The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-01-27
The st. Adams Creamery.

AT a recent agricultural meeting in
New York, W. W. Hall, instructor in
cheese-making at Cornell, said:
"The subject assigned me to-day is
! one of great Importance, particularly TO
the dairymen of the State of New York.
We have only to look back a few short
years, TO see that our state led all 9th.
ers in the quality of its dairy products.
The older men who were in the dairy
business said, at that time, that we need
not fear the West, as a competitor, be-
cause it was too far away. Canada
was not factor, and no one, at that
time, ever gave it thought that little
| Vermont or Australia, would to-day
| boast of owning the two largest cream
cries in the world. In Vermont, at St.
Adams, as many of you know, stands
plant with it's branch receivers that is
turning out eight tons of butter per
day, and, in the flush of feed, quite
large amount more than that. 1t en-
ploys 125 men and women, and receives
and pays its patrons for their milk ac
cording to the butter fat it contains, as
determined by the Babcock test. This
plant is managed by competent men, is
model of neatness, and everything is
done that is possible to do to make a
hundred pounds of milk worth the
largest possible price. No expense or
pains are spared to bring about this
end. The stockholders, as yet, have
failed to receive dividend. They get
four cents pound for making the but
ter, but the expense of operating such
a large business on the plan they work,
requires all they get to pay it.
am of the opinion that their system
is rather too expensive. l believe that,
in all their receivers their cream could
be churned and packed with the same
help and the same expense that it costs
to put it on board the cars. They are
out the transportation cost, while the
butter cannot be improved by trans
porting cream so many miles; yet the
reputation they have made by their
persistent efforts to get to the front
and by the most improved methods in
butter making, have made them very
strong competitor TO New York state
dairymen.
They tell me that they cannot make
butter enough to fill their orders, and
ship it fresh every day. Their prices
are above those paid at Canton, Ogdens.
burg and GOuverneur, at their boards
of trade, and their milk is no better
than ours should be if we gave it the
same care and attention that those man.
ayers demand of their patrons. Mr.
Deal, the superintendent, tells me that
the quality of their milk is improving
by the use of the Babcock test. The
patrons are learning that butter is made
of butter fat, and the largest possible
number of pounds of butter fat they
deliver to the creamery, the more but
ter can be made, and the more money
they can get from 100 pounds of milk
There is nothing new about this; yet
as long as we continue TO pay by the
: 100 pounds of milk, instead of by thu
per cent of fat, we may as we'll be ig
norant of the facts, 30 far as any i'm
provement in the quality of the milk il
concerned. have no doubt that thu
difference in the quality of milk as be
tween the richest in fat, as compared
with that poorest in fat. is greater thar
many dairymen suppose. Of course
the per cent of fat is not at all con
sidered, the amount of milk count
as well, 80 the Babcock test withou
the scales does but half its work.