THE MILKING MACHINE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1835, 22 August 1913, Page 10

THE MILKING MACHINE.

r.' •' A:USER'S ADVICE. The use of milking machines and their /influence ou the'finality..and..prices oj (dairy produce has-Riven dairymen, and others interested in the industry subject •uiiatter for considerable anxiety ami <lisicussiou of late. All who have given the lojiatter thought are agreed that the meiclmnical device is >1 necessary part of the 'dairyman's outfit, where his operations are extensive, but. theyfure also emphatic in .'their condemnations of tho failures oi ;anaiiy to observe the necessity of keeping i'tho machines' in a perfect state of cleanliness. The results.of examinations- of Sdairy plants matle by, the Departmental inspectors last season revealed an. appalling percentage of badly-cnred-for machines uud parts. Some had been palpably neglected ; others were in ; air-unsatisfactory ■condition, mainly because of ignorance Vjn the part of the.user/who,, while paying great attention externally, had neIglected ta attend to those parts hidden kfrom view. As one rwult of the investigations made by/the Department, together (with reports of the failing quality in tpriccso.fw .'produce,, has, now been centred trouble, which will iduibtless have a beneficial effect in future. When discussing this problem with mo. gentleman who has been closely associated' with the dairying business for a 'great many, years', and -who is a firm believer iii the efficacy oi the machines, a (Dominion representative inquired what ,-his experience • had been, and■ the best 'mud IsiTn'plestv measuffS: .of -meeting ■ "the 'trouble: ' The .'OTpiy - >was.-that' after five !years",experience with the machines, he 'was satisfied that they were, if properly cared Yf6r,':a better way of securing pure milk; than; the old hand-milking system. At theToutse't lie condemned overhead appliances,for: the conveyance of milk from the milk-bjickets of a receiving can. The. jnore pipe.s 'and tubing the' niilk had to. i; > through, the / ; grea,ter the--' risk uf contamination.- ] As- a matter, of fact;-he contended, most of the faults <it present - urged against the machines fyuld be .traced to the extras, and, not Jo the actual milking machine itsalf. On being requested to describe his methods in looking' after the "machines, ho said <luit very, often the blame for dirty milk ,lvas Jaut at the wroii" door, and lie proceeded, to pbint out that, to ensure that it'.he milk; is perfectly clean, preventive Jncasurea-against dirt liave to be coin-, (mencect before the operation of milking [begins. 'The .base of purity of milk, he Claimed,-lies, in thoroughly cleansing the [cow's * teats.' Ha went on to say that a cow's teat was never clean when she was (brought, into the yard, although it might I appear so to tho eye. This being so, a treat'many, milkers neglected to wash the [teats kinless mud or other dirt could be (Been. The teats must be washed before fevery milking operation, because of ths ituioumulati'on'. of natural perspiration Lwhicli 'was always on' them, particularly ffin hot ,weather, i To the. eye the teat tani<jht appear perfectly clean, but this Minimal grease, when brought into contact [with thieinflators and the rubber of the jnilker, was absorbed in the material. pS'o matter wliat might be done to clean (the .parts afterwards, by way of hot Iwater Mild' sterilisation, tho grease could piever t»B removed. In fact, matters wore anade worse, because the heat drew the janinml fat to tho surface, which then ilbecame sticky on tho surface,. while the jiubber remained impregnated with the offensive matter. The main point to be It'inphasised as a preventive was to cleanse •the teat first and always. This, of course, 3)0 went on, did not mean that the machine parts should not be. washed and thoroughly cleansed, but it was of no use applying hot water to the rubber once it jimd become foul. Hotter leave" it alone. I'or general cleansing of the machine after (removal from the cow,- the best way was Ito take a bucket of clean water and draw dl. through the machine into the milk receptacle. Thii should be dono immediately after the last cow had been milked in each.' machine. It was unwiso to ..wait till the whole of tho-machines were ;out of uie. Trouble often ocourred through 'tho miilkx'lying in tho tubes. fKext, repeat this operation with a bucket jof warm water, adding two tablespoons of la suitable oleansing powder. Finally, all' 'iinilk tubes and teat cups should be placed (an a vat of clean lime water and put in ;\a dark place. In preparing the lime water the best way was to place half a ihandful of lime in a small perforated tin, and plunge it into the water, and so prevent ''any grit getting into tho milk ■passage of the machine. Heat, tight, and : grease; • ho concluded, are the three worst , «nemies which tho dairy-farmer has to contend against in the care of his machines, with particular application to tho irtibbei 1 "' parts. One other remark made Tjv this authority was to point out an /essential which he urged every owner ot milking machines should cbserve. Be Kure-dud start the milk in the teat by taid before the lnaoliino cup is applied. Tliiii operation allows, the. attendant to observ'o that, all the quarters of, the udder are in a ifyoalthy condition, and that the ir.iilk itself is satisfactory. It was not a waste of time, but rather.a time-saver, because the. cow was ready to yield her full milk flow as soon as tho machines were placed in position. Summed up,- tho successful running of mechanical plants, and - the socuring of pure milk, mainly depended upon tho observance of small ■points such as those .mentioned.' A maji had no rig Tit to install a plant unless he ■took precautions to learn how to look after it before he'started the machinery going.

The Holstein breed of cattla seems to bo gaining more popularity overy year. From recent English files nt is noticed that tho Ayrshire citadel/ is being; challenged, for at the Inst stock exhibition of the Highland Agricultural Society at Paisley, Scotland, there wis, for the first time/, a good showing of the Continental cattlOi Tvhioh were spoken o£ by the judge as being, a. very fine class.