Connecticut western news., 1878-02-28
MANUFACTURED BUTTER,
How it is made and the Process the Fat
 goes through to come out like Butter.

Oleomargarine is made from the fat of the beef. The process was discovered by M. Mege, 8 Frenchman. He accepted Government commission to investigate, experiment and report, with the view of obtaining, for the use of the navy and poorer classes, something to take the place of ordinary butter, to be sold for much less, and to be kept in any climate without becoming rancid.
 M. Mege began his Investigations on farm near Versailles. Through chemi- cal analysis and humorous experiments he says he found that the butter in cows milk came direct from the fat of the ami nal. He found that the fatty globules were carried into the circulation, and deprived of stearine by respiratory com bustion. The oil was then sent to the udders, where under the influence of mammary pepsin it was changed into butter. Guided by these observations he took cows fat and beef suit, and be- gan to copy the operations of nature. By simple process he fused the fat at nearly the same temperature as butter, separated the stearine. from the oil, and churned the oil into butter or oleomarg- arine.
 To see and describe this process, the writer visited an oleomargarine manufac- tory. Over 200 workmen are employed, The air IS pure, and there are no offen- sive odors The ground floor is occupied by immense square vats, so arranged that wagons are driven around them. As the writer entered, several butcher carts were driven in loaded with beef fat, direct from the aughter-houses. The fat was so fresh that it retained much of it's ami nal heat. It was thrown into the vats. They were filled with pure Croton. Each one holds 10000 pounds of fat. They cannot overflow, for the surplus water is carried off by large iron pipes. Similar pipes are ranged above the vats, so that hot or cold water can be turned on at any moment.
 When thoroughly soaked and washed, the Jumps of fat are thrown into small CT tank, also filled with clear, cold water Here it receives 8 second soaking and washing.
 As the broken fat drops into the empty kettles it is slowly stirred by machinery. Pepsin is thrown in to separate the oil from the membranes, and the mass grad ually melts. At the end of two hours, during which the fat is consistently stirred by the power of steam, the melted matter collects on the surface and the fibre and membrane go to the bottom. A work man stands by the side of each kettle and at odd moments plunges thermom- eter into the fat to record the tempera- ture. The kettles are never heated above 12O degrees. They are to be kept as near as possible to the animal heat of the COW when similar natural process is going on.
 The stearine and oil having united at the surface, and the pith remaining at the bottom of the kettles, faucet is turned, and the liquid is strained through silk into smaller kettles in the second story. It presents a beautiful yellow color, and smells like newly churned butter. The next thing to do is to take the stearine from the oil. The liquid is drawn off into common tin-lined boxes, called coolers. These are rolled into large room, where the temperature, night or day, does not vary from eighty-fve degrees. Here the coolers are left for thirty hours. The stearine granulates until 1t attains rich golden color, re- sembling the roe of fish. It gets its color because saturated with the oil. The coolers are rolled up to open iron presses, and the contents are scooped up Ill the hands like snow, and folded ill small course napkins. These napkins are placed 1n thin layers on the shelves of the open iron presses, and hydraulic pressure applied of $50 tons to the square inch. The amber oil is slowly squeezed out, and steadily drifts from the presses until nothing is left in the napkins but solid cakes of stearine, pure as sperma- cettl. These cakes are sold to lard re- liners, candlemakers, and others. The open iron presses are not much larger than common clothes presses vet it is said that from 800 to 1 1000 pounds of oil flow from each at single pressure. The oil drips into tin receivers, and is carried into huge tank, where 1t is either drawn off and shipped to Europe or pumped into the churning room. When drain ed from the presses it resembles melted butter, but is entirely tasteless. This is the pure oil of butter, or oleomargarine. The finest amber is not more rich in color. The floor of the cooling room is saturated with oil and stearine, and ae slippery as glass.
 The churning room is on the second floor. The oil is pumped there from the great tank beneath the cooling room. Ii is received in huge kettles, from which 1t IS afterward drawn, and thrown into
 the churns as wanted The churns are driven by silent engine of 1OO-horse
 power Eighty pounds of pure country
 milk and 400 pounds of the oil are poured
 into each churn. A lateral paddle vince churns the mixture from right to Jeff until it foams like whirlpool. Sixtee1
 ounces of anatto, dark-colored vegeta ble liquid smelling like slippery elm, is } put into each churning, for the purpose , of giving the butter rich color. The : milk is churned alone until the butter comes, when the oil is turned in, ant both are churned thirty minutes. Dur , ing the churning wooden boxes half filled with cracked 1ce are drawn up to tn,