Bad butter is entirely a needless discomfort. The fault begins, of course, with the manufacturers. They have no excuse, as a general thing. Once in a great while, there may be a reason for a few pounds of poor butter in the dairy, which, though it should be a source of regret, is not necessarily a disgrace. Sickness in the family may sometimes compel the overtaxed housekeeper to neglect the dairy, or leave it for a short time in incompetent hands, who, either indolently or ignorantly, fail to give the milk-pans a thorough scalding, or leave the cream too long on the milk and too long unchurned, who do not understand salting or working over the butter; but in such cases no one with any self-respect will allow the butter to leave their own house. If at all usable, they will sooner submit to the disagreeable necessity of using it for their own food, or put it at once into the only place where poor butter has any right to be,--the soap-grease pot; anything rather than do themselves the discredit, and their customers the injustice, of sending it into the market. That is a species of meanness that should be considered unpardonable; and just as soon as the grocer learns that his customers will not, under any consideration, buy poor butter of him, and the dairymen understand that the grocer will not look at any but the very best, this mischief will be rooted out, “the plague be stayed”; poor butter makers will find their occupation gone, and leave the field to more conscientious and more competent manufacturers, or at once, from self-interest, if not from self-respect, resolutely set about securing instruction, and learn the only way to make good butter. This is easily done; care, neatness, and good judgment are all that is requisite after the mode of operation is understood, and the preliminary steps are simple and easily taken. It is a marvel that this nuisance has been so long tolerated. It is just as easy to make good butter as poor. It is simply want of neatness or deficiency of judgment that fills our markets with a miserable preparation that is only fit for soap-grease or the pigs. First, take care that your cows are not allowed food that will affect the taste of the milk,--such as turnips, cabbage, or onions; then the cows’ bags and the milkers’ hands must be washed perfectly clean before beginning to milk; any dirt or bad flavor from the cow’s bag or the hands, that may find its way into the milk-pail, will taint the milk and injure the flavor of the butter; for it should be borne in mind constantly, that there is nothing that receives any foreign taste so readily as butter.