BISCUITS 



345 



boys will now produce, by the same number of ovens, 2,240 Ibs. of biscuits (ono ton) 

 per hour. 



The comparative expense is thus stated : Under the old system, wages and wear 

 and tear of utensils cost about Is. 6d. per cwt. of biscuit; under the now system, the 

 cost is 5d. 



The bakehouses at Deptford, Gosport, and Plymouth could produce 7,000 or 8,000 

 tons of biscuits annually, at a saving of 12,0001. per annum from the cost under the 

 old system. The advantages of machine-made over hand-made biscuits, therefore, are 

 many quality, cleanliness, expedition, cheapness, and independence of Government 

 contractors. 



Fig. 104 represents the biscuit-machinery as executed beautifully by Messrs. 

 Ronnie, engineers, a is the breaker roller, table, and toller ; b, the finishing roller, 



104 



table, and toller ; c c, docking machines, for stamping out the biscuits ; d, mixing 

 machine for making the dough ; e, spur-pinion to engine-shaft ; /, spur-wheel ; g g, 

 bevel mitre wheels, to give the upright motion ; h h, bevel wheels for working the 

 mixing machine ; i i i, ditto, for communicating motion to the rolling machines, jj; 

 k, the crank shaft ; 1 1, connecting rods ; m m, pendulums for giving motion to rollers ; 

 , clutches for connecting either half of the machinery to the other. 



The manufacture of fancy biscuits, which in former times was confined to the 

 pastrycook and confectioner, has of late years assumed considerable importance, and 

 several firms are now exclusively engaged in this branch of industry, the products 

 of which are sold under an extraordinary variety of names. Some of these, namely, 

 the ' plain biscuit, arrowroot, captain, brown meal, cinnamon, caraway, vanilla biscuits,' 

 &c., are intelligible enough ; but, if wo except ' Abernethy biscuit, macaroons, and 

 cracknels,' with the names of which the public, from long usage, are familiar, the 

 rest of the products of the modern biscuit-baker, ' Africans, Jamaica, Queen's routs, 

 ratafias, Bath and other sorts of clivers, exhibition, rings and fingers, picnics, cuddy,' 

 &c., &c. form a list of xipwards of eighty fanciful names, all expressive of articles of 

 different form, appearance, and taste, made of nearly the same materials, with but 

 little variation in the proportion in which they are used, the principal ingredients 

 in all being flour and water, butter, milk, eggs, and caraway, nutmeg, cinnamon, 



