His milk must come from upland pastures or well drained soils. The animals must not be allowed to wallow in swamps and mud holes. They must be provided with clear running water, or good water pumped from wells. Attention must be given to the food the cows eat, and nothing is allowed in the pastures or food that taints the milk. No milk is received from cows that have not calved at least twelve days (unless by consent of the superintendent). The cows must be milked in clean stables, and not allowed to pass through accumulations of manure at the entrance of the stables, or in the yards. The milk must be drawn in the most cleanly manner, and strained through wire-cloth strainers. It must be cooled in a bath of cold water to below 58 degrees, and the water must be sufficient to reduce the milk to that temperature in 45 minutes. Cows in heat must be separated from the rest of the herd, and kept quiet during its continuance. Dogging or fast driving of cows is not allowed. A sample of every man's milk is taken daily at the factory, and tested in regard to the standard of lactometer, temperature, cream, and time it will keep. A record is also kept, opposite to each patron's name, of the amounts of milk rejected, and the cause of rejection, with such other remarks as the case requires. The inspector visits every man's farm at least once during the month, and oftener if the register shows any variation from a certain standard.

In this way Mr. Borden has educated his patrons, until he affirms no losses are sustained on account of bad milk.

Now, my friends, I ask you if this is not the most practical and common sense method to be adopted? It has been found to produce the highest results and greatest profits in Mr. Borden's factories, while the farmers themselves have reaped more money by far than their neighbors following the old careless system of producing faulty rotten milk, while at the same time are more intelligent and happier from the consciousness of well doing.

Oh, my friends, I feel an earnest desire for the success of

dairying everywhere upon this continent, and I am fully convinced we shall never rise to the highest excellence in this branch of industry, until this work of education begins to take root and become developed upon the farmer.

I would urge this matter of producing milk as most vital to your success. Let every factory assemble its patrons together. Let there be a full understanding and agreement among all concerned. Let an inspector of milk be appointed, clothed with authority to visit farms. Let the rules adopted be rigidly enforced. Do not make any half-way work about it, but proceed with the determination that nothing short of giltedged cheese is to be manufactured. That point is within your reach at once. Where water is not abundant on the farm, introduce the system among farmers of aerating and cooling the milk by means of the recent invention for the purpose, which consists of forcing the air by means of a common bellows, through a pipe to the bottom of the can. It is a simple, cheap, and efficient appliance. In this way you at once strike ahead of the best dairy practice, and, with attention to curing cheese upon the shelf, will be able to compete with the finest goods in the world.

The extreme fine flavor and quality of the high-priced fancy Cheddars of England is due to five points, namely: perfect milk, drawing the whey early from the curds, a slow development of acidity in the curds exposed to the air, a thorough expulsion of whey, and a uniform temperature of 70° in curing the cheese upon the shelf.

I speak from no theoretical standpoint, but actual observation, and the handling of the curds in the best Cheddar dairies in England.

CURING CHEESE.

The second great question for the attention of American dairymen of to-day, is the proper curing of cheese upon the shelf. The subject has been entirely ignored by our dairy associations, and by the dairymen of America.

The curing of cheese has as much to do in securing fine flavor and quality as the manipulation of the milk and curd. Immense sums are thrown away annually in the best dairy regions in New York, simply on account of imperfect curingrooms. I do not know of a single "Gilt-edged factory" in the State but that has lost, during the past three years, more money on account of damaged cheese caused by imperfect curing-rooms, than would have paid the whole cost of a large and properly-constructed "dry house." I doubt whether there is a curing house upon the continent where ventilation and uniform temperature can be controlled or maintained. A well-made cheese, when removed from the press to the cheese-room, contains a certain amount of moisture, a part of which must pass off in the ripening process, or the cheese will not acquire good flavor. If the cheese is kept in a damp or badly ventilated place, the excessive moisture will develop another class of fungi, a different kind of fermentation than that required for good cheese. From experiments made it has been found that 2,000 pounds of newly-made cheese will give out nearly two pounds of moisture during 24 hours, and the sooner the room is cleared of such moisture the better; for if it is condensed and falls back upon the older cheese, or if the cheese is constantly saturated with these exhalations, it will injure the flavor.

