44 P, C. Roy — Indian Foodstuffs. Fat and Oil. [Feb. 



word the same as a similar Table and Memorandum given by Major 

 Francklin. An examination of the Buchanan MSS. shows that he 

 obtained his copies from that gentleman. Francklin tells us tliat they 

 are translated from some MS. matei'ials procured through the kindness 

 of Mr. Ellerton, of the Indigo Factory at Goomaki, near Gaur, whom he 

 describes in terms of old-world courtesy as " a gentleman who unites 

 business with service and love of the arts, and whose polite hospitality 

 to us during our stay at his mansion entitles him to every consideration 

 and thanks." 



The paper will be published in full in the Journal, Pt. I. 



5. On the Chemical Examination of certain Indian Foodstuffs. 

 Fart I. — Fats and Oils. — By P. C. Rat, Esq., D.Sc. Communicated by 

 Alex. Pedler, Esq., F.R.S. 



(Abstract.) 



Of late years a belief has been gaining ground in Calcutta, Bombay, 

 and in many other important towns in India — not apparently without 

 reason — that wholesale adulteration is practised in many of the common 

 articles of diet, notably in ghee, butter, milk, mustard oil, &c. The 

 present investigation was undertaken with a view to throw some light 

 on these points, and it embodies the result of the work carried on at 

 intervals during the last four years. 



PRELIMINARY. 



As butter largely enters into the dietary of the people of Europe and 

 America, abundant work has been done by Chemists on its analysis. It 

 is, however, well known that the composition of milk and of the butter 

 made from it is, within certain limits, dependent on the breed, climate, 

 method of feeding the cows, period of lactation and so on ; the standard 

 for genuine butter, as generally accepted in England, especially at 

 Somerset House, cannot thei-efore be always accepted as a safe guide in 

 this countiy. 



The analysis of the fixed oil of mustard, and the various other oils 

 with which it is generally sophisticated, also presents considerable diffi- 

 culties. Not much work has been done in this field. The history of 

 tbe substances which have been subjected to analysis is seldom given, 

 and the experimental methods are not generally described in sufficient 

 detail to enable the results to be compared. While the information 

 available is meagre, on the one hand, the results published from time to 

 time are in tliemselves, in some cases, contradictory. It was thus found 

 to be necessary to work out, in the first instance, a series of constants, for 



