Correspondence

Horowhenua Chronicle, 1 September 1917, Page 3

Correspondence

• [Our oorreepondenta' opinions are their own; the responsibility of editorial ones makes sufficient ballast for the editor's shoulders). The first form of a mechanical milker did not; attempt the combination of a partial vacuum, and the pulsation or .squeeze. It was just simply a partial vacuum around the cow's teaibs, or in other words the teat was subjected to continuous suotion. This brought the milk away certainly, up to a poin, buA it ruined the cow, the reason being the application of *. well-known law of nature, that is "nature abhors a vacuum," the result caused in an air tigty; receptacle, or teat cup, without any rubber inflation, and the teal': cup therein being subjeced to a partial vacuum, the blood vessels, milk dtajc't, and )tissue of the teat being only flesh and blood, endeavoured to overcome this partial

vacuum, and swelled, with disastrous (results to the cow. Development'; followed rapidly. The chambered teat-cup was invented, and from memory, I think, patented about twenty-two years ago. This cup had a rubber inflation and in addition to the cow's teat su.jected to a con'Hnuous partial vacuum it was also squeezed alt regular intervlails, this bein,g the first teat-cup that provided a pulsalkw, but the method of obtaining this pulsation was very nmatenrilsb. A fault with the first doubfochambered cup was the type of inflation used. This was in many of the earlier syptems a heavy moulded inflation which' did not fit around the cow's teja.t, but only touched' i*b a't the moment of pulsation. This allowed the vacuum to get geti around the oow's teat, and inflict injury, and as no practical system -of ah admission was used with .this system, it simply meant that to all intents the cow's tea)t was suspended' in vacuum, which was in effect a reversion to the original cups with no inflation with- the exception flihat a means of pulsation was provided. However, this was poon discarded for a straight tubular nidation which is always in contact with /the teat, and', in fact, hugs it, which prevents the vacuum doing! any injury as it is only allowed around the point of the teat. In order to prevent the ootw's teat being subjected to a continuous vacuum, many patents were granted to inventors, all to a viery great extent, patenting a method or methods of admitting air to the teoi> cup and around the cow's teat, in order to effect a reduction in the valcuums, and to present inury to the teat, but veriy few of such inventions were either practical or successful 1 , and at is only within recent veare that a practical and successful air admission, as ijt is called was invented, pn(tentBd and soldi io New Zealand dairy farmers. Tliis highly successful invention was brought out by a Mr R. ,B. IForsyth. and is incorporated in a series of inventions brought out by thdg gjffltleman, the combined patents being known as the New Zealandia patient milker, a short description of which may interest your readers, this being the mechanical milker used l in th'e Weraroa Government Farm, and also byi other Goveromenjfc institutions. So it has the approval of the [Dominion's best esjpert®, and l I understand the highest-priced cow in New Zealand is regularly milked by this milker at Weraroa. The tewb cup of this miliker is cast from special aluminium alloy turned insid© out and highly polished so> that 'there 'are no corners or projections in which iriilk can lodge and become foul. It hte no meital mouthpiece, the inflation 'being so fixed Itha/t the end of the inflaibiioin forms a (rubber mouth-piece, and no portion of the cows udefer or teat comee in contact wi(uh any metal '(which is a very desirable feature indeed), and the size of the mouthpiece oan be altered ait will, and without any difficulty. The pulsation connection is placed l higK up on the cuip, near the mouthpiece, so" tha|S the pulsation or squeeze is progressive, that is, it starts from ithe top and goes downwards, the effect being as if the cow's teaifc was being sqnetezed and stroked together, this action giving Bplen9id results. Hie inflation Is o ebraightt pieioe of tubular rubber, manufactured) from Weld' Para rubbter, the bedfa that can bei had for this work,

bemg strong rmd elastic. Propel means are provided on the bottom of the teat cup to* keej? ithi« ixf>,tdon tigjh,fc, so it hfis been found' bj' practical experience ttes the irfMaon should be kept tight in to obtain the heist' results. • ,tfaj tion has stretched ibeyicctdl the limite of the means provided on tlie ItGvt. cnp, j to tighten it, all that is m kboss- ■ aary is (bo remove taxation from tea's j cup, reduce its length by tfie emcfiat ] necessary and replace it, a vmp s£Sfj>le method of ke.eping the i£TiStien right length and at the crvn*£ jlt-afJion. I am, etc., B.