FoodNet

History and present status of instruction in cooking in the public schools of New York city

1899

Page 51

Presented as published in 1899. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
^ I Watch spring heated to kindling point and burned in pure Experiment | oxygen. Note. — The practical benefit to be derived from this lesson by the children is the making and care of a coal tire; a knowledge of the comparative value of fuels and economy in the use of them. D. E. M., Teacher. PUPIL'S EXERCISE ON LESSON ON FUEL AND COMBUSTION Fuel. — Fuel is material used to produce heat by combustion. Fuel of some kind is used by man to render food more palatable and digestible. The first fuel used was dry twigs and branches of trees. Before people had matches they rubbed two pieces of hard wood together and lighted the twigs by the sparks. Fuel originated from vegetable matter which grew upon the earth many ages ago in the form of trees. These trees fell to the earth and gradually sunk below the surface, they passed through chemical changes until they were reduced to an impure form of carbon called coal. Goal is found in the United States, Great Britain, France, Belgium and Germany. In our homes we generally use anthracite or hard c oal but if we do not feed it with plenty of oxygen, it will not burn. All carbon readily unites with the oxygen of the air. The fire is hottest when a blue and white flame comes up, but some people think it is hottest when it is red but it soon becomes low as most of the gas is burned away. We should not put on coal up to the lids only up to the top of fire-box or the iron will become warped. We should put coal on lightly and often. Bituminous or soft coal is cheaper but it gives out a great deal of smoke this is free carbon. Soft coal is generally used on railroad cars. If you take notice when you are sitting near an open window you will see little pieces flying about. Gas is obtained from coal. There are two flames yellow and blue. The blue flame is the one to cook on as it is better fed by oxygen. The yellow flame is used to illuminate as it contains incandescent carbon if we should cook on it the cooking utensils would become black from the carbon. Experiment to show that all substances will unite with oxygen when heated to kindling point. We took a flask and put in it some potassium chlorate and manga- nese dioxid and heated them. The oxygen was driven off through a glass tube into a bottle of water. The gas crowded out the water : then we took a piece of steel and lighted some sulphur on the end of it and put it in the oxygen, the sulphur heated the steel up to its kindling point and it burned. So we know if the air was all oxygen every thing in the world would be consumed. Charcoal is wood burned without much air reaching it. It is an impure form of A. F. H. SYLLABUS OF LESSON ON CHEMISTRY OF CLEANING. I.— Household C leanliness. (a) What it means: (1) Keeping all portions of the house, both seen and unseen, free from risible and invisible uncleanliness. (a) Visible uncleanliness: Dust and dirt of various kinds — grease and other spots on wood- work, metal, marble, fabrics, etc. (a) Invisible uncleanliness: That caused by invisible particles of living matter floating in the air, usually occurring in dark, damp recesses, as waste pipes, drains, water-closets, pipes from tubs, etc. Closets and dark cupboards. 68 II. — Dust and what it Contains. (a) TyndalFs experiment. (An account of.)