188 BULLETIN" 414, U, S. DEPAETMENT OF AGEICULTUEE. 



hours. These men, after being employed at various tasks of cleaning 

 about the camp, come directly into contact with the food while 

 wearing clothing soiled by all sorts of camp wastes. Large white 

 aprons could be provided at a very shght cost and would aid mate- 

 rially in maintaining the cleanliness of the kitchen force, and in 

 preventing contamination of the food. 



It happens not infrequently at the smaller camps that there 

 is no prisoner with a knowledge of cooking, and under such con- 

 ditions an ignorant, untrained man may be pressed into service. 

 This results usually in a monotonous run of badly cooked food 

 with all its attendant waste and dissatisfaction, and the convicts, 

 badly fed and poorly nourished, fall ready victims to disease and 

 can be worked only at an economic loss. 



STOVES AND COOKING EQUIPMENT. 



Good stoves are furnished at many camps and the food is prepared 

 in much the same way as in the ordinary household kitchen. Not 

 infrequently, however, the cooking of beans, peas, and vegetables is 

 done in a large iron kettle suspended over an open fire out of doors, 

 and the kitchen stove is thus left free for frying meat and baking. 

 At one camp visited the cooking was done on a sort of wooden tray, 

 about 4 feet square, supported on stakes driven into the ground. 

 The tray was filled with earth which formed a bed upon which the 

 fire was made. This improvised cooking apparatus, shown in Plate 

 XIV, figure 1, was constructed in the open air, and together with 

 the necessary pots and pans, comprised the camp kitchen. It should 

 be stated, however, that a wooden shelter was to be built at some 

 future date to protect the cook from the sun and rain and to provide 

 a shelter for the cooking utensils, 



METHOD OF STORING AND PRESERVING FOOD SUPPLIES. 



A storeroom for the keepmg of food supphes is provided at all 

 camps, and is located either under the same roof as the kitchen and 

 dining room or in a separate building or tent. Whatever its location, 

 it is usually so arranged that it may be kept securely locked. The 

 key is kept by one of the camp officials, and access to the food sup- 

 phes by the convict cook or other inmates is permitted only when 

 absolutely necessary. As a rule the foodstuffs are kept in weU- 

 covered barrels and boxes and appear to be in good condition. The 

 quantities purchased are generally used within a month, and it is 

 probable that waste due to improper storage is very shght. 



Though it is highly important that storerooms be kept clean, it is 

 also essential that they be as dry as possible, and for this reason soap 

 and water should be used sparingly. Dishes of unslaked lime 