We turn newly made cheese daily in order that the moisture may readily pass off, and the fermentation of the cheese be carried along in a uniform manner. Ample ventilation then is important,-ventilation that shall carry off these fumes of decay and cheesy exhalations. From a large number of well conducted experiments the principle has been established that a temperature of about 70° is the best for curing well-made cheese, to secure fine flavor and rich mellow texture, as well as long-keeping qualities. The growth of fungi in fermentation must be slow and uniform. You may force it forward by high heat and light salting, but always at the expense of long keeping qualities.

The system of preparing cheese for market at twenty days old is a most pernicious system, and is the source of fearful losses to American dairymen every year. It is admissible only when you know where to place your goods, and that they are to go into immediate consumption. In 1866, while in England, I saw the result of such manufacture in numerous instances; cheese that came in good condition, and if sold at once would command 768., in a week's time so fell off in flavor that it went begging at 50s.

I know that American dairymen and American dealers often boast of our system, because we can make cheese that is so soon ready for market that the shelves can be cleaned from month to month; but they do not couple it with the fact that much of our cheese sells in England for 30s. to 40s. per cwt., and even less. Some one loses on these goods, for no cheese of good flavor, that can be held, would be sold at such a fearful loss. I think the American method of curing cheese is grossly defective, and it is upon this point that we need the application of science, and the genius of inventors.

It will not do to take the chances of the weather in a climate so variable as ours. Our intensely hot summers must be counteracted in some way in the curing house, and, if we really set about it, we can overcome the difficulty, and the time when this should be done is now right upon us. I believe that a good many old curing-houses could be improved by building around on the inside wall, leaving six or eight inches space between it and the present wall, and by arranging double windows. It has been suggested that saw-dust or some non-conducting substance, be placed between the walls. I saw something of this kind last winter in Ohio. It was a store-house for keeping late-made cheese, after it was cured, during the winter. Messrs. Howe & Warner, at Wellington, have a store-house of this description, where, on the 24th of January, 1872, they had over 10,000 cheeses stored in boxes, and, though the weather had been intensely cold, no trouble was had from frost.

I am inclined to think that the plan of dry or well ventilated cellars or basements could be adopted, so that a low, even temperature in hot weather may be secured at little expense and trouble. I would have such basement under the whole dryhouse, at least six or eight feet below the surface of the ground. The walls should rise above the ground three or four feet, so as to give an abundance of sunlight throughout the whole. I would have the rooms ten or twelve feet high in the clear, and the bottom should be thoroughly underdrained. Then, the floor should be grouted and covered with cement or flagging so that no water could enter from without, or the accumulation of slops be possible. Ventilators with wickets should be arranged leading to the roof. The trouble with under-ground structures or basements as curing-rooms is, that often no attention is paid to drainage or ventilation, and hence, in such cases, they make very imperfect curing-rooms. But on the plan I have proposed, these objections would be obviated. Then, if necessary, waste water from the ice house may be conducted in metal pipes along the ceiling, and the cool air falling from these would preserve a low temperature in the

room.

Mechanics with whom I have consulted affirm that cold spring water, flowing in large metal pipes along the ceiling, and then out of the building, where it may be utilized for other purposes, would be sufficient to reduce the temperature to 70° or below, even in the hottest weather. Hot-water pipes, arranged about the room and connected with the boiler, would be the best means of raising the temperature in cool weather, when heat was required. I do not pretend to give the best plans, but I offer suggestions by which the hot weather cheese may be kept in flavor until fall, or such time as it may be sold, at not much expense in the way of curing-rooms.

I wish I could convince you of the great importance of having properly constructed curing-rooms, where good ventilation and a low even temperature may be maintained. And