The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. UNKNOWN TUESDAY, JAN. 17 1888.

Waikato Times, Volume XXX, Issue 2421, 17 January 1888, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. UNKNOWN TUESDAY, JAN. 17 1888.

Gkkatbu attention is now being given to the dairy industry than has hitherto boon devoted to it, and there are indications flint, it is destined to piny 11 not-iuuoiuuclorable part, in the future commercial progress of Now Zealand. The recent enterprise manifested by the .Now Zealand i'reezing Company in the .North and similar companies in the South, iollowing the example of other countries, in establishing creamcrit'S tor the manufacture of butter on a large scale for home consumption and export, has drawn towards the new industry the amount of public attention its importance entitles it to. There is 110 doubt a very considerable export trade in colonial made' butter, a trade capable ot' the widest expansion, lies before us in the immediate future. The principal market is to be found in the United Kingdom, to whose ports there are established lim-s of the finest ocean steamers plying from the chief ports of the colony, litted up with the latest improvements in cool chambers, and eapaple of carrying full cargoes of all our surplus commodities. It is an astounding fact that no less than two hundred million pounds weight of butter, representing the enormous value of twelve millions sterling, is imported annually into Great Jiritaiu. That large sum of money goes into the pocket of the foreigner alone. Then! is besides this a proportionately large trade in foreign-mado cheese. This tremendous deficiency in the Home dairy production is clearly in consequence of the insu'lieient number of cows in the United Kingdom in proportion to the population. Thus, England with a population of thirtyfour millions, has only four million cows ; whereas, France with thirtyseven million inhabitants has eleven million cows : America, with a population of lifty-five millions has thirty-four million cows, and Holland, with a population of four millions has one and a half million cows. In the same proportion with the other named countries there should be about fourteen million cows in Great Uritain. It will thus be seen, that with such an absorbing market as the there is a wide field for the colonial dairy producers, who can compete profitably with either the (Jonti.nent.fi.! or Auv.-vi :v.\ exporters. 'lave said before, the dairy ■. /sin the i ionic Country are now forming the subject of close study, and very much greater attention ; they lire rapidly developing into tiie field, of practical science ; and the analysis of milk as :• model e ri-icle of food, or its chemical composition for (he successful mauuiV'turo of sound butter are demon-'-I r,-\f"d by experts for the general information of dairy farmer:-'. The average sample of milk contains, per gallon, .SfrO.'s of •water : 71 of butter fat; IVG7 of easeine, or curd ; ">T I of milk sugar, and 'S-'i of mineral matter. '1 lie chemical composition of butter fat is very complicated, the cl .intents v.'hir-h constitute the whole of the fatlysubstanceg and milk su»ar, with fully f. vc-sixtlis of the caseine, being entirely derived from atmospheric .souicos. The specific gravity of pure mii.k drawn from five or six i-own and ini:;ed, should range from ) CK'O to J at (30' I'ahr. This is jiot to be taken as a conclusive test of quality, but as a rough .guide in the absence of an ex neb ehemicfvi analysis. and can be taken with an ordinary lactometer v;jiii a divided acalo indicating the degrees, ( 'ream being lighter than the rest of. the .mill" (he specific gravity is raised I-/ 'd - abstraction, or

i . lowered by tin' presence of o liroporti'Mi n:' ere imi. The !;i!v.'o'.ild indicate a rich milk. An individual eow may l;ive very poor mid", bub we are retorrinL' to the mi::ed milk of a herd tor a standard of (|i!.'ility. In order to secure, rjond milk for butter purposes if. is hiybi v important to pay proper attention t<> the cows' feed, as the influeaee of food is, of course, upi)"r!nosf. Wo find that the Itui;lish farmer feeds his dairy eows on bean and pea meal, which form exe-"lleiif food for rich milk, Egyptian lentils, eo! ton cake, an'i rape cako are given as it cheap food ; brewers' grains, pilei nut

meal, rice meal, bran, poliards are! liiise'.'d c.ike. are. all in favourite use for obtaining pure rich milk. Turnip-fed eows not only produce an i l flavoured milk, but also very poor in oeaiitv. In order to obtain oncesc-makine; milk it is la.id down by competent experts thai the animals must have plenty of flesh-form-ing feed, such as those described, in order to produce as much caseine as possible.

