60 BULLETIN 123, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Dried lavender, sweet grass, clover, and rose petals have from time 
immemorial been used by housewives to perfume their linen chests. 
Dates, figs, and raisins long have been considered important foods 
for the traveler and explorer, containing valuable food material in 
concentrated and convenient form. 
Modern, evaporated fruits and vegetables differ from dried, simply 
in that the process is shortened, and there is less opportunity for 
fermentation, darkening, or the accumulation of dirt. 
Dried fruits and vegetables, as a general thing, are less expensive 
than canned, mainly because they have required less labor in prepara- 
tion and transportation. Their value is not generally appreciated, 
partly because they are cheaper, partly because the older dried 
products were often damaged by dust and insects, and partly because 
sufficient attention is not given to freshening them and preparing 
them for the table by good methods. The good modern methods of 
drying and marketing are a great improvement on those of earlier 
times, and yield a cleaner and more sanitary product. Dried fruits 
and vegetables, properly soaked and cooked, are very palatable and 
are wholesome, useful products, particularly when the fresh ones are 
not available. 
A homemade drier is a desirable appliance for the possessor of a 
good vegetable garden. A simple form consists of trays in a holder; 
four strong, upright, wooden supports, connected by horizontal bars, 
will hold several trays at once. The trays are made like window- 
screen frames and may be covered with wire netting for some things, 
but cheesecloth is preferable. The supports should be tipped at the 
base with a large nail or piece of metal that they may safely rest on 
the back of the stove when sunlight is not available. Shelled beans 
and green peas may be dried in this fashion. Some find it an advan- 
tage to scald them in boiling water before drying. Sweet corn should 
be slightly cooked, cut from the cob, and spread in very thin layers 
on the cheescloth. Corn on the cob may be dried after scalding. 
Small quantities of vegetables may be evaporated on earthen plates 
set over a kettle of boiling water or in an afternoon oven. While 
drying, they may hang in cheesecloth bags at the top of a warm 
closet. When very thoroughly dried, put away in tin boxes or glass 
jars. 
Tomatoes may be cooked, strained, and evaporated to a thick paste, 
resembling beef extracts in texture, which must be filled at once into 
containers and tightly closed. In this form they are found in Italian 
markets, and can also be prepared by the housekeeper herself. 
PRESERVING BY SALTING. 
Salt hastens the drying process by drawing out water from the 
vegetable tissues, making them firmer: it also hinders the growth of 
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