FOODS — HUMAN NUTRTTTOlSr. 559 



" The iodiu test on tho ripe fruits fuiled to reveal the presence of starch hi 

 any of them. . . . 



" The average soluble ash iu the pul]> is 0.20 per cent, which is about the same 

 amount found in apples, pears, or watermelons, and less than is found in the 

 citrus fruits. As with other plants the seed of this fruit is also quite low in ash, 

 it being in . . . [one sami)lel. for exami)le, only 0.2S per cent of the whole fruit, 

 which is about the same as is foimd in the fresh pulp. 



"The character of the ash is decidedly alkaline. . . . The alkalinity of the 

 ash of the pulp calculated to potassium carbonate amounts to 55 per cent of the 

 total ash. The alkalinity of the ash of the rind calculated iu a similar manner 

 amounts to 41.18 per cent, while for the whole fruit 48 per cent of the ash is 

 potassium carbonate. 



"Very little can be said in regard to the plant food removed from the soil by 

 the tunas until we can determine what the yield per acre-will be. The amount 

 of total ash removed by the fruits is very small compared to the amount re- 

 moved by the stems. . . . Most of this ash was found to be composed of lime and 

 potash salts which are in abundance in most semiarid soils, and if so large an 

 amount of these salts is necessary for securing the best results with this plant, 

 it will probably never suffer for the lack of them anywhere in the Southwest. 



"The ash is also characterized by a very low content of phosphoric acid. 

 An analysis of the ash from 28 samples of cactus averaged only 1..39 per cent 

 (PO4), while other plauts seldom have less than 4 per cent." 



Tunas and tuna products are eaten in large quantities. Some varieties are of 

 better quality than others but the products as a whole seem to be wholesome 

 and palatable. The honey-like sirups and thick marmalade-like preserves made 

 from tunas vary iu color and appearance according to the method of manufac- 

 ture. The juice and the pulp of the red tuna are highly colored and some tests 

 were made of the possibility of using this material for coloring other food pro- 

 ducts. When some of the fruit pulp was evaporated to a thin paste " it was 

 used for coloring apple jelly and candy and was found to serve admirably for 

 the former purpose." In the case of candy the color lacked brilliancy. 



The waste material obtained in the manufacture of tuna preserves, etc., has 

 some value as a cattle feed. Botanical descriptions are given of the different 

 sorts of tunas and the Echinocereus. 



The tuna as food for man, D. Griffiths and R. F. Hare ( U. S. Dept. Agr., 

 Bur. Plant Indus. Bui. 116, pp. 73, pis. 6). — This bulletin reports essentially the 

 same data as are included in the publication noted on page ."^'jS. 



Meat supply and surplus, with consideration of consumption and exports, 

 G. K. Holmes (U. »S'. Dept. Agr., Bur ^^latis. BuL .jo, pp. 100). — A large amount 

 of statistical and other data are summarized and discussed regarding the pro- 

 duction of meat, the export and import trade in meat and meat products, and 

 the total number of meat animals, as well as various questions of meat pro- 

 duction and consumption in the United States and elsewhere. 



According to the author, the average meat consumption per capita in the 

 United States in 1900 was 1.009 meat animal, this value being made up as fol- 

 lows: 0..540 pig. 0.077 calf under 1 year, 0.153 bovine animal over 1 year of age. 

 O.ltJS lamb under 1 year, and 0.155 sheep over 1 year. The author's computed 

 annual consumption of meat per capita is 1S2.0 lbs. or 840 lbs. of edible meat 

 per family. The conclusion is reached that the consumption of meat in the 

 United States has decreased, particularly since 1880 and 1890. 



Statistics are summarized regarding the expenditures for meat and regarding 

 the amounts of other foods equivalent to a given quantity of meat on the basis 

 of protein and energy, and regarding the relative cost in Washington in 1906 of 

 meat and a number of other sorts of food. 



