92 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



mailo an nrticlo of trado in any palatal>lo form. Were it po?;siT)le 

 to fiu-nish the market at a reasonable price with a preparation of 

 meat coml)ining in itself the albuminous toj^ether with the ex- 

 tractive principles, such a preparation would have to lie preferred 

 to the extractum carnis, for it would contain all tlie nutritive con- 

 stituents of meat. But there is, I think, no prospect of this being 

 realized. Hap2)ily, the albuminous principles wanting in the ex- 

 tract of meat can l)e replaced by identical ones derived from tho 

 vegetable kingdom, at a much lower price. Just the reverse is 

 the case in regard to tiie extractive matters of meat, for (tiieir 

 salts excepted) it is impossible to find any substitute for them. 

 On the other hand, tliey may be extracted from the meat, and 

 brought into the market in a palatable and durat)le form. In con- 

 junction witli all)unnnous principles of vegetable origin they have 

 the full nutritive cllect of meat. From the extractive matters, then, 

 contained in extractum carnis in a concentrated form, the latter de- 

 rives its value as a nutrin)ent for the nations of Europe, provided 

 it can be prcxluced in large quantities and at a cheap rate from 

 countries where meat has no value. 



"The all)uminous principles of vegetable origin are principally 

 to be foiHid intiie seeds of cereals; and the European markets are 

 suflicicntly provided witii them. On the; other hand, the supply 

 of fresh meat is insufficient ; and this will get worse as the popula- 

 tion increases. For an army, for example, it will not be difficult 

 to provide and store up the necessary amount of gi*ain or flour. 

 Sugar, too, as well as fatty substances and tlie like, will l)e procur- 

 able, their transport and preservation offering scarcely any diffi- 

 culty. But there may easily occur a deficiency of fresh meat. 

 Salted meat but inadequately replaces fresh meat, because, in the 

 process of salting, a large quantity of the extractive principles of 

 the meat is lost ; besides, it is well known that those Avho live on 

 salt meat for a continuance become subject to different diseases. 

 Dried meat generally means tainted meat, scarcely eatable. Ex- 

 tractum carnis, combined with vegetable albumen, enables us to 

 make up the deficiency ; and that combination is the only one at 

 our disi^osal. What was said of an army also holds good of those 

 European nations in general that do not produce a sufficiency of 

 meat. By making tiie most of the hei'ds of South America and 

 Australia, in using them for the preparation of extractum carnis, 

 and Ijy the importation of corn from the West of the United States 

 and other corn-growing counti'ies, the deficiency may be made 

 up, although not to the full extent. For, supposing ten manufac- 

 tories, producing together ten million pounds of extract of meat 

 from a million oxen or ten millions of sheep, that whole quantity 

 Avould provide the population of Great Britain only with one 

 pound yearly for every three persons ; that is, one jiound a day 

 for every eleven hundred persons. 



" I have before stated that, in preparing the extract of meat, 

 the albuminous principles remain in the residue : they are lost for 

 the nutrition, and this certainly is a great disadvantage. It may, 

 however, be foreseen that industrial ingenuity will take hold of 

 this problem and solve it, perhaps by a circuitous road. For if 



