142 FOODS AND FOOD ADULTERANTS. 



times scraped and bleached, at others simply dried in any condition, so 

 that there is an immense number of varieties and qualities to be found 

 in the market, They all, however, retain sufficiently the marked pecu- 

 liarities of the starchy fibrous root to make the detection of adulterants 

 easy. The common ones are the addition of wheat flour or some starch 

 as a diluent, the coloring with turmeric to suit a popular fancy for 

 gingerbread or of spent material which has been used in making 

 tincture. Mustard hulls and cayenne are also found in some cases, but 

 have seldom been detected here. They are added to give pungency 

 and make up for the addition of flour. Their detection is easy. The 

 sources of our supply are Jamaica and the West Indies, Cochin China, 

 Africa and India. Jamaica is the best and most carefully prepared. 



CLOVES. 



The flower buds of the clove tree carefully picked and dried consti- 

 tute the spice known by that name. Their valuable properties are due 

 to the volatile oil which they contain, the best having as much as 16 

 per cent. 



The removal of this oil is so very easy that it is the commonest method 

 of deception to do so before grinding the spice and to then dispose of 

 it as pure. We have ready means of determining the loss chemically, 

 but the microscope gives no indications. The addition of the cheaper 

 clove stems is also practiced, as they cost but 6 cents when the buds 

 cost 27. The microscope reveals their presence by certain cells which 

 they contain which are absent in the buds. 



Pimento is sometimes substituted in part or entirely, as it has a clove- 

 like flavor but only 4 or 5 per cent, of volatile oil. It is worth less than 

 one-fifth the price of cloves. Its chemical composition and its struct- 

 ure, that of a berry, reveals its presence. The addition of the coarser 

 adulterants, mineral matter, cocoanut shells, flour, peas, and the like, 

 have only been observed in two instances, but no doubt frequently 

 occur, as has been found in Canada. 



The sources of our supply are the East Indies (Amboyna), African 

 (Zanzibar), and American, ranking in value in the order named. Cloves 

 should, if possible, be always purchased whole, as they deteriorate less 

 readily in that form. 



CINNAMON AND CASSIA. 



These spices are the barks of several species of the genus Cinna- 

 monum, the true cinnamon being a native of Ceylon, where it is largely 

 cultivated, and the cassias being derived from several other species 

 growing in China, India, and the East Indies. Cinnamon as it reaches 

 the market is very thin, the outer and inner coats of the bark having 

 been removed. Cassia on the other hand is thick, as it consists of the 

 entire bark and can be distinguished by its retaining its natural outer 

 surface. Cinnamon is by far more valuable than the cassia, as there 

 is a smaller supply and intrinsically it contains a much greater propor- 



