1853] 



ON THE PRESERVATION OF FOOD. 



109 



t!'e flour before being ground too low — Bonnell's patent— patent- 

 ed at Detroit, although Bonnell is a native of Toronto — being an 

 improvement upon the celebrated French mode of grinding 

 mouture economique, ' now so much admired in England, and 

 consisting of grinding the wheal in the fiist place, very coarse, 

 or high, as it is called by the miller, and then regrinding the 

 flour that will not pass the bolt by means of very small stones 

 revolving at a high velocity — thus securing the whole nutritive 

 qualities of the wheat in a condition highly favorable for making 

 bread, but as I fear containing too much gluten to keep for any 

 length of time without the kiln ; and lastly a patent taken out in 

 England for grinding with conical stones, fitting one over the 

 other, grinding, at a high velocity, and discharging the flour 

 before it can become injuriously heated, securing also, like Bon- 

 nell's, all the nutritive qualities of the grain, — ibis I think, will 

 be fouud to answer partially without the kiln, much better with. 



Strange that the mill remaining in the bakery still existing 

 at Pompeii, should be a conical mill — how often our new inven- 

 tions are but reproductions of forgotten arts. 



The failure of the potatoe crop, or rather the failure of the 

 means taken to preserve the potatoe from one season to another, 

 has been the cause of much anxiety, and various means suggested 

 and tried to remedy the evil with various success. 



But it has generally been forgotten that at all periods, even 

 ■when the potatoe was as a plant the most vigorous, and its cul- 

 ture the most certain, there was a portion of the year when the 

 old potatoe lost muoh of nutritive powers, all its flavor, and even 

 contained a positive poison, (solanine) while the new potatoe was 

 equally valueless as food. And also that at sea in long voyages 

 the supply of potatoes became so deteriorated as to be of little use. 



When Napoleon the First sent his armies through Holland, 

 potatoes were prepared for their use in a way it certainly would 

 be easy to imitate. After being well washed, they were steamed 

 for a moment or two, to loosen their skins, which were then rub- 

 bed off, when the potatoes were put into an Iron Cylinder with 

 holes at the bottom, and forced through by a piston in a state 

 resembling macaroni. These pieces were then dried at a heat 

 sufficient to accomplish the object, but insufficient to cook them 

 or alter the flavor, the potatoes could then be easily transported, 

 and could at any time be made into mashed potatoe. It would 

 keep any length of time, retaining all the original qualities of 

 the recent tuber. 



Some such process has been lately employed in Britain m 

 preparing the root for use at sea, whether the same or not, I 

 cannot say, — the one I propose could hardly be improved upon, 

 and would enable us to enjoy an article of food as popular as 

 the one in question, in full perfection all the 3'ear through, 

 besides allowing us to draw our supplies from a distance, and 

 giving us an additional article of export to the West Indies where 

 in spite of the Yam, the Banana, the Casava, and the Sweet 

 Potatoe, the ordinary potatoe is mueh valued. 



In the same manner carrots, parsnips and turnips might be 

 prepared, I have seen French preparations of these roots as fine 

 as flour. Unripe peas can either be dried whole or in flour 

 in either shape, agreeable at sea or in winter. 



Onions can be preserved with little injury in brine, cabbages 

 put up with insufficient salt to prevent fermentation, produce the 

 German dish sour-krout, but salted enough, will keep for a consid- 

 erable time, the salt can be readily removed by soaking, the same 

 can be done with French Beans, and most pot herbs. 



The preseiving vegetables in vinegar so completely alters their 

 flavor and all other qualities, that I shall make no remark on the 

 subject, further than to shew the singular importance of them 



in preventing Sea Scurvy, and that pickled cabbage forms a 

 part of the sea stock of vessels going on long voyages. The 

 necessity of raw vegetable food in some shape every few months, 

 and that nothing cooked will answer to prevent Sea Scurvy, 

 makes the putting up of pickles of more interest than we might 

 at first consider, even if with our long periods of forced absti- 

 nence from fresh green food in Canada, the use of pickles were 

 not probably highly important to the animal economy, instrad 

 of being thought meiely an unhealthy indulgence. 



I shall make less remark on the preserving fruits with sugar, 

 as the cooking of them not only nearly destroys their flavor, but 

 their utility as a preventative of Scurvy is lost also. 



Far different in the mode of preserving them by excluding 

 the ail-, now so much resorted to in Britain, and beginning to be 

 appreciated by the ladies of Toronto. 



This process, invented I believe,' by Mr. Appert, a native of 

 France, and applied to the preparation of most articles requiied 

 at sea, consists simply in procuring an air-tight vessel, say of 

 glass, to be closed by a cork waxed over, or of metal, soldered 

 down, in which the article to be preserved has been placed, and 

 covered with water, a small aperture then being made to allow 

 of the esc;.pe of air, the water is made to boil by means of a 

 water bath in which the vessel is placed, as soon as the air 

 enclosed in the vessel, in the food to be preserved and in the water 

 itself, has been driven off, which takes place in a short period of 

 time, the small hole is closed up also, the vessel being removed 

 from the Bath. In this way all matters requiring to be preserved 

 may be put up to keep any length of time, whether fruit, fish, 

 vegetables 01 meat, whether raw or dressed ; for the the preparation 

 by no means cooks the article, although with delicate fruits, it in- 

 jures somewhat its appearance. In this way also, can be preserved 

 cooked meats in any form, milk and cream, as well as solids. 

 It is to be wished that in this way the domestic preparation of 

 fruits and summer vegetables, as fresh peas, french beans, and 

 asparagus, will become general, and supeisede altogether, the 

 preparations with sugar, and that before long, that Toronto 

 so advantageously situated for the procuring ot animal food, and 

 shortly, by means of railways, to become still more so, will be 

 known for the cheapness and goodness of its preserved provi- 

 sions, fish, flesh, fowl, fruit and vegetables, that the great de- 

 mand now felt for them for sea use, will be supplied from a 

 place where they are good and abundant, and not have to be 

 put up as in London, where the cost is threefold what it is with 

 us, or as at Trieste, where the British Government made with 

 the very celebrated Mr Goldnei, a contract for provisions, 

 which proved to be merely the refuse of the slaughter- house, not 

 preserved at all. 



Wer-e the cans made larger and of a cheaper material than tin, 

 say galvinized iron, and the process more economically attended 

 to, it is more than probable that provisions thus put up would 

 form a valuable export, not only the West Indies, where all such 

 things are in demand, but also in Great Britain, not merely for 

 sea use, but for home consumption; the package and preparation 

 would be probably cheaper than barrels and salt, as used in put- 

 ting up- salt provisions, and decidedly more popular. 



The salting and packing of Butter has been much better 

 attended to in Canada West, of late years, than heretofore, when 

 our grazing farms are larger we may look for a still greater 

 improvement; that is, when the farmer himself puts down his 

 own butter, and can fill the package in a few days. The Store 

 packed butter will always prove inferior; if not repacked, will be 

 of various flavors and colors, and if repacked greasy. 



To make butter keep, the whey should be entirely removed 

 by washing with clear water, and salted with highly dried Li- 



