264 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD, 



In general, the ordinary loaf when wrapiUMl in jiarattin paper remained in 

 good condition for three or fonr, and in some cases for five days, while the 

 unwrapped loaf hecame dry and staleat the end of two days. Loaves wrapped 

 in porons paper dried out more rapidly but showed less tendency to become 

 sour. Vienna bread and rye loaf bread lost their natural characteristics rapidly 

 when wrapped, since the moisture in the center became evenly distributed 

 throughout the loaf, thus destroying the flavor and texture of the crust. It 

 was also found that after four or five days the ordinary wrapi>ed loaf became 

 unpalatable, through an increase of acidity, and furthermore, that such bread 

 would eventually mold. 



As a whole, the author believes that the experimental evidence is in favor 

 of wrapping bread, " and since the ordinary unwrapped loaf is now considered 

 unsalable at the end of the second day, the use of the wrapper at least doubles 

 the period during which it is merchantable." 



Tests of bread wrapping, C. A. A. Utt iBul. Bd. Health, 7, {1911), No. 

 3, pp. 52-60). — In tests reported in continuation of work noted above different 

 kinds of bread were kept for four or five days. In general, the unwrapped 

 loaf lost about twice as much moisture as the wrapped loaf, while the acidity 

 remained practically the same. The wrappe<I bread was in edible condition 

 for twice its ordinary period. 



" Leaving out the purely sanitary reasons, which after all are the greatest, 

 for wrapping bread, our results, if properly interpreted, can only argue in its 

 favor. 



" If bread is only warm when wrapped it keeps better ; it does not get moldy ; 

 the acidity does not increase any more for the wrapped than the unwrapped 

 loaf; the crust softens, but does not get tough; it does not injure the flavor; 

 the moisture becomes uniformly distributed, resulting in a much better loaf." 



Letters received from Kansas bakers in reply to a circular inquiry showed 

 that those "who have tried bread wrapping favor it, and that their sales have 

 increased. The opposition displayed in many letters is evidently due to 

 ignorance." 



The digestibility of vegetables in health and disease and the effect of the 

 stomach in disintegrating vegetable materials, A. Schmidt (Deut. Med. 

 Wchnsclir., 37 (1911), No. 10, jrp. //85-//3S; Jour. Amei\ Med. Assoc, 56 {1911); 

 No. 15, p. 1154). — On the basis of his own studies and those of other investi- 

 gators, the author discusses the digestibility of raw and cooked vegetables, 

 particularly the effect of the stomach upon the digestion of such materials. 

 His general conclusion is that the pepsin-hydrochloric acid, when the action 

 is continued for a sufiicient time, causes the vegetable substances to swell and 

 soften in such a way that they may be acted upon subsequently by gastric 

 juice. 



The author was unable to discover any evidence to sustain the assumption 

 that the digestion of vegetables occurs chiefly in the intestines and that it is 

 due mainly to the work of microbes. 



Changes in the constituents of peas soaked and cooked in water and in 

 solutions of sugar and salt, E. Poppe {Bui. Soe. Chim. Bclg., 25 {1911), No. 3, 

 pp. 136-145). — In the experiments reported dried peas were soaked for vary- 

 ing lengths of time in distilled water and in saturated, one-half saturated, and 

 one-fourth saturated solutions of common salt and of sugar, at different de- 

 grees of temperature, with a view to determining the amount of nitrogenous 

 material, phosphates, chlorin, and carbohydrates removed. 



It was found that the loss of nitrogen was greatest with distilled water 

 and least with the saturated solution of salt, and that in general a high tem- 

 perature favored extraction of nitrogenous substances and phosphates. The 