Tlio übo\e is n,. brief unci imperfect .sketch of soino of tlio conditions that should bo followed by farmers who desire to excel in the art of dairying, and who purpose bidding for the British trade in competition with the skilled butter and cheese makers of Jv.ivopn and America. The method of producing these articles hitherto pursued has been very crude, and generally very rude, impossible to produce lirstelass marketable commodities. The first thing- in this important industry is to have absolute cleanliness in the dairy, both as milk, creaming' and churning'. TllK article below appeared in Saturday's Herald, and much valuable advice to our u'hoat-piower.:. If our fanners exorcist: duo care mid attention in ;uid preparing their wheat for market, the demand from tlio Auckland millers will be such as will provide ;i rfignlur -and safe market for every Im.-hel of wheat that can be grown in Waikatn, In time.s past experiments have been made in V/;dJcato in tl ireshing from the stook, the failure to produce sound samples by adopting this practice has no doubt read its lesson. The millers have taken a decided stand upon this po- ; iit, and will on no account purchase wise it until after it ha; ripened five or six weeks in the stack. They have gained this knowledge, that m this climate, no matter how dry the season ony be when the wheat is handled in this way, it is bound to sweat whether stored in bulk or in sacks, to the great d oi'the quality of the grain. A c<: ri. : iti •t'ti-'unt of uiouldinoss is ; :;ii'.iated, tlie, smell from which can never be got rid

In tlic cmm of a weak liarve.-fc operation* will l)u in full -('.villa? in this part of the ealony. I'Voni all parts come favourable reports of the state ot tiio crops. In sonic portions of the \\ aikato district tee yield of wlniat this season is expected to be heavier than on any previous occasion. Indeed, in nil parts of the Auckland province there are ample evidences that the crop gem-rally will be abundant, though somewhat later in maturing than in many previous years. It is hoped tint the lateness of the seamn may be instrumental in tiding tin; crop over the run of bad weather which in previous years has generally occurred just as the crop was cut, and which frequently caused a good deal of loss to the fanner. If the abundant crop is carefully harvested, and sold to good advantage, there will be a welcome addition of cash circulated in many rural districts. Though it is desirable to have the crop cut in good condition, it is no less necessary to carefully tend the crop after being cut while the grain !.; in process of curing or ripening. Moisture is always present in the atmosphere here in that abundance which prevents the crop being advantageously threshed in the fields, as is done in California, South Austr dia, and some other very dry countries. To have the Auckland wheat crop in the b;:-t condition to produce an excellent; qu.dit.y of tlour it is necessary that the wheat be kept at least live weeks in stack, properly thatched and protected 1 from the weather. The non-attendance to these necessary details saves a little labour on the part of the farmer, but the result is that wheat is placed on the market ill a condition which only obtains a very low price, if .saleable at all. It has been suggested in some quarters that sheets of galvanized iron would form an excellent cover for the wheat stacks while the grain was ripening for the mill, but if these are used it would be necessary to so place them that a current of air passed between the sheets of iron and the stacked grain, to prevent the " sweating' and mouii'.iue.s and sprouting which would otherwise take plu>s. Perhipi rushes or wheat':!] sir.iv,- will be found to be the best material for covering the st icks while IUo grain is ripening, air! lomig some of the moisture it contained when carted from the harvest, field. Too utmost c.tre should be exei'L'i-.ed by fanners, so is to have t-he grain fully ripe and of goo 1 colour when it is submitted to the millers for sale. We understand that, all the local millers will rigorously insist upon the wheat being thoroughly ripened in stack, from tive to six weeks or longer, before it is threshed and dressed for the market, and all " sprouted ' grain will be refused.