MECHANICAL MILKING.

Timaru Herald, Volume XC, Issue 13274, 1 May 1907, Page 6

MECHANICAL MILKING.

Mill-ring by' machinery may now be seen in the model byre of .the Weraroa Experiment; 1 ,1 Station. Bo far only an L.-K.-G. plant has been installed', and we understand the only o her makers or agents who have expressed 'their -willingness to put in a. plant are the holders of the New Zealand patent rights of the Hutchinson, who will instal a demonstration plant when their new model is ready, which is expected, to be very/ shortly. The. working of the milking machine .at Weraroa, says the "N.Z. Times," is a great opportunity for showing what the machine is capable of doing when managed properly and then worked un.der the most favourable conditions. The plant installed jis working adhiirably and giving entire satisfaction. It has a drawback as far :as the Weraroa Sta, ion ; is concerned, in the milking of two cows int othe one bucket, and so rendering i't impossible to weigh the milk, f each. Vln consequence of . this only those cows aro milked by machinery which are to be culled from, the herd. One faultfound with the milking machine—the L.-K.-G. type —is that; if the teat cups and tubes are .allowed to become dirty the milk is-''affected... But if the machine is not kept properly clean, the' user, and not thefe. macli'ine should be blamed, lb thor f oughly clean the tubes and, pulsators, takes about ten minutes for the* two sets of pulsators, though were a number of machines working the time taken for additional sets would be less.; Of course, the work at' the experimental" station is 'facilitated by "conveniences which are within r°acli of most dairy farmers. The working of the machines at Wsinroa is be'iig very earefuUy . investigated by the' manager,Mr Drysdale. o:'.e point already noticed is that when tha. pulsators are dipped into warm.water just before being placed on . the the milk immediately begins to flow and no irritation is caused the cow. It was fttuiid that the rubber drv there was a certain amount of fiiution, and the .millc did not always come -freely at once. Other points in .connection with the machines will probably yet' be observed at- Weraroa for : -thevbenefit of \isers of t.bp-ni. The station lias proved that the. machine is . very successful in its work, and that so- far it lias had \no effect on fhe yield of' the cows. The. Weraroa ex- ■ perience, .which is .demonstrating that when the. milking 'machine gets fair/play it is eminently successful, -murt resylt in a still greater extension of th'.s great labourgiving method of drawing milk'.