210 



FOODS AND FOOD ADULNERANTS. 



characteristic of cayenne. The other structures are not as prominent, 

 but are not liable to be confounded with those of any adulterants. Dia- 

 grammatic representatives of this structure are given in Fig. 12, and the 

 appearance of the pure ground cayenne under polarized light in Fig. 48, 

 Plate XXIV. The portions of the seed in the powder are not readily 

 distinguished without careful examination, They are, however, char- 

 acteristic and contain starch, the form of which is shown in Fig. 67, 

 Plate XXVII. The adulterants, which are said by Hassall to be more 

 numerous and frequent than with ordinary pepper, are given by author- 

 ities as mineral coloring matter added to hide the loss of color which 

 takes place on exposure of cayenne to light, to add to the weight, or to 

 cover the addition of colorless diluents, ground rice, turmeric, husks of 

 mustard, etc. 



Mineral adulterants were met with in but one sample of a low grade, 

 obtained in the Baltimore market. The organic ones, on the contrary, 

 were almost always present, among them yellow corn meal being found, 

 but rice or corn flour often er. The latter was readily detected with 

 the polariscope, as illustrated in Fig. 49, Plate XXIV. The few starch 

 grains in the lower layers of the pericarp and in the seed are very small 

 and cannot be confused with the added rice or corn. Turmeric and 

 mustard are recognized by their peculiar structure. 



Of the chemistry of Capsicum but little had been written until 1884, 

 when Strohmer undertook an investigation of the proximate composi- 

 tion of the pod. Bracconot had announced the discoverv of the active 

 principle, and named it capsicine. Wilting had asserted that it was a 

 crystalline alkaloid. Thresh had discovered a crystalline body capsi- 

 cine, which he regarded as the substance to which the pungency was 

 due, but Strohmer showed that there was present in the cayenne 



(1) A fixed oil, without sharp smell or taste, that required 201.9 of 

 KOH for saponificatiou and occurred almost entirely iu the seed. 



(2) A camphor-like substance which tastes and smells sharp, and 

 which constitutes the peculiar principle of the cayenne (capsicine). It 

 is contained in the pods and seeds, although in greater amount in the 

 former than in the latter, where it is dissolved in a fixed oil. 



(3) A resinous body, the red coloring matter, (capsicum red) which 

 is only contained in the pod. 



Quantitative determinations were made of the fruit of Capsicum cui- 

 grown in Hungary. 





