140 BACTERIA, YEASTS, AND MOLDS 



ago was confronted with many problems in the preserva- 

 tion of meats, vegetables, and fruits, because she was 

 likely to have large quantities brought to her hands at 

 once for immediate disposal. But though the questions 

 are not so pressing in the modern home, they are still con- 

 stantly arising in the well-regulated house. A somewhat 

 extended notice of the subject is therefore necessary. 



The Use of Foods while Fresh. The first thing that 

 must always be borne in mind is that nearly all kinds of 

 food are better when used as fresh as possible. The 

 earlier food is consumed after it reaches the household, 

 the surer it is to be free from the troublesome action of 

 bacteria and the more certain it is not to develop decom- 

 position tastes and flavors. The necessity of using food 

 while fresh is much more imperative with some foods 

 than with others. Meats are especially liable to spoil, the 

 meat of immature animals more quickly than that of adult 

 animals, and must be used promptly. Many fruits, like 

 cherries, berries, peaches, and pears, keep only a short 

 time, and beans and peas spoil very quickly if kept moist. 

 The endeavor should always be to use such materials 

 at once. 



The housewife in our modern community should remem- 

 ber that a small proportion of the food she buys is really 

 fresh. The crowding of people together into cities de- 

 mands a food supply coming from long distances, and 

 the constantly open markets twelve months in the year 

 require some food to be preserved for weeks and months 

 before use. Hence our markets are filled and our tables 

 loaded with various forms of preserved foods ; and whether 

 she buys canned or salted goods, or meats or poultry, the 



