The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-03-22
TESTS OF BUTTER COWS.

various
The New Jersey station had not ad-
vanced beyond the stage OF chemical
testing of milk when its buildings
and cattle were destroyed by fire. The
New York station has tested chemically
as well as for butter for period OF SIX
months, but has not yet reached the
point of comparing cost to produce
pound of butter by the representatives
of the different breeds; this fact Is to be
developed later. The Maine station has
added to chemical tests and butter tests
that Of showing the cost OF food con-
sumed in producing butter for period
of year. Some salient points and facts
developed by the tables of the reports
are of great interest to the farmer. Ia
BILE II of the New York report shows
the number Of pounds of milk to make
a pound of butter, monthly averages,
first six months of lactation, as follows:
Jerseys. ......., 17.5o Ayrshires. 1900. 20.40
Guernseys.. 1910 Holste n-frle-
American Hold sians........... quo
erness.. $50
Table 6 shows pounds of butter (con-
tanning IS per cent. butter fat) from 100
pounds Of milk, monthly averages, first
six months of lactation, as follows:
Jerseys. 5.7s Ayrshlres......:.. 8.47
Guernseys......... 5.54 Holsteln- Erie
Holder1ess. .... 1854 SLAMS. ............ 2.78
Table 5 shows pounds of fat in butter
from 100 pounds of milk, monthly aver
ages, first six months of lactation, as
follows:
Jerseys. 4s2 Ayrshires ......... 2.96
Guernseys.. 4.70 Holstein- Erie
Holderness ..... 800 slams. ............ 2.38
Table l shows pounds Of fat in 100
pounds of milk, monthly averages, first
six months of lactation, as follows:
Jerseys .,. b.e9 Holderness.. 800
Guernseys $500. 5.67 Ayrshires. ........ $50
81 olste in Erie
slans............. 3.7l
Table shows per cent. OF fat IN
milk recovered in cream Tor from the
chu1n), monthly averages, first six
months of lactation, as follows:
Guernseys ....... 95b Holderness.. ...... $50
Jerseys. .......... 1914 olst 9 n Erie
Ayrshires. 89.4 sians............. s5.T
The differences from these tables are
pretty evident, and comparing the Jer-
seys with their would be rivals for the
butter dairy, the Holstein-F riesians,
show:
First-It required 10 pounds Of Hol-
-Friesian milk to make pound Of
butter as against 1850 Of Jersey milk.
In fact, during one months milking
the second highest in quantity Of her
yield-it required 84.41 pounds Of milk
of one of the Holstein-F riesian cows to
make pound of butter. For butter re-
suits the Holstein- Friesian milk proved
to be the poorest of that Of all the breeds.
Second-The Holstein- F'riesians made
s.78 pounds of butter from 100 pounds
of milk, as against 5.79 pounds for the
Jerseys, the Holstein-F riesians again
making the poorest show Of all the
breeds.
Third-The test for fat in butter from
100 pounds of milk gave the Holstein-
Friesians credit for 2.36, as against 4.9s
for the Jerseys, the Holstein-F riesians
again falling below all the other breeds.
Fourth-The fat in 100 pounds Of milk
showed for tho Holstein-F riesians 3.71,
as against 5.62 for the Jerseys, the Hol-
stein Friesians standing third, but beat
ing the HoldeFness by only .02 and the
Ayrshires by 81.
Fifth-For practical use Of making
butter the Holstein-F riesian proved to be
by all odds the poorest investment for
the farmer of all the breeds tested. In
making butter the Observation-Disclosures
lost in the skimmilk and buttermilk
24.3 per cent. fat; Jerseys, 6.6 per cent;
Guernseys, As per cent. $50.
This is really the important criterion
of value Of the COW in the butter dairy,
since what profits it that COW shows
fat in milk If she cannot convert it into
butter? This quality is usually called
"churnability" Of the milk, and l have
long been satisfied it was more developed
in and peculiar to rich milk than to poor
milk. From many tests that have come
under my observation and in my reading
conclude that ordinary milk, including
that of ordinary Holstein-F riesian COWS,
will average per cent. fat and y per
cent. casein; milk of the average Jersey
will show per cent. casein and 5 per
cent. fat. Casein is the disturbing ele-
ment in extracting butter from cream,
and the excess of fat in rich milk over
comes the influence of the casein more
effectually than is possible where the fat
and casein are evenly balanced, as in Or
binary milk.
The Maine and New York reports
cover many other matters of interest,
but will confne my further remarks to
one or two points Of the most vital inter
est to butter dairymen developed by
tests at the Maine station. Holstein-
Friesian milk costs less to make than
Jersey milk, so that Observation-Disclosures
may be proftably kept for milk provided
a market may be found not SO critical as
those of New York, Philadelphia or St.
Louis, but when we come to the ques-
ton of the comparative value of the two
breeds for producing butter we have
another story to tell. In one respect the
Maine tests make better showing for
the Holstein-Friesians than the New
York tests; it required only 1.S7 pounds
of their milk to the pound of butter,
while of Jersey milk it required 1877
pounds, the latter a trifie less of milk