We find thn,t they consist of a number of elements, the chief of which are : — Potassium Iron Carbon- Oxygen Chlorine Hydrogen Phosphorus Calcium Nitrogen Sulphur Sodium THE SCIENCE OF COOKERY 17 But it is evident that a meal consisting of those substances in their raw condition — a lump of coke, a stick of phosphorus, with a few bottles of gases and chips of iron — would hardly be appetising. The elements must be presented to the body in the form of suitable chemical, compounds, usually known as ‘ Proximate Principles.’ Let us briefly consider the main headings under which we may classify these : — A. Proteids or Albuminous Substances and allied bodies. — In this group we have contained the element, nitrogen, which is of special importance to living creatures ; in fact, we can only obtain the nitrogen we require in this form. Although the atmosphere is composed very largely of nitrogen, only a few fungi can make use of it in this form, while man has to obtain his nitrogen in the most expensive articles of his diet. Proteids form a large group of very complex chemical substances, containing, besides nitrogen, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and they form the main constituents of milk, eggs, and meat. The vegetable kingdom also supplies us with proteids, but these vegetable proteids are not so digestible as the animal proteids. Many proteids are crystallisable when pure, and can be distinguished by certain chemical tests. Their most familiar property is, however, that of becoming coagulated by heat, a process seen in the setting of the white of an egg when it is boiled. B. The next group is that of the Fats, such as occur in suet, lard, butter, cream, dec. : — Fats are chemical compounds of glycerine with stearic, oleic, and palmitic acids, and the varied proportions of these constituents explain the differ- ences in consistency between the fats of various animals — e.g, lard is especially rich in olein, the compound of oleic acid, while suet is rich in stearin, the fat formed from stearic acid. C. The Carbohydrates. — This group contains the various forms of starches, gums and sugars. This is a very large and important group, and one for our supply of which we are mainly dependent upon the vegetable kingdom. Carbohydrates occur, however, in the animal kingdom : for example, there is an interesting animal carbohydrate called glycogen, which occurs in the liver and muscles, • especially those of young animals ; this is sometimes called animal starch. Of the sugars we have two main forms in common use as foods, i.e. the ordinary ‘ lump,’ or cane sugar, arid fruit sugars, or glucoses, which occur in fruits. Although not so highly prized by the public, these are of more importance than cane sugar ; indeed, the latter has to be converted into glucose in the course of digestion before it can be absorbed by flilfe body. Water, Salts and Extractives. — The constant loss of water in c 18 THE NEW CENTURY COOKERY BOOK the breath and excreta necessitates, of course, the consumption of a considerable quantity of water to replace the loss. Salts are of extreme importance, e.g. salts of lime are necessary for the formation of bones and teeth. They also have other more obscure functions which have not as yet been accurately determined.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

We find that they consist of a number of elements, the chief of which are : — Potassium Iron Carbon- Oxygen Chlorine Hydrogen Phosphorus Calcium Nitrogen Sulphur Sodium THE SCIENCE OF COOKERY But it is evident that a meal consisting of those substances in their raw condition — a lump of coke, a stick of phosphorus, with a few bottles of gases and chips of iron — would hardly be appetising. The elements must be presented to the body in the form of suitable chemical, compounds, usually known as ‘ Proximate Principles.’ Let us briefly consider the main headings under which we may classify these : — A. Proteids or Albuminous Substances and allied bodies. — In this group we have contained the element, nitrogen, which is of special importance to living creatures ; in fact, we can only obtain the nitrogen we require in this form. Although the atmosphere is composed very largely of nitrogen, only a few fungi can make use of it in this form, while man has to obtain his nitrogen in the most expensive articles of his diet. Proteids form a large group of very complex chemical substances, containing, besides nitrogen, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and they form the main constituents of milk, eggs, and meat. The vegetable kingdom also supplies us with proteids, but these vegetable proteids are not so digestible as the animal proteids. Many proteids are crystallisable when pure, and can be distinguished by certain chemical tests. Their most familiar property is, however, that of becoming coagulated by heat, a process seen in the setting of the white of an egg when it is boiled. B. The next group is that of the Fats, such as occur in suet, lard, butter, cream, dec. : — Fats are chemical compounds of glycerine with stearic, oleic, and palmitic acids, and the varied proportions of these constituents explain the differences in consistency between the fats of various animals — e.g, lard is especially rich in olein, the compound of oleic acid, while suet is rich in stearin, the fat formed from stearic acid. C. The Carbohydrates. — This group contains the various forms of starches, gums and sugars. This is a very large and important group, and one for our supply of which we are mainly dependent upon the vegetable kingdom. Carbohydrates occur, however, in the animal kingdom : for example, there is an interesting animal carbohydrate called glycogen, which occurs in the liver and muscles, • especially those of young animals ; this is sometimes called animal starch. Of the sugars we have two main forms in common use as foods, i.e. the ordinary ‘ lump,’ or cane sugar, arid fruit sugars, or glucoses, which occur in fruits. Although not so highly prized by the public, these are of more importance than cane sugar ; indeed, the latter has to be converted into glucose in the course of digestion before it can be absorbed by the body. Water, Salts and Extractives. — The constant loss of water in the breath and excreta necessitates, of course, the consumption of a considerable quantity of water to replace the loss. Salts are of extreme importance, e.g. salts of lime are necessary for the formation of bones and teeth. They also have other more obscure functions which have not as yet been accurately determined.

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