2 BULLETIN 215, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



spoilage, or at least a tendency in that direction. Italian and 

 Austrian authorities have for some time placed dependence upon 

 this determination in conjunction with certain qualitative tests 

 which appear to have local significance. The Austrian chemist, 

 Schindler, 1 described a method for acidity, and Black and Alsberg 2 

 in the United States have elaborated the details of the process in 

 order to make it applicable for the use of those unskilled in laboratory 

 manipulation. The process described by these authors has been 

 further popularized by Besley and Baston, 3 and applied in their 

 investigations on the soundness of corn. A certain amount of acid- 

 reacting material, residing chiefly in the germ, is present in sound 

 corn although no sour taste or smell is evident. During spoilage 

 this acidity rapidly increases through the agency of molds or 

 bacteria, or both, until the limit of tolerance is exceeded. 



Although the spoilage of corn, as such, has been the chief subject 

 of investigation by the authors named, Black and Alsberg have also 

 shown that the corn meal on the American market often contains an 

 amount of acidity in excess of 30, the arbitrary limit adopted by the 

 Austrian chemist Schindler. This figure, in chemical language, 

 represents the number of cubic centimeters of normal alkali required 

 to neutralize the acidity in the extract from 1,000 grams of the meal. 



The main purpose of this paper is to show the general composition 

 of American table meal milled by different processes, and especially 

 the keeping qualities of the extreme types, dried to different degrees 

 and stored in different localities. Incidentally, the composition of 

 grits and the by-products are considered. 



The writers desire to express their appreciation for the assistance 

 furnished by corn millers in various parts of the country who have 

 permitted the inspection of their plants and furnished samples of 

 corn and meal for analysis. Special thanks are due Mr. H. Bates, jr., 

 president of the American Hominy Co., also Mr. F. C. Atkinson, 

 chemist, and Mr. Charles Highstreet, general superintendent of that 

 company, who threw open their mill at Terre Haute, Ind., for the 

 experiments. Acknowledgment should also be made for the coopera- 

 tion of Mr. W. J. McGee, former chief of the New Orleans Food and 

 Drug Inspection Laboratory, and for the analytical work carried out 

 by Mr. L. Patton, assistant chemist at the Savannah Food and Drug 

 Inspection Laboratory. 



CONSUMPTION OF CORN MEAL. 



The consumption of corn meal is greatest in the Southern States of 

 the Union, where in certain sections meal and grits are the principal 



1 Schindler, Josef. Anleitung zur Beurteilung des Maises und seiner Mahlprodukte mit Riicksicht auf 

 ihre Eignung als Nahrungsmittel. Innsbruck, 1909. 



2 Black, O. P., and Alsberg, C. L. The Determination of the Deterioration of Maize, with Incidental 

 Reference to Pellagra, U. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Plant Industry Bui. 199. 



' 3 Besley, H. J., and Baston, G. H. Acidity as a Factor in Determining the Degree of Soundness of Corn, 

 U. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 102. 



