The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1874-10-01
Read before fruiiland Grange, Iowa
A Practical Grange Essay.

Worthy Masters and Patrons Of HuS-
Landry:
Relieving that we can best mutually
benefit and learn of each other by com
pairing our different ways Of doing and
experience, and having been selected to
write AN essay on butter making,
shall. in this paper, cndeavor in a few
words as may be, 20 express my meth
Cd and experience in that capacity.
The first thing To be considered in
making good butter is the proper care
of the milk, which should be drawn
from the cow i,rclcan vessels and ear
ried Immediately to the cellar or milk
room an,.! strained the milk should
not stand in the vessel in which il is
drawn, from the COW moment longer
than is absolutely necessary.
Vessels for keeping the milk in for
the cream to rise, prefer and use tin
pans holding four or five quarts each;
they are lighter to handle in washing
aud carrying to and from the cellar or
milk-room. and are not so liable 10 be
broken as earthen crooks or jars. Tie
pans. or whatever is used for holding
milk, should be thoroughly washed
and scalded with boiling water, every
time they are used, especially in warm
weather, and it is advisable to sun
them few hours.
The length of time the milk should
stand before Swimming. depends upon
the temperature of the weather and
milk-room; the warmer the milk is
Kept the sooner il must be skinned:
the time with me varies from "A to 4S
hours--thc short time in very warm
weather when accompanied with thun-
der. The butter is never so good
when milk cannot be kept more than
81 hours. generally succeed in keep
ing milk SO hours in the warmcst
weather, with very rare exceptions,
and then il is always in very hot. sui
try weather, when accompanied with
thunder. but | always make the best
butter when the milk is kept IS hours.
One reason is the weather is always
cooler. The milk should always be
skinned when it becomes thick or
clabbered, whether the time ii has
stood be short or long
The cream may be kept a week in
cool weather aud make good butter.
but in warm weather churn twice in a
week-thrce times is better unless
kept very cool. have never used
thcremomcter, consequently am I'M
able TO say the exact temperature at
which The cream should be churned to
obtain the best results. but if the
cream be too warm, the quantity viii
be increased at great sacrifice of
quality.
The butter should be Immediately
taken OUT of the churn as soon as
churned (Which fact will be easily re-
cognizcd by the butter gathering in a
body on the top of the buttermilk) and
washed in pure cold water.
My practice is to churn in the morn
ing, and after washing the butter TO
salt at the rate of one good handful of
salt to a single churning Of about six
pounds of butter. then let stand until
evening. and work the butter until the
buttermilk is all out of il, then if the
butter is TO he packed, work il over
slightly the next morning and pack it
away.
The working and washing of the
butter should be done thoroughly. be-
ing careful not to break the grain of
the butter. thereby injuring the flavor
and keeping qnality of the butter.
The proper care of the cellar or
milk-room is very essential in order
to make good butter. 1t should be
kept clean and sweet and well venti-
lated, every particle of milk or cream
spilled upon the floor or about the
room should be Immediately cleaned
up, for if left remaining it soon be-
comes mouldy and causes the air in
the room to become impure and the
effect is very injurious upon the milk
and butter is very sensitive article.
easily affected by any impurities in
the air or room in which il is kept.