time the cheese are bound and stored. The whey is (as usual) utilised in feeding pigs. Our reporter cannot conclude withoa returning thanks for the great courtesy with which he was treated, and the facilities placed in his way for gaining information.