Suggestions for reading and home work in connection with this
section. — Read in Early Chapters in Science about thermometers,
pp. 241-24:4; and about the density of ice, pp. 250, 251. Try dis-
tilling water and crystallizing alum according to directions on pp.
231 and 236. See what Dr. Prudden writes in his little book,
Drinking-water and Ice Supplies, about *' The Earth's Stock of
Water," pp. 12-15; "Kinds of Water," pp. 31-37; "Some Ways
of Getting Water," pp. 78-89; and "Solid Water" pp. 115-125.
This last chapter tells how ice is cut and stored.
Section 4. Cleanliness and Cleaning
All things of thee partake.
Nothing can be so mean
But with this tincture, For Th>j sake,
It will be bright and clean.
A servant by this clause
Makes drudgery divine ;
Who sweeps a room as by Thy laws,
Makes that and the action fine.
— George Herbert.
56. Pure air and pure water we have seen to be
simply clean air and clean water. The importance of
cleanliness is better understood than ever before, now
that scientists have shown the close relation between
dirt and disease. The dirt that shows most plainly
may not be the most objectionable. A dusty chair is
of much less consequence than an unclean dish-cloth.
57. Two kinds of dust: living and lifeless; bacteria.
— The dirt in houses consists for the most part of dust,
32
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF COOKERY
both alone and mixed with grease (fatty matter), mois-
ture, and sticky substances. Dust is earth or other matter
in particles so fine that it can he raised and carried hy
the wind. Dust is everywhere present. We see how
quickly it gathers on the floor and the furniture ; a
sunbeam shows us that the air is full of it. This visible
dust was for a long time the only kind known about.
It has been discovered, however, that mixed with visi-
ble dust is another kind, so fine that it can be seen only
Fig.
Two kinds of mould often found on food.
with a microscope. This invisible dust is composed of
tiny plants and their seeds, or spores. When these
spores fall upon suitable material they grow. When
enough plants are growing together they can be seen
with the naked eye.
58- Experiments. — A. Expose a piece of bread or cheese, or
some cooked fruit, to the air for a few days, covering it to keep it
moist. What appears on the surface ?
B. Examine this growth with a magnifying-glass or microscope.
PREPARATORY LESSONS 33
Microscopic plants are of three kinds, moulds, yeasts,
and bacteria (singular bacterium^ rarely used). They
will be studied in other chapters.
59. Bacteria the most objectionable kind of dust. — Vis-
ible dust may do harm by irritating the throat and
lungs ; but certain kinds of bacteria, if they enter the
body, may produce such diseases as consumption, diph-
theria, and typhoid fever. Other kinds cause food to
spoil. Bacteria thrive best in dark, damp places, where
other dirt is present. Anything that kills bacteria or
hinders their growth is called a disinfectant.
Natural Aids to Cleanness
Page 18
Presented as published in 1901. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
A modernized reading is not available for this page yet. You are seeing the original text.
Suggestions for reading and home work in connection with this
section. — Read in Early Chapters in Science about thermometers,
pp. 241-24:4; and about the density of ice, pp. 250, 251. Try dis-
tilling water and crystallizing alum according to directions on pp.
231 and 236. See what Dr. Prudden writes in his little book,
Drinking-water and Ice Supplies, about *' The Earth's Stock of
Water," pp. 12-15; "Kinds of Water," pp. 31-37; "Some Ways
of Getting Water," pp. 78-89; and "Solid Water" pp. 115-125.
This last chapter tells how ice is cut and stored.
Section 4. Cleanliness and Cleaning
All things of thee partake.
Nothing can be so mean
But with this tincture, For Th>j sake,
It will be bright and clean.
A servant by this clause
Makes drudgery divine ;
Who sweeps a room as by Thy laws,
Makes that and the action fine.
— George Herbert.
56. Pure air and pure water we have seen to be
simply clean air and clean water. The importance of
cleanliness is better understood than ever before, now
that scientists have shown the close relation between
dirt and disease. The dirt that shows most plainly
may not be the most objectionable. A dusty chair is
of much less consequence than an unclean dish-cloth.
57. Two kinds of dust: living and lifeless; bacteria.
— The dirt in houses consists for the most part of dust,
32
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF COOKERY
both alone and mixed with grease (fatty matter), mois-
ture, and sticky substances. Dust is earth or other matter
in particles so fine that it can he raised and carried hy
the wind. Dust is everywhere present. We see how
quickly it gathers on the floor and the furniture ; a
sunbeam shows us that the air is full of it. This visible
dust was for a long time the only kind known about.
It has been discovered, however, that mixed with visi-
ble dust is another kind, so fine that it can be seen only
Fig.
Two kinds of mould often found on food.
with a microscope. This invisible dust is composed of
tiny plants and their seeds, or spores. When these
spores fall upon suitable material they grow. When
enough plants are growing together they can be seen
with the naked eye.
58- Experiments. — A. Expose a piece of bread or cheese, or
some cooked fruit, to the air for a few days, covering it to keep it
moist. What appears on the surface ?
B. Examine this growth with a magnifying-glass or microscope.
PREPARATORY LESSONS 33
Microscopic plants are of three kinds, moulds, yeasts,
and bacteria (singular bacterium^ rarely used). They
will be studied in other chapters.
59. Bacteria the most objectionable kind of dust. — Vis-
ible dust may do harm by irritating the throat and
lungs ; but certain kinds of bacteria, if they enter the
body, may produce such diseases as consumption, diph-
theria, and typhoid fever. Other kinds cause food to
spoil. Bacteria thrive best in dark, damp places, where
other dirt is present. Anything that kills bacteria or
hinders their growth is called a disinfectant.
Natural Aids to Cleanness