Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-15
The National Dairy, With Its Equipment Of
Modern Machinery, Assures Absolute
Cleanliness and Purity.

Inc delivered to homes pure and clean
as it comes from the healthy COW.
For instance, to show the amount Of
manual and machine labor involved in
handling milk in modern dairy before
1t is ready for delivery to the breakfast
table. we will trace a ten-gallon can
through the National Dairy. The ten
gallon can, with hundreds Of others of
the same size, is brought to the dairy
on o street from farms in Maryland
and Virginia in the wee small hours of
the morning The can is emptied into
a large metal basin and pumped from
there into a modern De Laval clarifier,
which the National has recently in
stalled.
This clarifier is an unpretentious look
ing little machine. but has a most i'm
pOrtant duty to perform. 1t does ex-
actly what its name suggests-cleans
the milk and does it as no strainer or
altering process could do In this ma
chine the milk is forced between many
revolving metal cones placed so close
together that the smallest particles of
matter foreign to the milk are prevent
ed from passing through.
Now the milk is free from dirt. but
suppose it is contaminated with disea 20
germs. you may ask? The next ma.
chimes waiting for the milk will nut all
of the germs out of business. Two
pasteurizers. holding 395 gallons each.
are the receptacles into which the milk
flows after leaving the clarifier Germs.
Il there happen to be any in the milk.
meet a slow, but painless death in these
ton
have been filled the milk is heated to
a temperature Of 142 degrees Fahrenheit
and held at this temperature thirty
minutes. Scientists of the highest au-
thority are sponsors for the statement
that this amount of heat is sufficient to
kill all germs. The curious housewife
will now want to know why the milk
does not cook while it is being sub
jected to this amount of heat. The
builder of the machine had thought o!
the danger of the milk cooking, SO re
volving disks are found in the pasteur
izers. which keep the milk agitated con.
tinually and prevent cooking.
After leaving the pasteurizers the
milk is clean. pure and germproof. anG
ready for the table or for the delicat.
baby. But. remember. the milk is still
at the dairy and long distance from
most Of the customers. 1t must be bot
tied before it is delivered. and in the
bottling if the most careful means are
not employed there is danger of con-
tamination. The milk on leaving the
pasteurizers Of course is warm and must
be cooled before any further work may
+ be done with it. The cooling is done
by having the fluid run over thirty -four
pipes, each little cooler than the
last. until the bottom pipe at thirty
eight degrees is covered with frost.
From the cooling machine the mill
goes direct to the bottling department
Here two machines of the latest de-
sign are found. Each machine fills
twelve bottles at time and then cap:
them. These machines are operated by
three men. Filled and capped the bot
ties are hustled on automatic rollers I,
cold storage rooms.
Persons naturally ask the question:
Suppose the hands of the wOrkme
are not clean or the hands have touche:
something infected with germs. will no
the milk become contaminated? Tn
answer is no. for very simple rea son
No hands have touched the milk from
the time it entered the establishment
all is done by machinery. and the mel
handle" the milk by working levers
which contro! the various machines
is fact that the only hands to toucI
the milk from the time that it enters
the dairy until it is delivered are thos
Of the person opening the bottle when
it enters the home. Therefore. it i:
not unreasonable to suppose that
times clean pure milk is contaminated
in the homes by careless housewives
who leave it exposed or who are no;
careful about the utensils used in the
homes.
Even the skeptical investigator will
now admit that the milk after going