19 



r» 



coffee, on the contrary, imparts colour to water rapidly, and also makes 

 it opaque. 



Moist sugar is sold in a very impure state, and most samples con- 

 tain a peculiar Acanis. This interesting creature is sometimes found 

 in vast numbers amongst the inferior kinds of sugar. The adultera- 

 tions consist chiefly in a process termed " handling," i. e., the artful 

 mixture of sugars of different qualities and prices. Bad sugar stains 

 and damps the paper containing it. This is mentioned as a good cri- 

 terion of the quality of the sugar. Purchasers are recommended to 

 use none but lump or large-grained while sugars. 



Arrow-root is adulterated by mixing in various ways the starch 

 granules of different plants, but the substance most employed is po- 

 tato-starch. How much the public may be defrauded by this practice 

 can be seen from the fact that the best Maranta arrow-root is sold at 

 prices varying from one shilling to three shillings and sixpence per ft., 

 while the retail price of potato arrow-root is from fourpence to six- 

 pence. Arrow-root consists of the starch granules of the following 

 plants: — Maranta or West-Indian arrow-root is obtained from the 

 rhizome of Maranta arundinacea ; Curcuma, commonly called East- 

 Indian arrow-root, from the tubers of Curcuma angustifolia; Tacca 

 or Otaheite arrow-root, from the tubers of Tacca oceanica, a native of 

 the South-Sea Islands. " It has been sold in London for some years 

 in packages, as ' arrow-root prepared by the native converts of the 

 missionary stations in the South-Sea Islands.' It is sometimes spoken 

 of as ' Williams's arrow-root,' after the missionary of that name. The 

 slightly musty odour which it usually possesses shows that it is not in 

 general prepared with quite the same amount of care as is bestowed on 

 the Maranta arrow-root." " Arum arrow-root is procured from the tubers 

 of Arum raaculatum, and is prepared chiefly in Portland Island ; hence 

 it is generally called Portland arrow-root." This circumstance is 

 alluded to by Dr. Bromfield in his excellent Hampshire Flora (Phy- 

 tol. iii. 1011). 



Pepper is very often mixed with large quantities of linseed meal 

 and pepper dust, %. e., the sweepings of the spice warehouses or the 

 siftings of the pepper berry ; wheat flour, pea flour, and sago meal 

 are also said to be used occasionally. Some years since artificial 

 pepper berries were ingeniously made from oil-cake, common clay, 

 and a portion of cayenne. 



Mustard is generally thought to be obtained from the seeds of 

 Sinapis nigra and alba. The investigations of the Commission have 

 shown that this notion is not founded on fact: every specimen exa- 



