1917] FOODS — HUMAN NUTEITION. 669 



Milk as a food (17. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Anim. Indus. [Pub., 19171, p. i).— A 

 summary of data comparing milk and other foods. 



How to use skim milk. — Ways in which this nutritious food material may 

 be used to advantage in cookery ( U. S. Dept. Ayr., Bur. Anim. Indus. [Pub., 

 1917], p. 1). — A summary of popular information with recipes. 



Buttermilk a food drink (JJ. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Anim. Indus. [Pub.], 

 (1917), pp. 2). — A summary of data, with recipes. 



The food value of American cheese (U. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Anim. Indus. 

 [Piib.], {1917), pp. 2). — A popular comparison of cheese with other foods. 



Ways to use cottage cheese (f7. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Anim. Indus. [Pub.], 

 (1917), pp. 2). — Popular information and recipes. 



The nutritive value of edible fungi (Jour. Bd. Agr. [London], 24 {1917), 

 No. If, pp. 416-419). — A discussion of data in which the general conclusion is 

 drawn that, while fungi can not be compared with meat or ranked with the 

 essential foods, they should not be looked upon as absolutely worthless. They 

 may be made to serve useful purposes as food accessories because of their 

 agreeable flavor. 



Cider fruit for table use, B. T. P. Barker {Jour. Bd. Agr. [London], 24 

 {1917), No. 4, pp. S94-402). — The author concludes that, under present condi- 

 ditions, apples commonly used for cider should be used for cookery and the 

 culls for jam making. 



Botulism. — The danger of poisoning from vegetables canned by the cold- 

 pack method, E. C. Dickson {.Jour. Amer. Med. Assoc, 69 {1917), No. 12, pp. 

 966-968). — The occurrence of a number of cases of botulism in the Pacific coast 

 region led to a study of the possibility of conveying this disease by canned 

 goods, especially those prepared by the cold-pack method. In experimental 

 tests quart jars of peas, beans, and corn were inoculated with an emulsion con- 

 taining spores of Bacillus botulinus, the jars of peas and beans being left in 

 boiling water in a wash boiler for 120 minutes, and the jars of corn for 180 

 minutes. They were sealed immediately after removal from the boiler, in- 

 verted, and placed in a dark closet. 



Within three weeks fermentation with the formation of gas was noted in all 

 the jars. Some of the jars were leaking. On opening the jars a strong odor, 

 resembling butyric acid, was noticed and cultures from all the jars showed a 

 mixture of B. botulinus and B. subtilis. 



Portions of the juice from all the jars were injected into guinea pigs and 

 some of the canned peas were fed to a chicken. "All the guinea pigs died within 

 20 hours, and the chicken developed symptoms of limber-neck and died within 

 30 hours. A portion of the juice from the corn was passed through a diato- 

 maceous filter and injected into a guinea pig, and the animal died within 24 

 hours. The symptoms of all the guinea pigs and of the chicken were identical 

 with those produced by the toxin of the B. botulinus which is formed in meat 

 broth." 



The author believes that the experimental data reported prove that " the 

 cold-pack method of canning vegetables is not efficient if the raw material 

 happens to be contaminated with spores of the B. botulinus. The fact that 

 both B. subtilis and B. botulinus were recovered in cultures from the contents 

 of the jars proves that a single sterilization for the time recommended in the 

 published directions Is not sufficient to cause the destruction of spores. For- 

 tunately, the number of spore-bearing bacteria which are responsible for pro- 

 ducing poisonous changes in food is small, but the B. botulinus belongs to this 

 small group, and since it Is also an obligative anaerobe, the conditions which 

 exist in the sealed jar or can are ideal for its growth and toxin formation." 



