such as sand, plaster of Paris, sulphate of barium, etc., must not be employed in testing the standard, for these methods have been proved to be inaccurate, and have been abandoned by all chemists who have had much to do with milk analysis. The chemical side of the question will be discussed further on. A word here as to the claim that the standard is an average. In answer to this, I shall say that the standard is not an average, but is a limit, and was not arrived at by averaging, but was adopted when it was conclusively shown that the milk produced in this State never went below a limit of twelve per cent. of milk solids. Persons who object to the standard would usually resist the legalizing of any limit, and the objection is not so much against the limit fixed by law, as it is against any limit whatever. With the view of testing the State standard to see if any injustice can be done by it, I have had samples collected in nearly all the counties in the State, and have submitted them to the public analysts of this State for analysis, and the results can be seen by reference to the following tables. No attempt was made to select herds or cows, but the only restriction placed on the collection of samples was, that the purity of each one should be undoubted, and none were to be submitted as pure milk, unless the collector actually saw them milked from healthy cows. All the samples in Tables II. and III. were collected by Dr. Rogers, Mr. Vandegrift or myself, hence, their authenticity can be vouched for. Besides this series of investigations, the State Board of Health advised a full and fair re examination to see whether there was any possibility of harm to the rights of producers from the standard. Samples were collected, as in the other case, and were analyzed by Prof. A. R. Leeds, of Stevens Institute; by Prof. H. B. Cornwall, of Princeton, and by Shippen Wallace, of Burlington. As I have not seen the reports I cannot express my opinion, but the full returns will be found in this volume. In closing this branch of the subject I shall say that the offer made each year for the past three years is now renewed, and any person doubting the accuracy of the State standard, and thinking that any cow in his herd produces milk below the limit, has the privilege and the right to call on the inspector, or any analyst, or on the State Board of Health, for a test analysis to be made. The only restriction placed on this offer is that the sample shall be drawn from the cow in the presence of some authorized person, in order that there shall be no intentional or unintentional mistakes. Table I. is compiled from reports made by the State Agricultural Experiment Station. The cattle were undoubtedly better fed and cared for than the average herds throughout the State, and hence the solids are perhaps high; but to offset the favorable factors the method of analysis employed at the Station is one calculated to give lower results, as to solids, than any method used by our analysts. The method of analysis followed at the Station is as follows: Total solids are obtained by drying a weighed quantity of milk, with ignited sand, at 212° F. till constant weight has been reached. Fat is gotten by taking a weighed quantity of milk, evaporating to dryness with ignited sand, drying thoroughly at 212° F. and then extracting the fat with ether in an extraction apparatus. The ash in the analyses given in the table was determined by difference, which will probably account for the large percentage. (First Annual Report, page 56.) 1 No. Table II. gives the results obtained by analyzing the milk of individual cows, and hence does not represent the milk of commerce, that being almost always the milk of two or more cows thoroughly mixed. The methods of analysis are noted, and will be described further on. The specific gravity of each sample was taken on the balance. The ash was determined by ignition of the solids not fat. Samples 10 and 11 were from imported Alderney cows; the small amount of total solids will be noted, and will surprise those who think that this quality of milk is always extremely rich. Sample 12 was from an Alderney cow, two and one half years old, belonging to Mr. S. W. Taylor, of Burlington. Sample 13 was from registered Alderney cow No. 5,548, belonging to Mr. Taylor's herd. The analysis is equal to that of cream. TABLE II. ANALYSES BY PUBLIC ANALYSTS OF NEW JERSEY INDIVIDUAL COWS. 4.76 9.55 .66 1.033 Ritthausen. A. R. Leeds. 3.50 901.77 1 0324 9 Sussex Co.. Night Ald'rny 6.06, 9.12 .68 1 032 Ritthausen. A. R. Leeds. 