8 4 



Concluding Remarks. 



there is considerable difference of opinion between those who look 

 at the subject from the practical side and those who are seeking 

 to give an explanation of the mysterious behaviour of gluten. 

 Great stress is laid upon the amount and quality of the mineral 

 matters in flour, but in practice, in making- bread, a considerable 

 amount of salt is added, and therefore the mineral matter in the 

 flour cannot alone be counted as effective. 



The question, after all, is one of behaviour under practical 

 conditions. 



Dr. Hardy argues that gluten per se has no tenacity, but this 

 is equally true of clay — probably the tenacity of clay is the tenacity 

 of water : the individual particles are associated with water mole- 

 cules and these water molecules serve to cement the particles 

 together — in flour, as in clay, the individual particles differ, and 

 there are differences between flours as there are between clays. 

 At present strong flours are fashionable and are preferred, but 

 there is no proof that they are of special value except from the 

 point of view of fashion. Strong flours cannot be grown every- 

 where, and the question will arise whether, instead of seeking to 

 produce strong flours everywhere, it will not be rather a question 

 of so improving the baker's art that he will be able to avail 

 himself more fully than is now the case of the various qualities 

 of flour that may be produced ; it is difficult to imagine that the 

 food value of different flours can be very different. 



When the time comes, in Canada and elsewhere, that the soil 

 is less suitable for wheat cultivation, when the country is more 

 fully developed, it will be necessary to introduce a more com- 

 plicated system of agriculture ; wheat will no longer receive almost 

 sole attention, although it should always remain the most important 

 crop. The farmer should be prepared and willing to take advan- 

 tage of scientific knowledge in anticipation of such a change. 



In closing the meeting, the Chairman said that one effect of 

 the discussion should be to impress on the city of Winnipeg that 

 the problems of agriculture deserved to be taken seriously in 

 hand. Many who had been in the city during the week had been 

 impressed by the way in which the streets and roads were cared 

 for. Winnipeg, he said, taxed itself to grow fine roads; the 

 question he desired to raise was : Should it not tax itself to 

 grow fine wheat? He thought it was the one place where a 

 tax might be imposed on wheat in order to support a real 

 University in which wheat could be studied from every possible 

 point of view. He thought no better form of insurance could 

 be effected, and he ventured to take the opportunity of making 

 the suggestion in all seriousness to the city of Winnipeg. 



RICHARD CLAY AND SONS, LIMITED, BREAD STREET HILL, E.C., AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK. 



