THE DAIRYING INDUSTRY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8046, 7 February 1906, Page 3

THE DAIRYING INDUSTRY.

A BLACK' PICTntE. The following appears in the Wellington " Post," ami is a fail' sample of i\liat is hciiii written of the dairying industry :—That is where the hardship conies in—the unpleasant circumstances in which the milking is done. In iii'iny cases these conditions arc, to say the least, very nasty. Take for example the case of a man who milks oil cows with the labour of his fjimily of four or live, living in a district where

the roiul* arc bail, where there is a Jii'k of gravel, mill ii heavy rainfall. 11l such a easethere arc probably from live to ten bales, in a shod of indifferent structure, ami built upon a liail siti', whore them is little or no drainage. The cows are brought into ■ the yard to await milking, anil what with the manure, the wet weather, ami the nature of the soil, the yard is a veritable quagmire--and it remains so for the greater part 0 f tin- year. The conseitucucc is that the row. entering the bail ,to bejmiikeil, is eovereil with mild iip to tlie belly—even the udder sometimes make a liltle furrowa- the cow ploughs through the slush. Imagine the child milking, with its

bead pressed against the wet and liltliy side of tlie cow! The shed Veing small, anil the bails crumped, dirty, draughty, anil leaky, tlie task of milking cows that are wringing wet must be tlie acme of discomfort and unwliolcsomencss.

"Of course, you at once sec the impossibility, under the circumstances, of producing milk in a cleanly-like condition. The regulations of the Dairying Department, for instance, provide that the udder must be washed prior to milking. This regulation is more honored in the breach than the observance, and in any case such washing as the udder receives is a 1 wipe with a dirty cloth rather thai, anything else. The yards—l have seen scores of them—are in many cases a mixture of alluvium and foeces. The gm'nis contained in this matter enter the milk, anil the deleterious effects on the dairy produce can be better imagined than described."

Footballers are mil usually irnlil<■<! with very acute powers of observation outside of matters pertaining 1" their pastime ; but Mr W. .1. Stead, Ilie vice, captain of the 2Je«" Zealand team, seems to be a "somewhat different" sportsman. Writing to the " Southland Times" of the visit to Ireland, lie says:—"Dublin, with practically no industries of any sort, excepting (luin-! liess's Brewery, is a l'apidiv deteriorating city, and one sees sights there among the poorer classes which lend In sicken the senses and set the mind wondering how it is these poor peasantry manage to live. Fur absolute poverty, with its attendant squalor and dirt. I never wish to see again the equal of that which 1 saw in the Irish capital city."

A BOON TO PAIliniKN. A bail lias been patented by a Taranaki linn, which is far in advance of any other contrivance for securing cows while being milked. II is operated from the back of the cow, anil she can lie bailed up or released with the . greatest ease by even the smallest milker. Dairymen will lind these bails are not only great tinie.savers, but are reliable, easy to lix, and never get out of repair ; in fact, can be lixed with little alteration in any shed in which old hails arc at present in use. The articles supplied arc' —2 screw pulleys, 11ft of cord and rinu, I it'mi bail; and the cost is only ;i few shillings. Messrs Kobertsnii mhl Bond, of faardct street, .New l'lvi: mith, are the patentees and vendors. ,\n illustrated IcatUt, and all estimates or particulars, will lie provided to enquirers free. The following letter just received speaks volumes: Messrs Robertson and Bond, New Plymouth---Dear Sirs, — I have pleasure in stating that the new cow bails von supplied are giving every satisfaction. They are easy to lix. ami effect a great saving of time. I lirnily believe it they were used cmtiuinilly for twelve months they would more than save their first eost. I e-in confidently recommend them to all dairymen. Wishing you every success, I am, faithfully yours, -II oiikkt Clesiow, jOmata, Taranaki.