4 82 8 37.59 1.030 .62 10295 Wanklyn... S. Wallace. .66 1 0243 Methods of Analyst. Table III. gives the analyses of herd milk, that is commercial milk, the mixed milk of two or more cows. This table represents the milk seen by the inspector and sold to consumers, hence it is more liable to be compared with the standard set up by law; and it is for this reason that so great a number of samples were collected and analyzed. All these samples, with the exception of a few to be noted further on, were from herds made up of what is known as common cows; that is, none of the cows were of any particular breed. The herds vary from two to eighteen cows, and the ages from two to twelve years. The feed was pasture, bran, meal, ensilage, and in fact nearly everything that is fed to cattle. Some samples were from the sand dunes of the ocean counties, where it is said that the cattle get little but scrub oak and sea air. With but nine exceptions the analyses represent herds, and, with these exceptions, the milk of the same herd does not appear twice in this table. I mention this for fear that some may think that a few herds were tabulated many times. The sixty-five analyses represent fifty-eight herds. As with the results in Table II., the method of analysis is noted. The specific gravity in each case was taken on the balance. The ash was determined by ignition of the solids not fat. Samples 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, were obtained in Sussex county and were taken from lots of forty quarts each, thoroughly mixed. Sample 4 was the mixed milk of seven native cows in Passaic county. Sample 5 was from Mercer county, from a twenty-quart can. Sample 12 to 65, both inclusive, were collected in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Cape May and Cumberland counties. Numbers 32 and 33 were what is called "off shore" milk and the cows were very poorly fed. The samples were collected with the expectation that the analysis would give results lower than the standard. Samples 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62 and 63 were from a herd made up of the following description of cows; one cow, one-half Holstein; one, Guernsey; two, half Jersey, half Holstein; one, short horn; two, three-quarters Guernsey; seven cows; yield forty quarts. Sample 64 was from the mixed milk of the noted herd of high grade Jersey cattle owned by Mr. C. H. Taylor, of Burlington. Sample 65 was from the mixed milk of a similar herd, owned by Mr. W. S. Taylor, of the same place. The two latter samples are added to our list to give examples of exceedingly rich milk. 17 TABLE III. ANALYSES BY THE PUBLIC ANALYSTS OF NEW JERSEY-HERD MILK. Fat. Ash. Sp. Gr. Method of Analysis. Analyst. METHODS OF MILK ANALYSIS USED BY THE PUBLIC ANALYSTS OF NEW JERSEY. WANKLYN. Milk solids.-The milk is thoroughly mixed, and five grammes weighed out in a platinum dish. The dish is then placed on a water-bath, the water in the bath is made to boil vigorously and maintained boiling for three hours. At the expiration of this period, the milk in the dish will have completely dried up. The dish is now removed from the bath, its outside wiped dry, and itself and contents forthwith weighed. The weight of the dish subtracted from the weight of conjoined dish and contents leaves the weight of the milk solids in the five grammes of milk taken. By multiplying that weight by twenty, the per cent. is arrived at. Fut. The residue, milk solids, may be taken for the determination of the fat. Ether is poured into the dish, and heated to the boiling point, and poured out through a small filter. This operation must be repeated at least three times, each time the ethereal solution being poured out through the filter. The ethereal solution of fat having been obtained, the next point to be attended to is the evaporation of the ether, and the getting of the residue of fat. This is done by evaporating off the other and weighing as in the case of milk solids, the result being the fat. (Milk Analysis. A Practical Treatise, Etc, by J. Alfred Wanklyn. New York: 1874. Page 19.) The This method was brought out in England by Prof. Wanklyn, in 1870, and by it, during the past thirteen years, he has analyzed many thousands of samples. method is adopted by the public analysts of Great Britain-who number nearly one hundred-and is the official method used under the Food Adulteration Act of that country. We shall discuss this method in comparison with the others later on. The standard of this State was established upon this process, as was also that of Rhode Island. The following averages were obtained by Wanklyn's method: |