These lards, in addition to the above properties, show distinct color reaction with sulfuric and nitric acid and with the reagents which are distinctive of cottonseed oil. They are mostly mixtures of lard and tallow stearin with cotton oil or cotton oil stearin.
In addition to the adulterations already mentioned as mixing with cottonseed oil may be added the use of coconut oil. It is not probable that in the United States any adulteration of lard with coconut oil has been made for commercial purposes. Such an adulteration, however, is practiced in some foreign countries. Coconut oil contains considerable quantities of volatile acid, and, therefore, when used as an adulterant of lard, would increase the normal quantity of volatile acid materially. One sample examined by Allen, of England, was found to contain a quantity of coconut oil, amounting to 33 percent.
Summary.
—In the preceding pages has been given a description of the character of lard, the sources from which it is made, the method of its preparation, its chemical and physical properties and the common adulterations to which it is subjected. There is no question of the wholesomeness of the usual fats and oils, or parts thereof, which are used in the sophistication of lards. The adulteration is intended solely for fraudulent purposes, that is, to sell under the name of a higher priced article one of a lower price.
There are many persons who prefer to use vegetable oils and fats as substitutes for lard in all cases. It is only fair to the consumer that the character of a fat and oil, however, for edible purposes be plainly made known to the purchaser. He is then to judge of the propriety or impropriety of using the articles in question. It seems quite certain that the use of vegetable oils and fats will be greatly increased in this country. All hygienists grant that they are at least equally as wholesome as the animal fat and oil. They are certainly less open to suspicion as having been derived from diseased sources. As a rule, they are carefully expressed and properly refined, free from rancidity and from any mechanical or chemical constituents which render them unpalatable or unwholesome. They are generally much cheaper, perhaps the only exception being that of olive oil. These vegetable oils, as a rule, are excellent for salad dressing, for frying and general cooking purposes and for the ordinary uses to which lard and other animal fats are devoted. A proper labeling of all such packages would increase the quantity consumed, restoring confidence to the public in the character of the goods purchased, and prove of mutual benefit to the grower, the manufacturer and the consumer. It must be remembered, however, that there are many people who prefer the animal fats, and so there will probably always be a large field for their use. Such consumers are entitled to secure the pure article, properly prepared from healthy animals and free from rancidity and organic impurities. Lard and other animal fats offered in this way will have a greater vogue, command a greater degree of confidence and secure a larger trade than if sold under conditions engendering suspicion and distrust.
SOUPS.
Classification of Soups.
—The soups which are commonly consumed are divided into two great classes—those of animal and those of vegetable origin. Any liquid or semi-liquid preparation of a meat or vegetable or the two combined which may or may not carry particles of solid substances is classed with these preparations. Soups are generally used at the beginning of a meal, usually at dinner-time, and, as a rule, do not have any very high nutritive value. That they have a useful function cannot be denied, since the introduction of a small quantity of a condimental and slightly nutritive warm liquid into the stomach at the beginning of dinner tends to stimulate the secretive glands of the stomach walls to greater activity and thus to promote digestion. Soup should be regarded pre-eminently as a condimental and not as a nutritive substance.
Preparation of Stock.
—In the making of stock the base of the material, as a rule, is that part of the meat and bone soluble in hot water. The best way of preparing this stock is as follows: