Scientific American Supplement No. 275
by
Various
Part 1 out of 3
Produced by Olaf Voss, Don Kretz, Juliet Sutherland,
Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.
[Illustration]
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN SUPPLEMENT NO. 275
NEW YORK, APRIL 9, 1881
Scientific American Supplement. Vol. XI, No. 275.
Scientific American established 1845
Scientific American Supplement, $5 a year.
Scientific American and Supplement, $7 a year.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS.
I. ENGINEERING AND MECHANICS.--The Various Modes of
Transmitting Power to a Distance. (Continued from No. 274.)
By ARTHUR ARCHARD. of Geneva.--II. Compressed Air.--III.
Transmission by Pressure Water.--IV. Transmission by
Electricity.--General Results
The Hotchkiss Revolving Gun
Floating Pontoon Dock. 2 figures.--Improved floating pontoon dock
II. TECHNOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY.--Wheat and Wheat Bread. By H. MEGE
MOURIES.--Color in bread.--Anatomical structure and chemical
composition of wheat.--Embryo and coating of the embryo.--
Cerealine--Phosphate of calcium.--1 figure, section of a grain
of wheat, magnified.
Origin of New Process Milling.--Special report to the Census
Bureau. By ALBERT HOPPIN.--Present status of milling structures
and machinery in Minneapolis by Special Census Agent C. W.
JOHNSON.--Communication from GEORGE T. SMITH.
Tap for Effervescing Liquids. 1 figure.
London Chemical Society.--Notes.--Pentathionic acid, Mr.
VIVIAN LEWES.--Hydrocarbons from Rosin Spirit. Dr.
ARMSTRONG.--On the Determination of the Relative Weight of Single
Molecules. E. VOGEL.--On the Synthetical Production of Ammonia
by the Combination of Hydrogen and Nitrogen in the Presence of
Heated Spongy Platinum, G. S. JOHNSON.--On the Oxidation of
Organic Matter in Water, A. DOWNS.
Rose Oil, or Otto of Roses. By CHAS. G. WARNFORD LOCK.--Sources
of rose oil.--History--Where rose gardens are now cultivated
for oil.--Methods of cultivation.--Processes of
distillation.--Adulterations
A New Method of Preparing Metatoluidine. By OSCAR WIDMAN.
III. AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE, ETC.--The Guenon Milk Mirror. 1 figure.
Escutcheon of the Jersey Bull Calf, Grand Mirror.
Two Good Lawn Trees
Cutting Sods for Lawns
Horticultural Notes: New apples, pears, grapes, etc.--Discussion
on Grapes. Western New York Society.--New peaches.--Insects
affecting horticulture.--Insect destroyers.
Observations on the Salmon of the Pacific. By DAVID S. JORDAN
and CHARLES B. GILBERT. Valuable census report.
IV. LIGHT, ELECTRICITY ETC.--Relation between Electricity
and Light. Dr. O. T. Lodge's lecture before the London Institute.
Interesting Electrical Researches by Dr. Warren de La Rue and
Dr. Hugo Miller.
Telephony by Thermic Currents
The Telectroscope. By Moxs. SENLECQ. 5 figures. A successful
apparatus for transmitting and reproducing camera pictures by
electricity.
V. HYGIENE, MEDICINE, ETC.--Rapid Breathing as a Pain Obtunde in
Minor Surgery, Obstetrics, the General Practice of Medicine, and
of Dentistry. Dr. W. G. A. Bonwill's paper before the
Philadelphia County Medical Society. 8 figures. Sphygmographic
tracings.
VI. ARCHITECTURE, ART, ETC.--Artist's Homes. No. 11. "Weirleigh."
Residence of Harrison Weir. Perspective and plans.
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WHEAT AND WHEAT BREAD.
By H. MEGE-MOURIES.
In consequence of the interest that has been recently excited on the
subject of bread reform, we have, says the London _Miller_, translated the
interesting contribution of H. Mege-Mouries to the Imperial and Central
Society of Agriculture of France, and subsequently published in a separate
form in 1860, on "Wheat and Wheat Bread," with the illustration prepared
by the author for the contribution. The author says: "I repeat in this
pamphlet the principal facts put forth in the notes issued by me, and in
the reports furnished by Mr. Chevreul to the Academy of Science, from 1853
up to 1860."
The study of the structure of the wheat berry, its chemical composition,
its alimentary value, its preservation, etc., is not alone of interest to
science, agriculture, and industry, but it is worthy of attracting the
attention of governments, for this study, in its connection to political
economy, is bound up with the fate and the prosperity of nations. Wheat has
been cultivated from time immemorial. At first it was roughly crushed and
consumed in the form of a thick soup, or in cakes baked on an ordinary
hearth. Many centuries before the Christian era the Egyptians were
acquainted with the means of making fermented or leavened bread; afterwards
this practice spread into Greece, and it is found in esteem at Rome two
centuries B.C.; from Rome the new method was introduced among the Gauls,
and it is found to-day to exist almost the same as it was practiced at that
period, with the exception, of course, of the considerable improvements
introduced in the baking and grinding.
Since the fortunate idea was formed of transforming the wheat into bread,
this grain has always produced white bread, and dark or brown bread, from
which the conclusion was drawn that it must necessarily make white bread
and brown bread; on the other hand, the flours, mixed with bran, made a
brownish, doughy, and badly risen bread, and it was therefore concluded
that the bran, by its color, produced this inferior bread. From this error,
accepted as a truth, the most contradictory opinions of the most opposite
processes have arisen, which are repeated at the present day in the art of
separating as completely as possible all the tissues of the wheat, and of
extracting from the grain only 70 per cent of flour fit for making white
bread. It is, however, difficult for the observer to admit that a small
quantity of the thin yellow envelope can, by a simple mingling with the
crumb of the loaf, color it brown, and it is still more difficult to admit
that the actual presence of these envelopes can without decomposition
render bread doughy, badly raised, sticky, and incapable of swelling in
water. On the other hand, although some distinguished chemists deny or
exalt the nutritive properties of bran, agriculturists, taking practical
observation as proof, attribute to that portion of the grain a
physiological action which has nothing in common with plastic alimentation,
and prove that animals weakened by a too long usage of dry fodder, are
restored to health by the use of bran, which only seems to act by its
presence, since the greater portion of it, as already demonstrated by Mr.
Poggiale, is passed through with the excrement.
With these opinions, apparently so opposed, it evidently results that there
is an unknown factor at the bottom of the question; it is the nature of
this factor I wish to find out, and it was after the discovery that I
was able to explain the nature of brown bread, and its _role_ in the
alimentation of animals. We have then to examine the causes of the
production of brown bread, to state why white bread kills animals fed
exclusively on it, while bread mixed with bran makes them live. We have to
explain the phenomena of panification, the operations of grinding, and to
explain the means of preparing a bread more economical and more favorable
to health. To explain this question clearly and briefly we must first be
acquainted with the various substances forming the berry, their nature,
their position, and their properties. This we shall do with the aid of the
illustration given.
[Illustration: SECTION OF A GRAIN OF WHEAT MAGNIFIED.]
EXPLANATION OF DIAGRAM.
1.--Superficial Coating of the Epidermis, severed at the Crease of
the Kernel.
2.--Section of Epidermis, Averages of the Weight of the Whole Grain, 1/2 %.
3.--Epicarp, do. do. do. 1 %.
4.--Endocarp, do. do. do. 1 1/2 %.
5.--Testa or Episperm, do. do. do. 2 %.
6.--Embryo Membrane (with imaginary spaces in white on both sides
to make it distinct).
7.\ / Glutonous Cells \
8. > Endosperm < containing > do. do. 90 %.
9./ \ Farinaccous Matter /
ANATOMICAL STRUCTURE AND CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF WHEAT.
The figure represents the longitudinal cut of a grain of wheat; it was made
by taking, with the aid of the microscope and of photography, the drawing
of a large quantity of fragments, which, joined together at last, produced
the figure of the entire cut. These multiplied results were necessary to
appreciate the insertion of the teguments and their nature in every part
of the berry; in this long and difficult work I have been aided by the
co-operation of Mr. Bertsch, who, as is known, has discovered a means of
fixing rapidly by photography any image from the microscope. I must state,
in the first place, that even in 1837 Mr. Payen studied and published the
structure and the composition of a fragment of a grain of wheat; that
this learned chemist, whose authority in such matters is known, perfectly
described the envelopes or coverings, and indicated the presence of various
immediate principles (especially of azote, fatty and mineral substances
which fill up the range of contiguous cells between them and the periphery
of the perisperm, to the exclusion of the gluten and the starchy granules),
as well as to the mode of insertion of the granules of starch in the gluten
contained in the cells, with narrow divisions from the perisperm, and in
such a manner that up to the point of working indicated by the figure 1
this study was complete. However, I have been obliged to recommence it, to
study the special facts bearing on the alimentary question, and I must say
that all the results obtained by Mr. Bertsch, Mr. Trecul, and myself agree
with those given by Mr. Payen.
ENVELOPES OF THE BERRY.
No. 1 represents a superficial side of the crease.
No. 2 indicates the epidermis or cuticle. This covering is extremely light,
and offers nothing remarkable; 100 lb. of wheat contain 1/2 lb. of it.
No. 3 indicates the epicarp. This envelope is distinguished by a double
row of long and pointed vessels; it is, like the first one, very light and
without action; 100 lb. of wheat contain 1 lb. of it.
No. 4 represents the endocarp, or last tegument of the berry; the
sarcocarp, which should be found between the numbers 2 and 3, no longer
exists, having been absorbed. The endocarp is remarkable by its row of
round and regular cells, which appear in the cut like a continuous string
of beads; 100 lb. of wheat contain 11/2 lb. of it.
These three envelopes are colorless, light, and spongy; their elementary
composition is that of straw; they are easily removed besides with the aid
of damp and friction. This property has given rise to an operation called
decortication, the results of which we shall examine later on from an
industrial point of view. The whole of the envelopes of the berry of wheat
amount to 3 lb. in 100 lb. of wheat.
ENVELOPES AND TISSUES OF THE BERRY PROPER.
No. 5 indicates the testa or episperm. This external tegument of the berry
is closer than the preceding ones; it contains in the very small cells
two coloring matters, the one of a palish yellow, the other of an orange
yellow, and according as the one or the other matter predominates, the
wheat is of a more or less intense yellow color; hence come all the
varieties of wheat known in commerce as white, reddish, or red wheats.
Under this tegument is found a very thin, colorless membrane, which, with
the testa or episperm, forms two per cent. of the weight of the wheat.
No. 6 indicates the embryous membrane, which is only an expansion of the
germ or embryo No. 10. This membrane is seen purposely removed from its
contiguous parts, so as to render more visible its form and insertions.
Under this tissue is found with the Nos. 7, 8, and 9, the endosperm or
perisperm, containing the gluten and the starch; soluble and insoluble
albuminoids, that is to say, the flour.
The endosperm and the embryous membrane are the most interesting parts of
the berry; the first is one of the depots of the plastic aliments, the
second contains agents capable of dissolving these aliments during the
germination, of determining their absorption in the digestive organs of
animals, and of producing in the dough a decomposition strong enough to
make dark bread. We shall proceed to examine separately these two parts of
the berry.
ENDOSPERM OR FLOURY PORTION, NOS. 7, 8, 9.
This portion is composed of large glutinous cells, in which the granules
of starch are found. The composition of these different layers offers a
particular interest; the center, No. 9, is the softest part; it contains
the least gluten and the most starch; it is the part which first pulverizes
under the stone, and gives, after the first bolting, the fine flour. As
this flour is poorest in gluten, it makes a dough with little consistency,
and incapable of making an open bread, well raised. The first layer, No.
8, which surrounds the center, produces small white middlings, harder and
richer in gluten than the center; it bakes very well, and weighs 20 lb. in
100, and it is these 20 parts in 100 which, when mixed with the 50 parts in
the center, form the finest quality flour, used for making white bread.
The layer No. 7, which surrounds the preceding one, is still harder and
richer in gluten; unfortunately in the reduction it becomes mixed with some
hundredth parts of the bran, which render it unsuitable for making bread
of the finest quality; it produces in the regrinding lower grade and
dark flours, together weighing 7 per cent. The external layer, naturally
adhering to the membrane, No. 6, becomes mixed in the grinding with bran,
to the extent of about 20 per cent., which renders it unsuitable even
for making brown bread; it serves to form the regrindings and the offals
destined for the nourishment of animals; this layer is, however, the
hardest, and contains the largest quantity of gluten, and it is by
consequence the most nutritive. We now see the endosperm increasing from
the center, formed of floury layers, which augment in richness in gluten,
in proportion as they are removed from the center. Now, as the flours make
more bread in proportion to the quantity of gluten they contain, and the
gluten gives more bread in proportion to its being more developed, or
having more consistence, it follows that the flour belonging to the parts
of the berry nearest the envelopes or coverings should produce the greatest
portion of bread, and this is what takes place in effect. The product of
the different layers of the endosperm is given below, and it will be seen
that the quantity of bread increases in a proportion relatively greater
than that of the gluten, which proves once more that the gluten of the
center or last formation has less consistence than that of the other layers
of older formation.
The following are the results obtained from the same wheat:
Gluten. Bread.
100 parts of flour in center contain.. 8 and produce 128
" " first layer " .. 9,2 " 136
" " second " " .. 11 " 140
" " external " " .. 13 " 145
On the whole, it is seen, according to the composition of the floury part
of the grain, that the berry contains on an average 90 parts in 100 of
flour fit for making bread of the first quality, and that the inevitable
mixing in of a small quantity of bran reduces these 90 to 70 parts with
the ordinary processes; but the loss is not alone there, for the foregoing
table shows that the best portion of the grain is rejected from the food
of man that brown or dark bread is made of flour of very good quality, and
that the first quality bread is made from the portion of the endosperm
containing the gluten in the smallest quantity and in the least developed
form.
This is a consideration not to be passed over lightly; assuredly the gluten
of the center contains as much azote as the gluten of the circumference,
but it must not be admitted in a general way that the alimentary power of
a body is in connection with the amount of azote it contains, and without
entering into considerations which would carry us too wide of the subject,
we shall simply state that if the flesh of young animals, as, for instance,
the calf, has a debilitating action, while the developed flesh of
full-grown animals--of a heifer, for example--has really nourishing
properties, although the flesh of each animal contains the same quantity of
azote, we must conclude that the proportion of elements is not everything,
and that the azotic or nitrogenous elements are more nourishing in
proportion as they are more developed. This is why the gluten of the layers
nearest the bran is of quite a special interest from the point of view of
alimentation and in the preparation of bread.
THE EMBRYO AND THE COATING OF THE EMBRYO.
To be intelligible, I must commence by some very brief remarks on the
tissues of vegetables. There are two sorts distinguished among plants;
some seem of no importance in the phenomena of nutrition; others, on the
contrary, tend to the assimilation of the organic or inorganic components
which should nourish and develop all the parts of the plant. The latter
have a striking analogy with ferments; their composition is almost similar,
and their action is increased or diminished by the same causes.
These tissues, formed in a state of repose in vegetables as in grain, have
special properties; thus the berry possesses a pericarp whose tissues
should remain foreign to the phenomena of germination, and these tissues
show no particularity worthy of remark, but the coating of the embryo,
which should play an active part, possesses, on the contrary, properties
that may be compared to those of ferments. With regard to these ferments,
I must further remark that I have not been able, nor am I yet able, to
express in formula my opinion of the nature of these bodies, but little
known as yet; I have only made use of the language mostly employed, without
wishing to touch on questions raised by the effects of the presence, and
by the more complex effects of living bodies, which exercise analogous
actions.
With these reservations I shall proceed to examine the tissues in the berry
which help toward the germination.
THE EMBRYO (10, see woodcut) is composed of the root of the plant, with
which we have nothing to do here. This root of the plant which is to grow
is embedded in a mass of cells full of fatty bodies. These bodies present
this remarkable particularity, that they contain among their elements
sulphur and phosphorus. When you dehydrate by alcohol 100 grammes of the
embryo of wheat, obtained by the same means as the membrane (a process
indicated later on), this embryo, treated with ether, produces 20 grammes
of oils composed elementarily of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, azote, sulphur,
and phosphorus. This analysis, made according to the means indicated by M.
Fremy, shows that the fatty bodies of the embryo are composed like those of
the germ of an egg, like those of the brain and of the nervous system of
animals. It is necessary for us to stop an instant at this fact: in the
first place, because it proves that vegetables are designed to form the
phosphoric as well as the nitrogenous and ternary aliments, and finally,
because it indicates how important it is to mix the embryo and its
dependents with the bread in the most complete manner possible, seeing that
a large portion of these phosphoric bodies always become decomposed during
the baking.
COATING OF THE EMBRYO.--This membrane (6), which is only an expansion of
the embryo, surrounds the endosperm; it is composed of beautiful irregular
cubic cells, diminishing according as they come nearer to the embryo. These
cells are composed, first, of the insoluble cellular tissue; second,
of phosphate of chalk and fatty phosphoric bodies; third, of soluble
cerealine. In order to study the composition and the nature of this
tissue, it must be completely isolated, and this result is obtained in the
following manner.
The wheat should be damped with water containing 10 parts in 100 of
alcoholized caustic soda; at the expiration of one hour the envelopes of
the pericarp, and of the testa Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5, should be separated by
friction in a coarse cloth, having been reduced by the action of the alkali
to a pulpy state; each berry should then be opened separately to remove the
portion of the envelope held in the fold of the crease, and then all the
berries divided in two are put into three parts of water charged with
one-hundredth of caustic potash. This liquid dissolves the gluten, divides
the starch, and at the expiration of twenty-four hours the parts of the
berries are kneaded between the fingers, collected in pure water, and
washed until the water issues clear; these membranes with their embryos,
which are often detached by this operation, are cast into water acidulated
with one-hundredth of hydrochloric acid, and at the end of several hours
they should be completely washed. The product obtained consists of
beautiful white membranes, insoluble in alkalies and diluted acids, which
show under the microscope beautiful cells joined in a tissue following the
embryo, with which it has indeed a striking analogy in its properties and
composition. This membrane, exhausted by the alcohol and ether, gives, by
an elementary analysis, hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, and azote. Unfortunately,
under the action of the tests this membrane has been killed, and it no
longer possesses the special properties of active tissues. Among these
properties three may be especially mentioned:
1st. Its resistance to water charged with a mineral salt, such as sea salt
for instance
2d. Its action through its presence.
3d. Its action as a ferment.
The action of saltwater is explained as follows: When the berry is plunged
into pure water it will be observed that the water penetrates in the course
of a few hours to the very center of the endosperm, but if water charged
or saturated with sea salt be used, it will be seen that the liquid
immediately passes through the teguments Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 5, and stops
abruptly before the embryo membrane No. 6, which will remain quite dry and
brittle for several days, the berry remaining all the time in the
water. Should the water penetrate further after several days, it can be
ascertained that the entrance was gained through the part No 10 free of
this tissue, and this notwithstanding the cells are full of fatty bodies.
This membrane alone produces this action, for if the coatings Nos. 2, 3, 4,
and 5 be removed, the resistance to the liquid remains the same, while if
the whole, or a portion of it, be divided, either by friction between two
millstones or by simple incisions, the liquid penetrates the berry within
a few hours. This property is analogous to that of the radicules of roots,
which take up the bodies most suitable for the nourishment of the plant. It
proves, besides, that this membrane, like all those endowed with life, does
not obey more the ordinary laws of permeability than those of chemical
affinity, and this property can be turned to advantage in the preservation
of grain in decortication and grinding.
To determine the action of this tissue through its presence, take 100
grammes of wheat, wash it and remove the first coating by decortication;
then immerse it for several hours in lukewarm water, and dry afterwards in
an ordinary temperature. It should then be reduced in a small coffee mill,
the flour and middlings separated by sifting and the bran repassed through
a machine that will crush it without breaking it; then dress it again, and
repeat the operation six times at least. The bran now obtained is composed
of the embryous membrane, a little flour adhering to it, and some traces
of the teguments Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 5. This coarse tissue-weighs about 14
grammes, and to determine its action through its presence, place it in 200
grammes of water at a temperature of 86 deg.; afterwards press it. The liquid
that escapes contains chiefly the flour and cerealine. Filter this liquid,
and put it in a test glass marked No. 1, which will serve to determine the
action of the cerealine.
The bran should now be washed until the water issues pure, and until it
shows no bluish color when iodized water and sulphuric acid are added; when
the washing is finished the bran swollen by the water is placed under a
press, and the liquid extracted is placed, after being filtered, in a test
tube. This test tube serves to show that all cerealine has been removed
from the blades of the tissue. Finally, these small blades of bran, washed
and pressed, are cast, with 50 grammes of lukewarm water, into a test tube,
marked No. 3; 100 grammes of diluted starch to one-tenth of dry starch
are then added in each test tube, and they are put into a water bath at
a temperature of 104 deg. Fahrenheit, being stirred lightly every fifteen
minutes. At the expiration of an hour, or at the most an hour and a half,
No. 1 glass no longer contains any starch, as it has been converted into
dextrine and glucose by the cerealine, and the iodized water only produces
a purple color. No. 2 glass, with the same addition, produces a bluish
color, and preserves the starch intact, which proves that the bran was well
freed from the cerealine contained. No. 3 glass, like No. 1, shows a purple
coloring, and the liquid only contains, in place of the starch, dextrine
and glucose, _i. e_, the tissue has had the same action as the cerealine
deprived of the tissue, and the cerealine as the tissue freed from
cerealine. The same membrane rewashed can again transform the diluted
starch several times. This action is due to the presence of the embryous
membrane, for after four consecutive operations it still preserves its
original weight. As regards the remains of the other segments, they have
no influence on this phenomenon, for the coating Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 5,
separated by the water and friction, have no action whatever on the diluted
starch. Besides its action through its presence, which is immediate,
the embryous membrane may also act as a ferment, active only after a
development, varying in duration according to the conditions of temperature
and the presence or absence of ferments in acting.
I make a distinction here as is seen, between the action through being
present, and the action of real ferments, but it is not my intention to
approve or disapprove of the different opinions expressed on this subject.
I make use of these expressions only to explain more clearly the phenomena
I have to speak of, for it is our duty to bear in mind that the real
ferments only act after a longer or shorter period of development, while,
on the other hand, the effects through presence are immediate.
I now return to the embryous membrane. Various causes increase or decrease
the action of this tissue, but it may be said in general that all the
agents that kill the embryous membrane will also kill the cerealine. This
was the reason why I at first attributed the production of dark bread
exclusively to the latter ferment, but it was easy to observe that during
the baking, decompositions resulted at over 158 deg. Fah., while the cerealine
was still coagulated, and that bread containing bran, submitted to 212 deg. of
heat, became liquefied in water at 104 deg.. It was now easy to determine
that dark flours, from which the cerealine had been removed by repeated
washings, still produced dark bread. It was at this time, in remembering
my experiences with organic bodies, I determined the properties of the
insoluble tissue, deprived of the soluble cerealine, with analogous
properties, but distinguished not alone by its solid organization and state
of insolubility, but also by its resistance to heat, which acts as on
yeast. There exists, in reality, I repeat, a resemblance between the
embryous membrane and the yeast; they have the same immediate composition;
they are destroyed by the same poisons, deadened by the same temperatures,
annihilated by the same agents, propagated in an analogous manner, and
it might be said that the organic tissues endowed with life are only an
agglomeration of fixed cells of ferments. At all events, when the blades of
the embryous membrane, prepared as already stated, are exposed to a water
bath at 212 deg., this tissue, in contact with the diluted starch, produces
the same decomposition; the contact, however, should continue two or three
hours in place of one. If, instead of placing these membranes in the water
bath, they are enveloped in two pounds of dough, and this dough put in the
oven, after the baking the washed membranes produce the same results, which
especially proves that this membrane can support a temperature of 212 deg. Fah.
without disorganization. We shall refer to this property in speaking of the
phenomena of panification.
CEREALINE.--The cells composing the embryous membrane contain, as already
stated, the cerealine, but after the germination they contain cerealine and
diastase, that is to say, a portion of the cerealine changed into diastase,
with which it has the greatest analogy. It is known how difficult it is to
isolate and study albuminous substances. The following is the method of
obtaining and studying cerealine. Take the raw embryous membrane, prepared
as stated, steep it for an hour in spirits of wine diluted with twice its
volume of water, and renew this liquid several times until the dextrine,
glucose, coloring matters, etc., have been completely removed. The
membranes should now be pressed and cast into a quantity of water
sufficient to make a fluid paste of them, squeeze out the mixture,
filter the liquid obtained, and this liquid will contain the cerealine
sufficiently pure to be studied in its effects. Its principal properties
are: The liquid evaporated at a low temperature produces an amorphous,
rough mass nearly colorless, and almost entirely soluble in distilled
water; this solution coagulates between 158 deg. and 167 deg. Fah., and the
coagulum is insoluble in acids and weak alkalies; the solution is
precipitated by all diluted acids, by phosphoric acid at all the degrees of
hydration, and even by a current of carbonic acid. All these precipitates
redissolve with an excess of acid, sulphuric acid excepted. Concentrated
sulphuric acid forms an insoluble downy white precipitate, and the
concentrated vegetable acids, with the exception of tannic acid, do not
determine any precipitate. Cerealine coagulated by an acid redissolves in
an excess of the same acid, but it has become dead and has no more action
on the starch. The alkalies do not form any precipitate, but they kill the
cerealine as if it had been precipitated The neutral rennet does not make
any precipitate in a solution of cerealine--5 centigrammes of dry cerealine
transform in twenty-five minutes 10 grammes of starch, reduced to a paste
by 100 grammes of water at 113 deg. Fah. It will be seen that cerealine has a
grand analogy with albumen and legumine, but it is distinguished from them
by the action of the rennet, of the heat of acids, alcohol, and above all
by its property of transforming the starch into glucose and dextrine.
It may be said that some albuminous substances have this property, but it
must be borne in mind that these bodies, like gluten, for example, only
possess it after the commencement of the decomposition. The albuminous
matter approaching nearest to cerealine is the diastase, for it is only a
transformation of the cerealine during the germination, the proof of which
may be had in analyzing the embryous membrane, which shows more diastase
and less cerealine in proportion to the advancement of the germination: it
differs, however, from the diastase by the action of heat, alcohol, etc.
It is seen that in every case the cerealine and the embryous membrane
act together, and in an analogous manner; we shall shortly examine their
effects on the digestion and in the phenomena of panification.
PHOSPHATE OF CALCIUM.--Mr. Payen was the first to make the observation
that the greatest amount of phosphate of chalk is found in the teguments
adjoining the farinaceous or floury mass. This observation is important
from two points of view; in the first place, it shows us that this mineral
aliment, necessary to the life of animals, is rejected from ordinary bread;
and in the next place, it brings a new proof that phosphate of chalk is
found, and ought to be found, in everyplace where there are membranes
susceptible of exercising vital functions among animals as well as
vegetables.
Phosphate of chalk is not in reality (as I wished to prove in another work)
a plastic matter suitable for forming bones, for the bones of infants are
three times more solid than those of old men, which contain three times
as much of it. The quantity of phosphate of chalk necessary to the
constitution of animals is in proportion to the temperature of those
animals, and often in the inverse ratio of the weight of their bones, for
vegetables, although they have no bones, require phosphate of chalk. This
is because this salt is the natural stimulant of living membranes, and the
bony tissue is only a depot of phosphate of chalk, analogous to the adipose
tissue, the fat of which is absorbed when the alimentation coming from the
exterior becomes insufficient. Now, as we know all the parts constituting
the berry of wheat, it will be easy to explain the phenomena of
panification, and to conclude from the present moment that it is not
indifferent to reject from the bread this embryous membrane where the
agents of digestion are found, viz., the phosphoric bodies and the
phosphate of chalk.
* * * * *
THE ORIGIN OF NEW PROCESS MILLING.
The following article was written by Albert Hoppin, editor of the
_Northwestern Miller_, at the request of Special Agent Chas. W. Johnson,
and forms a part of his report to the census bureau on the manufacturing
industries of Minneapolis.
"The development of the milling industry in this city has been so
intimately connected with the growth and prosperity of the city itself,
that the steps by which the art of milling has reached its present high
state of perfection are worthy of note, especially as Minneapolis may
rightly claim the honor of having brought the improvements, which have
within the last decade so thoroughly revolutionized the art of making
flour, first into public notice, and of having contributed the largest
share of capital and inventive skill to their full development. So much is
this the case that the cluster of mills around the Falls of St. Anthony is
to-day looked upon as the head-center of the milling industry not only of
this country, but of the world. An exception to this broad statement may
possibly be made in favor of the city of Buda Pest, in Austro-Hungary, from
the leading mills in which the millers in this country have obtained many
valuable ideas. To the credit of American millers and millwrights it must,
however, be said that they have in all cases improved upon the information
they have thus obtained.
"To rightly understand the change that has taken place in milling methods
during the last ten years, it is necessary to compare the old way with the
new, and to observe wherein they differ. From the days of Oliver Evans, the
first American mechanic to make any improvement in milling machinery, until
1870, there was, if we may except some grain cleaning or smut machines,
no very strongly marked advance in milling machinery or in the methods of
manufacturing flour. It is true that the reel covered with finely-woven
silk bolting cloth had taken the place of the muslin or woolen covered hand
sieve, and that the old granite millstones have given place to the French
burr; but these did not affect the essential parts of the _modus operandi_,
although the quality of the product was, no doubt, materially improved. The
processes employed in all the mills in the United States ten years ago were
identical, or very nearly so, with those in use in the Brandywine Mills in
Evans's day. They were very simple, and may be divided into two distinct
operations.
"First. Grinding (literally) the wheat.
"Second. Bolting or separating the flour or interior portion of the berry
from the outer husk, or bran. It may seem to some a rash assertion, but
this primitive way of making flour is still in vogue in over one-half of
the mills of the United States. This does not, however, affect the truth of
the statement that the greater part of the flour now made in this country
is made on an entirely different and vastly-improved system, which has come
to be known to the trade as the new process.
"In looking for a reason for the sudden activity and spirit of progress
which had its culmination in the new process, the character of the
wheat raised in the different sections of the Union must be taken into
consideration. Wheat may be divided into two classes, spring and winter,
the latter generally being more starchy and easily pulverized, and at the
same time having a very tough bran or husk, which does not readily crumble
or cut to pieces in the process of grinding. It was with this wheat that
the mills of the country had chiefly to do, and the defects of the old
system of milling were not then so apparent. With the settlement of
Minnesota, and the development of its capacities as a wheat-growing State,
a new factor in the milling problem was introduced, which for a time bid
fair to ruin every miller who undertook to solve it. The wheat raised in
this State was, from the climatic conditions, a spring wheat, hard in
structure and having a thin, tender, and friable bran. In milling this
wheat, if an attempt was made to grind it as fine as was then customary to
grind winter wheat, the bran was ground almost as fine as the flour, and
passed as readily through the meshes of the bolting reels or sieves,
rendering the flour dark, specky, and altogether unfit to enter the Eastern
markets in competition with flour from the winter wheat sections. On the
other hand, if the grinding was not so fine as to break up the bran,
the interior of the berry being harder to pulverize, was not rendered
sufficiently fine, and there remained after the flour was bolted out a
large percentage of shorts or middlings, which, while containing the
strongest and best flour in the berry, were so full of dirt and impurities
as to render them unfit for any further grinding except for the very lowest
grade of flour, technically known as 'red dog.' The flour produced from
the first grinding was also more or less specky and discolored, and, in
everything but strength, inferior to that made from winter wheat, while the
'yield' was so small, or, in other words, the amount of wheat which it took
to make a barrel of flour was so large, that milling in Minnesota and other
spring wheat sections was anything but profitable.
"The problem which ten years since confronted the millers of this city was
how to obtain from the wheat which they had to grind a white, clear flour,
and to so increase the yield as to leave some margin for profit. The first
step in the solution of this problem was the invention by E. N. La Croix
of the machine which has since been called the purifier, which removed the
dirt and light impurities from the refuse middlings in the same manner that
dust and chaff are removed from wheat by a fanning mill. The middlings thus
purified were then reground, and the result was a much whiter and cleaner
flour than it had been possible to obtain under the old process of low
close grinding. This flour was called 'patent' or 'fancy,' and at once took
a high position in the market. The first machine built by La Croix was
immediately improved by George T. Smith, and has since then been the
subject of numberless variations, changes, and improvements; and over the
principles embodied in its construction there has been fought one of the
longest and most bitter battles recorded in the annals of patent litigation
in this country. The purifier is to-day the most important machine in use
in the manufacture of flour in this country, and may with propriety be
called the corner-stone of new process milling. The earliest experiments in
its use in this country were made in what was then known as the 'big mill'
in this city, owned by Washburn, Stephens & Co., and now known as the
Washburn Mill B.
"The next step in the development of the new process, also originating
in Minneapolis, was the abandonment of the old system of cracking the
millstone, and substituting in its stead the use of smooth surfaces on the
millstones, thus in a large measure doing away with the abrasion of the
bran, and raising the quality of the flour produced at the first grinding.
So far as we know, Mr. E. R. Stephens, a Minneapolis miller, then employed
in the mill owned by Messrs. Pillsbury, Crocker & Fish, and now a member of
the prominent milling firm of Freeman & Stephens, River Falls, Wisconsin,
was the first to venture on this innovation. He also first practiced the
widening of the furrows in the millstones and increasing their number, thus
adding largely to the amount of middlings made at the first grinding, and
raising the percentage of patent flour. He was warmly supported by Amasa K.
Ostrander, since deceased, the founder and for a number of years the editor
of the _North-Western Miller_, a trade newspaper. The new ideas were for a
time vigorously combated by the millers, but their worth was so plain that
they were soon adopted, not only in Minneapolis, but by progressive millers
throughout the country. The truth was the 'new process' in its entirety,
which may be summarized in four steps--first, grinding or, more properly,
granulating the berry; second, bolting or separating the 'chop' or meal
into first flour, middlings, and bran; third, purifying the middlings,
fourth, regrinding and rebolting the middlings to produce the higher grade,
or 'patent' flour. This higher grade flour drove the best winter wheat
flours out of the Eastern markets, and placed milling in Minnesota upon a
firm basis. The development of the 'new process' cannot be claimed by any
one man. Hundreds of millers all over the country have contributed to its
advance, but the millers of Minneapolis have always taken the lead.
"Within the past two or three years what may be distinctively called the
'new process' has, in the mills of Minneapolis and some few other leading
mills in the country, been giving place to a new system, or rather, a
refinement of the processes above described. This latest system is known to
the trade as the 'gradual reduction' or high-grinding system, as the 'new
process' is the medium high-grinding system, and the old way is the low or
close grinding system. In using the gradual reduction in making flour the
millstones are abandoned, except for finishing some of the inferior grades
of flour, and the work is done by means of grooved and plain rollers, made
of chilled iron or porcelain. In some cases disks of chilled iron, suitably
furrowed, are used, and in others concave mills, consisting of a cylinder
running against a concave plate. In Minneapolis the chilled iron rolls take
the precedence of all other means.
"The system of gradual reduction is much more complicated than either of
those which preceded it; but the results obtained are a marked advance over
the 'new process.' The percentage of high-grade flour is increased, several
grades of different degrees of excellence being produced, and the yield
is also greater from a given quantity of wheat. The system consists in
reducing the wheat to flour, not at one operation, as in the old system,
nor in two grindings, as in the 'new process,' but in several successive
reductions, four, five, or six, as the case may be. The wheat is first
passed through a pair of corrugated chilled iron rollers, which merely
split it open along the crease of the berry, liberating the dirt which lies
in the crease so that it can be removed by bolting. A very small percentage
of low-grade flour is also made in this reduction. After passing through
what is technically called a 'scalping reel' to remove the dirt and flour,
the broken wheat is passed through a second set of corrugated rollers, by
which it is further broken up, and then passes through a second separating
reel, which removes the flour and middlings. This operation is repeated
successively until the flour portion of the berry is entirely removed from
the bran, the necessary separation being made after each reduction. The
middlings from the several reductions are passed through the purifiers,
and, after being purified, are reduced to flour by successive reductions
on smooth iron or porcelain rollers. In some cases, as stated above, iron
disks and concave mills are substituted for the roller mill, but the
operation is substantially the same. One of the principal objects sought to
be attained by this high-grinding system is to avoid all abrasion of the
bran, another is to take out the dirt in the crease of the berry at the
beginning of the process, and still another to thoroughly free the bran
from flour, so as to obtain as large a yield as possible. Incidental to the
improved methods of milling, as now practiced in this country, is a marked
improvement in the cleaning of the grain and preparing it for flouring. The
earliest grain-cleaning machine was the 'smutter,' the office of which was
to break the smut balls, and scour the outside of the bran to remove any
adhering dust, the scouring machine being too harsh in its action, breaking
the kernels of wheat, and so scratching and weakening the bran that it
broke up readily in the grinding. The scouring process was therefore
lessened, and was followed by brush machines, which brushed the dirt,
loosened up and left by the scourer, from the berry. Other machines for
removing the fuzzy and germ ends of the berry have also been introduced,
and everything possible is done to free the grain from extraneous
impurities before the process of reduction is commenced. In all the minor
details of the mill there has been the same marked change, until the modern
merchant mill of to-day no more resembles that of twenty-five years ago
than does the modern cotton mill the old-fashioned distaff. The change has
extended into the winter wheat sections, and no mill in the United States
can hope to hold its place in the markets unless it is provided with the
many improvements in machinery and processes which have resulted from the
experiments begun in this city only ten years since, and which have
made the name of Minneapolis and the products of her many mills famous
throughout the world. The relative merits of the flour made by the new
process and the old have been warmly discussed, but the general verdict
of the great body of consumers is that the patent or new process flour is
better in every way for bread making purposes, being clearer, whiter, more
evenly granulated, and possessing more strength. Careful chemical analysis
has confirmed this. As between winter and spring wheat flours made by the
new process and gradual reduction systems, it maybe remarked that the
former contain more starch and are whiter in color, while the latter,
having more gluten, excel in strength. In milling all varieties of wheat,
whether winter or spring, the new processes are in every way superior to
the old, and, in aiding their inception and development, the millers of
Minneapolis have conferred a lasting benefit on the country.
"Minneapolis, Minn., December 1, 1880."
THE MILLING STRUCTURES AND MACHINERY.
Mr. Johnson added the following, showing the present status of the milling
industry in Minneapolis:
"The description of the process of the manufacture of flour so well
given above, conveys no idea of the extent and magnitude of the milling
structures, machinery, and buildings employed in the business. Many of the
leading millers and millwrights have personally visited and studied the
best mills in England, France, Hungary, and Germany, and are as familiar
with their theory, methods, and construction as of their own, and no
expense or labor has been spared in introducing the most approved features
of the improvements in the foreign mills. Experimenting is constantly going
on, and the path behind the successful millers is strewn with the wrecks of
failures. A very large proportion of the machinery is imported, though the
American machinists are fast outstripping their European rivals in the
quality and efficiency of the machinery needed for the new mills constantly
going up.
"There are twenty-eight of these mills now constructed and at work,
operating an equivalent of 412 runs of stone, consuming over sixteen
million bushels of wheat, and manufacturing over three million barrels of
flour annually. Their capacities range from 250 to 1,500 barrels of flour
per day. Great as these capacities are, there is now one in process of
construction, the Pillsbury A Mill, which at the beginning of the harvest
of 1881 will have a capacity of 4,000 barrels daily. The Washburn A Mill,
whose capacity is now 1,500 barrels, is being enlarged to make 8,500
barrels a day, and the Crown Roller Mill, owned by Christian Bros. & Co.,
is also being enlarged to produce 3,000 barrels a day. The largest mill in
Europe has a daily capacity of but 2,800 barrels, and no European mill is
fitted with the exquisite perfection of machinery and apparatus to be found
in the mills of this city.
"The buildings are mainly built of blue limestone, found so abundant in the
quarries of this city, range and line work, and rest on the solid ledge.
The earlier built mills are severely plain, but the newer ones are greatly
improved by the taste of the architect, and are imposing and beautiful in
appearance."
DIRECT FOREIGN TRADE.
The flour of Minneapolis, holding so high a rank in the markets of the
world, is always in active demand, especially the best grades, and brings
from $1.00 to $1.60 per barrel more than flour of the best qualities of
southern, eastern, or foreign wheat. During the year nearly a million
barrels were shipped direct to European and other foreign ports, on through
bills of lading, and drawn for by banks here having special foreign
exchange arrangements, at sight, on the day of shipment. This trade
is constantly increasing, and the amount of flour handled by eastern
commission men is decreasing in proportion.
* * * * *
Referring to the foregoing, the following letter from Mr. Geo. T. Smith to
the editor of the _London Miller_ is of interest:
SIR: I find published in the _North-western Miller_ of December 24, 1880,
extracts from an article on the origin of new process milling, prepared by
Albert Hoppin, Esq., editor of the above-named journal, for the use of one
of the statistical divisions of the United States census, which is so at
variance, in at least one important particular, with the facts set forth in
the paper read by me before the British and Irish millers, at their meeting
in May last, that I think I ought to take notice of its statements, more
especially as the _North-Western Miller_ has quite a circulation on this
side of the water.
As stated in the paper read by me above-mentioned, I was engaged in
February, 1871, by Mr. Christian, who was then operating the "big," or
Washburn Mill at Minneapolis, to take charge of the stones in that mill. At
this time Mr. Christian was very much interested in the improvement of the
quality of his flour, which in common with the flour of Minneapolis mills,
without exception, was very poor indeed. For some time previous to this I
had insisted to him most strenuously that the beginning of any improvement
must be found in smooth, true, and well balanced stones, and it was because
he was at last convinced that my ideas were at least worthy of a practical
test I was placed in charge of his mill. Nearly two months were consumed in
truing and smoothing the stone, as all millers in the mill had struck
at once when they became acquainted with the character of the changes I
proposed to make.
I remained with Mr. Christian until the latter part of 1871, in all about
eight months. During this time the flour from the Washburn Mill attained a
celebrity that made it known and sought after all over the United States.
It commanded attention as an event of the very greatest importance, from
the fact that it was justly felt that if a mill grinding spring wheat
exclusively was capable of producing a flour infinitely superior in every
way to the best that could be made from the finest varieties of winter
wheats, the new North Western territory, with its peculiar adaptation to
the growing of spring grain, and its boundless capacity for production,
must at once become one of the most important sections of the country.
Mr. Christian's appreciation of the improvements I had made in his mill
was attested by doubly-locked and guarded entrances, and by the stringent
regulations which were adopted to prevent any of his employes carrying
information with regard to the process to his competitors.
All this time other Minneapolis mills were doing such work and only such as
they had done previously. Ought not the writer of an article on the origin
of new process milling--which article is intended to become historical, and
to have its authenticity indorsed by the government--to have known whether
Mr. Christian, in the Washburn Mill, did or did not make a grade of
flour which has hardly been excelled since for months before any other
Minneapolis mill approached his product in any degree? And should he not
be well enough acquainted with the milling of that period--1871-2--to know
that such results as were obtained in the Washburn Mill could only be
secured by the use of _smooth_ and _true_ stones? Mr. Stephens--whom I
shall mention again presently--did _not_ work in the Washburn Mill while I
was in charge of it.
In the fall of 1871 I entered into a contract with Mr. C. A. Pillsbury,
owner of the Taylor Mill and senior partner in the firm by whom the
Minneapolis Mill was operated, to put both those mills into condition to
make the same grade of flour as Mr. Christian was making. The consideration
in the contract was 5,000 dols. At the above mills I met to some extent the
same obstruction in regard to millers striking as had greeted me at Mr.
Christian's mill earlier in the year; but among those who did not strike at
the Minneapolis Mill I saw, for the first time, Mr. Stephens--then still
in his apprenticeship--whom Mr. Hoppin declares to have been, "so far as I
know," the first miller to use smooth stones. If Mr. Hoppin is right in his
assertion, perhaps he will explain why, during the eight months I was at
the Washburn Mill, Mr. Stephens did not make a corresponding improvement
in the product of the Minneapolis Mill. That he did not do this is amply
proved by the fact of Mr. Pillsbury giving me 5,000 dols. to introduce
improvements into his mills, when, supposing Mr. Hoppin's statement to
be correct, he might have had the same alterations carried out under Mr.
Stephens' direction at a mere nominal cost. As a matter of fact, the stones
in both the Taylor and Minneapolis Mills were as rough as any in the
Washburn Mill when I took charge of them.
Thus it appears (1) that the flour made by the mill in which Stephens was
employed was not improved in quality, while that of the Washburn Mill,
where he was not employed, became the finest that had ever been made in the
United States at that time. That (2) the owner of the mill in which Mr.
Stephens was employed, as he was not making good flour, engaged me at a
large cost to introduce into his mills the alterations by which only, both
Mr. Hoppin and myself agree, could any material improvement in the milling
of that period be effected, .viz., smooth, true, and well-balanced
stones.--GEO. T. SMITH.
* * * * *
For breachy animals do not use barbed fences. To see the lacerations that
these fences have produced upon the innocent animals should be sufficient
testimony against them. Many use pokes and blinders on cattle and goats,
but as a rule such things fail. The better way is to separate breachy
animals from the lot, as others will imitate their habits sooner or later,
and then, if not curable, _sell them_.
* * * * *
THE GUENON MILK-MIRROR.
The name of the simple Bordeaux peasant is, and should be, permanently
associated with his discovery that the milking qualities of cows were, to a
considerable extent, indicated by certain external marks easily observed.
We had long known that capacious udders and large milk veins, combined with
good digestive capacity and a general preponderance of the alimentary over
the locomotive system, were indications that rarely misled in regard to the
ability of a cow to give much milk; but to judge of the amount of milk a
cow would yield, and the length of time she would hold out in her flow, two
or three years before she could be called a cow--this was Guenon's great
accomplishment, and the one for which he was awarded a gold medal by the
Agricultural Society of his native district. This was the first of many
honors with which he was rewarded, and it is much to say that no committee
of agriculturists who have ever investigated the merits of the system
have ever spoken disparagingly of it. Those who most closely study it,
especially following Guenon's original system, which has never been
essentially improved upon, are most positive in regard to its truth,
enthusiastic in regard to its value.
The fine, soft hair upon the hinder part of a cow's udder for the most part
turns upward. This upward-growing hair extends in most cases all over that
part of the udder visible between the hind legs, but is occasionally marked
by spots or mere lines, usually slender ovals, in which the hair grows
down. This tendency of the hair to grow upward is not confined to the udder
proper; but extends out upon the thighs and upward to the tail. The edges
of this space over which the hair turns up are usually distinctly marked,
and, as a rule, the larger the area of this space, which is called the
"mirror" or "escutcheon," the more milk the cow will give, and the longer
she will continue in milk.
[Illustration: ESCUTCHEON OF THE JERSEY BULL-CALF, GRAND MIRROR, 4,904.]
That portion of the escutcheon which covers the udder and extends out on
the inside of each thigh, has been designated as the udder or mammary
mirror; that which runs upward towards the setting on of the tail, the
rising or placental mirror. The mammary mirror is of the greater value,
yet the rising mirror is not to be disregarded. It is regarded of especial
moment that the mirror, taken as a whole, be symmetrical, and especially
that the mammary mirror be so; yet it often occurs that it is far
otherwise, its outline being often very fantastical--exhibiting deep
_bays_, so to speak, and islands of downward growing hair. There are also
certain "ovals," never very large, yet distinct, which do not detract from
the estimated value of an escutcheon; notably those occurring on the lobes
of the udder just above the hind teats. These are supposed to be points of
value, though for what reason it would be hard to tell, yet they do occur
upon some of the very best milch cows, and those whose mirrors correspond
most closely to their performances.
Mr. Guenon's discovery enables breeders to determine which of their calves
are most promising, and in purchasing young stock it affords indications
which rarely fail as to their comparative milk yield. These indications
occasionally prove utterly fallacious, and Mr. Guenon gives rules for
determining this class, which he calls "bastards," without waiting for them
to fail in their milk. The signs are, however, rarely so distinct that one
would be willing to sell a twenty-quart cow, whose yield confirmed the
prediction of her mirror at first calving, because of the possibility of
the going dry in two months, or so, as indicated by her bastardy marks.
It is an interesting fact that the mirrors of bulls (which are much like
those of cows, but less extensive in every direction) are reflected in
their daughters. This gives rise to the dangerous custom of breeding for
mirrors, rather than for milk. What the results may be after a few years it
is easy to see. The mirror, being valued for its own sake--that is, because
it sells the heifers--will be likely to lose its practical significance and
value as a _milk_ mirror.
We have a striking photograph of a young Jersey bull, the property of Mr.
John L. Hopkins, of Atlanta, Ga., and called "Grand Mirror." This we have
caused to be engraved and the mirror is clearly shown. A larger mirror is
rarely seen upon a bull. We hope in a future number to exhibit some cows'
mirrors of different forms and degrees of excellence.--_Rural New Yorker_.
* * * * *
TWO GOOD LAWN TREES.
The negundo, or ash-leaved maple, as it is called in the Eastern States,
better known at the West as a box elder, is a tree that is not known as
extensively as it deserves. It is a hard maple, that grows as rapidly as
the soft maple; is hardy, possesses a beautiful foliage of black green
leaves, and is symmetrical in shape. Through eastern Iowa I found it
growing wild, and a favorite tree with the early settlers, who wanted
something that gave shade and protection to their homes quickly on their
prairie farms. Brought east, its growth is rapid, and it loses none of the
characteristics it possessed in its western home. Those who have planted it
are well pleased with it. It is a tree that transplants easily, and I know
of no reason why it should not be more popular.
For ornamental lawn planting, I give pre-eminence to the cut-leaf weeping
birch. Possessing all the good qualities of the white birch, it combines
with them a beauty and delicate grace yielded by no other tree. It is an
upright grower, with slender, drooping branches, adorned with leaves of
deep rich green, each leaf being delicately cut, as with a knife, into
semi-skeletons. It holds its foliage and color till quite late in the fall.
The bark, with age, becomes white, resembling the white birch, and the
beauty of the tree increases with its age. It is a free grower, and
requires no trimming. Nature has given it a symmetry which art cannot
improve.
H.T.J.
* * * * *
CUTTING SODS FOR LAWNS.
I am a very good sod layer, and used to lay very large lawns--half to
three-quarters of an acre. I cut the sods as follows: Take a board eight to
nine inches wide, four, five, or six feet long, and cut downward all around
the board, then turn the board over and cut again alongside the edge of the
board, and so on as many sods as needed. Then cut the turf with a sharp
spade, all the same lengths. Begin on one end, and roll together. Eight
inches by five feet is about as much as a man can handle conveniently. It
is very easy to load them on a wagon, cart, or barrow, and they can be
quickly laid. After laying a good piece, sprinkle a little with a watering
pot, if the sods are dry; then use the back of the spade to smooth them a
little. If a very fine effect is wanted, throw a shovelful or two of good
earth over each square yard, and smooth it with the back of a steel rake.
F.H.
* * * * *
[COUNTRY GENTLEMAN.]
HORTICULTURAL NOTES.
The Western New York Society met at Rochester, January 26.
_New Apples, Pears, Grapes, etc._--Wm. C Barry, secretary of the committee
on native fruits, read a full report. Among the older varieties of the
apple, he strongly recommended Button Beauty, which had proved so excellent
in Massachusetts, and which had been equally successful at the Mount
Hope Nurseries at Rochester; the fine growth of the tree and its great
productiveness being strongly in its favor. The Wagener and Northern Spy
are among the finer sorts. The Melon is one of the best among the older
sorts; the fruit being quite tender will not bear long shipment, but it
possesses great value for home use, and being a poor grower, it had been
thrown aside by nurserymen and orchardists. It should be top-grafted on
more vigorous sorts. The Jonathan is another fine sort of slender growth,
which should be top-grafted.
Among new pears, Hoosic and Frederic Clapp were highly commended for their
excellence. Some of the older peaches of fine quality had of late been
neglected, and among them Druid Hill and Brevoort.
Among the many new peaches highly recommended for their early ripening,
there was great resemblance to each other, and some had proved earlier than
Alexander.
Of the new grapes, Lady Washington was the most promising. The Secretary
was a failure. The Jefferson was a fine sort, of high promise.
Among the new white grapes, Niagara, Prentiss, and Duchess stood
pre-eminent, and were worthy of the attention of cultivators. The
Vergennes, from Vermont, a light amber colored sort, was also highly
commended. The Elvira, so highly valued in Missouri, does not succeed well
here. Several facts were stated in relation to the Delaware grape, showing
its reliability and excellence.
Several new varieties of the raspberry were named, but few of them were
found equal to the best old sorts. If Brinckle's Orange were taken as a
standard for quality, it would show that none had proved its equal in fine
quality. The Caroline was like it in color, but inferior in flavor. The New
Rochelle was of second quality. Turner was a good berry, but too soft for
distant carriage.
Of the many new strawberries named, each seemed to have some special
drawback. The Bidwell, however, was a new sort of particular excellence,
and Charles Downing thinks it the most promising of the new berries.
_Discussion on Grapes._--C. W. Beadle, of Ontario, in allusion to Moore's
Early grape, finds it much earlier than the Concord, and equal to it in
quality, ripening even before the Hartford. S. D. Willard, of Geneva,
thought it inferior to the Concord, and not nearly so good as the Worden.
The last named was both earlier and better than the Concord, and sold for
seven cents per pound when the Concord brought only four cents. C. A.
Green, of Monroe County, said the Lady Washington proved to be a very fine
grape, slightly later than Concord. P. L. Perry, of Canandaigua, said
that the Vergennes ripens with Hartford, and possesses remarkable keeping
qualities, and is of excellent quality and free from pulp. He presented
specimens which had been kept in good condition. He added, in relation to
the Worden grape, that some years ago it brought 18 cents per pound in New
York when the Concord sold three days later for only 8 cents. [In such
comparisons, however, it should be borne in mind that new varieties usually
receive more attention and better culture, giving them an additional
advantage.]
The Niagara grape received special attention from members. A. C. Younglove,
of Yates County, thought it superior to any other white grape for its many
good qualities. It was a vigorous and healthy grower, and the clusters were
full and handsome. W. J. Fowler, of Monroe County, saw the vine in October,
with the leaves still hanging well, a great bearer and the grape of fine
quality. C. L. Hoag, of Lockport, said he began to pick the Niagara on the
26th of August, but its quality improved by hanging on the vine. J. Harris,
of Niagara County, was well acquainted with the Niagara, and indorsed all
the commendation which had been uttered in its favor. T. C. Maxwell said
there was one fault--we could not get it, as it was not in market. W. C.
Barry, of Rochester, spoke highly of the Niagara, and its slight foxiness
would be no objection to those who like that peculiarity. C. L. Hoag
thought this was the same quality that Col. Wilder described as "a little
aromatic." A. C. Younglove found the Niagara to ripen with the Delaware.
Inquiry being made relative to the Pockington grape, H. E. Hooker said it
ripened as early as the Concord. C. A. Green was surprised that it had not
attracted more attention, as he regarded it as a very promising grape. J.
Charlton, of Rochester, said that the fruit had been cut for market on the
29th of August, and on the 6th of September it was fully ripe; but he has
known it to hang as late as November. J. S. Stone had found that when it
hung as late as November it became sweet and very rich in flavor.
_New Peaches._--A. C. Younglove had found such very early sorts as
Alexander and Amsden excellent for home use, but not profitable for market.
The insects and birds made heavy depredations on them. While nearly all
very early and high-colored sorts suffer largely from the birds, the
Rivers, a white peach, does not attract them, and hence it may be
profitable for market if skillfully packed; rough and careless handling
will spoil the fruit. He added that the Wheatland peach sustains its high
reputation, and he thought it the best of all sorts for market, ripening
with Late Crawford. It is a great bearer, but carries a crop of remarkably
uniform size, so that it is not often necessary to throw out a bad
specimen. This is the result of experience with it by Mr. Rogers at
Wheatland, in Monroe County, and at his own residence in Vine Valley. S. D.
Willard confirmed all that Mr. Younglove had said of the excellence of the
Rivers peach. He had ripened the Amsden for several years, and found it
about two weeks earlier than the Rivers, and he thought if the Amsden were
properly thinned, it would prevent the common trouble of its rotting; such
had been his experience. E. A. Bronson, of Geneva, objected to making very
early peaches prominent for marketing, as purchasers would prefer waiting
a few days to paying high prices for the earliest, and he would caution
people against planting the Amsden too largely, and its free recommendation
might mislead. May's Choice was named by H. E. Hooker as a beautiful yellow
peach, having no superior in quality, but perhaps it may not be found
to have more general value than Early and Late Crawford. It is scarcely
distinguishable in appearance from fine specimens of Early Crawford. W. C.
Barry was called on for the most recent experience with the Waterloo,
but said he was not at home when it ripened, but he learned that it had
sustained its reputation. A. C. Younglove said that the Salway is the best
late peach, ripening eight or ten days after the Smock. S. D. Willard
mentioned an orchard near Geneva, consisting of 25 Salway trees, which for
four years had ripened their crop and had sold for $4 per bushel in the
Philadelphia market, or for $3 at Geneva--a higher price than for any other
sort--and the owner intends to plant 200 more trees. W. C. Barry said the
Salway will not ripen at Rochester. Hill's Chili was named by some members
as a good peach for canning and drying, some stating that it ripens before
and others after Late Crawford. It requires thinning on the tree, or
the fruit will be poor. The Allen was pronounced by Mr. Younglove as an
excellent, intensely high-colored late peach.
_Insects Affecting Horticulture_.--Mr. Zimmerman spoke of the importance
of all cultivators knowing so much of insects and their habits as to
distinguish their friends from their enemies. When unchecked they increase
in an immense ratio, and he mentioned as an instance that the green fly
(_Aphis_) in five generations may become the parent of six thousand million
descendants. It is necessary, then, to know what other insects are employed
in holding them in check, by feeding on them. Some of our most formidable
insects have been accidentally imported from Europe, such as the codling
moth, asparagus beetle, cabbage butterfly, currant worm and borer, elm-tree
beetle, hessian fly, etc.; but in nearly every instance these have come
over without bringing their insect enemies with them, and in consequence
they have spread more extensively here than in Europe. It was therefore
urged that the Agricultural Department at Washington be requested to
import, as far as practicable, such parasites as are positively known to
prey on noxious insects. The cabbage fly eluded our keen custom-house
officials in 1866, and has enjoyed free citizenship ever since. By
accident, one of its insect enemies (a small black fly) was brought over
with it, and is now doing excellent work by keeping the cabbage fly in
check.
The codling moth, one of the most formidable fruit destroyers, may be
reduced in number by the well-known paper bands; but a more efficient
remedy is to shower them early in the season with Paris green, mixed in
water at the rate of only one pound to one hundred gallons of water, with
a forcing pump, soon after blossoming. After all the experiments made and
repellents used for the plum curculio, the jarring method is found the most
efficient and reliable, if properly performed. Various remedies for insects
sometimes have the credit of doing the work, if used in those seasons
when the insects happen to be few. With some insects, the use of oil is
advantageous, as it always closes up their breathing holes and suffocates
them. The oil should be mixed with milk, and then diluted as required, as
the oil alone cannot be mixed with the water. As a general remedy,
Paris green is the strongest that can be applied. A teaspoonful to a
tablespoonful, in a barrel of water, is enough. Hot water is the best
remedy for house plants. Place one hand over the soil, invert the pot, and
plunge the foliage for a second only at a time in water heated to from 150 deg.
to 200 deg.F, according to the plants; or apply with a fine rose. The yeast
remedy has not proved successful in all cases.
Among beneficial insects, there are about one hundred species of lady bugs,
and, so far as known, all are beneficial. Cultivators should know them.
They destroy vast quantities of plant lice. The ground beetles are mostly
cannibals, and should not be destroyed. The large black beetle, with
coppery dots, makes short work with the Colorado potato beetles; and
a bright green beetle will climb trees to get a meal of canker worms.
Ichneumon flies are among our most useful insects. The much-abused dragon
flies are perfectly harmless to us, but destroy many mosquitoes and flies.
Among insects that attack large fruits is the codling moth, to be destroyed
by paper bands, or with Paris green showered in water. The round-headed
apple-tree borer is to be cut out, and the eggs excluded with a sheet of
tarred paper around the stem, and slightly sunk in the earth. For the
oyster-shell bark louse, apply linseed oil. Paris green, in water,
will kill the canker worm. Tobacco water does the work for plant lice.
Peach-tree borers are excluded with tarred or felt paper, and cut out with
a knife. Jar the grape flea beetle on an inverted umbrella early in the
morning. Among small-fruit insects, the strawberry worms are readily
destroyed with hellebore, an ounce to a gallon of warm water. The same
remedy destroys the imported currant worm.
_Insect Destroyers_.--Prof. W. Saunders, of the Province of Ontario,
followed Mr. Zimmerman with a paper on other departments of the same
general subject, which contained much information and many suggestions of
great value to cultivators. He had found Paris green an efficient remedy
for the bud-moth on pear and other trees. He also recommends Paris green
for the grapevine flea beetle. Hellebore is much better for the pear slug
than dusting with sand, as these slugs, as soon as their skin is spoiled
by being sanded, cast it off and go on with their work of destruction as
freely as ever, and this they repeat. He remarked that it is a common error
that all insects are pests to the cultivator. There are many parasites,
or useful ones, which prey on our insect enemies. Out of 7,000 described
insects in this country, only about 50 have proved destructive to our
crops. Parasites are much more numerous. Among lepidopterous insects
(butterflies, etc.), there are very few noxious species; many active
friends are found among the Hymenoptera (wasps, etc.), the ichneumon flies
pre-eminently so; and in the order Hemiptera (bugs proper) are several that
destroy our enemies. Hence the very common error that birds which destroy
insects are beneficial to us, as they are more likely to destroy our insect
friends than the fewer enemies. Those known as _flycatchers_ may do neither
harm nor good; so far as they eat the wheat-midge and Hessian fly they
confer a positive benefit; in other instances they destroy both friends and
enemies. Birds that are only partly insectivorous, and which eat grain and
fruit, may need further inquiry. Prof. S. had examined the stomachs of many
such birds, and particularly of the American robin, and the only curculio
he ever found in any of these was a single one in a whole cherry which the
bird had bolted entire. Robins had proved very destructive to his grapes,
but had not assisted at all in protecting his cabbages growing alongside
his fruit garden. These vegetables were nearly destroyed by the larvae of
the cabbage fly, which would have afforded the birds many fine, rich meals.
This comparatively feeble insect has been allowed by the throngs of birds
to spread over the whole continent. A naturalist in one of the Western
States had examined several species of the thrush, and found they had eaten
mostly that class of insects known as our friends.
Prof. S. spoke of the remedies for root lice, among which were hot water
and bisulphide of carbon. Hot water will get cold before it can reach the
smaller roots, however efficient it may be showered on leaves. Bisulphide
of carbon is very volatile, inflammable, and sometimes explosive, and must
be handled with great care. It permeates the soil, and if in sufficient
quantity may be effective in destroying the phylloxera; but its cost and
dangerous character prevent it from being generally recommended.
Paris green is most generally useful for destroying insects. As sold to
purchasers, it is of various grades of purity. The highest in price is
commonly the purest, and really the cheapest. A difficulty with this
variable quality is that it cannot be properly diluted with water, and
those who buy and use a poor article and try its efficacy, will burn or
kill their plants when they happen to use a stronger, purer, and more
efficient one. Or, if the reverse is done, they may pronounce it a humbug
from the resulting failure. One teaspoonful, if pure, is enough for a large
pail of water; or if mixed with flour, there should be forty or fifty times
as much. Water is best, as the operator will not inhale the dust. London
purple is another form of the arsenic, and has very variable qualities
of the poison, being merely refuse matter from manufactories. It is more
soluble than Paris green, and hence more likely to scorch plants. On the
whole, Paris green is much the best and most reliable for common use.
At the close of Prof. Saunders' remarks some objections were made by
members present to the use of Paris green on fruit soon after blossoming,
and Prof. S. sustained the objection, in that the knowledge that the fruit
had been showered with it would deter purchasers from receiving it, even if
no poison could remain on it from spring to autumn. A man had brought to
him potatoes to analyze for arsenic, on which Paris green had been used,
and although it was shown to him that the poison did not reach the roots
beneath the soil, and if it did it was insoluble and could not enter them,
he was not satisfied until a careful analysis was made and no arsenic at
all found in them. A member said that in mixing with plaster there should
be 100 or 150 pounds of plaster to one of the Paris green, and that a
smaller quantity, by weight, of flour would answer, as that is a more bulky
article for the same weight.
* * * * *
OBSERVATIONS ON THE SALMON OF THE PACIFIC.
By DAVID S. JORDAN and CHAS. H. GILBERT.
During the most of the present year, the writers have been engaged in the
study of the fishes of the Pacific coast of the United States, in the
interest of the U.S. Fish Commission and the U.S. Census Bureau. The
following pages contain the principal facts ascertained concerning the
salmon of the Pacific coast. It is condensed from our report to the U.S.
Census Bureau, by permission of Professor Goode, assistant in charge of
fishery investigations.
There are five species of salmon (Oncorhynchus) in the waters of the North
Pacific. We have at present no evidence of the existence of any more on
either the American or the Asiatic side.
These species may be called the quinnat or king salmon, the blue-back
salmon or red-fish, the silver salmon, the dog salmon, and the hump-back
salmon, or _Oncorhynchus chouicha, nerka, kisutch, keta_, and _gorbuscha_.
All these species are now known to occur in the waters of Kamtschatka as
well as in those of Alaska and Oregon.
As vernacular names of definite application, the following are on record:
a. Quinnat--Chouicha, king salmon, e'quinna, saw-kwey, Chinnook salmon,
Columbia River salmon, Sacramento salmon, tyee salmon, Monterey salmon,
deep-water salmon, spring salmon, ek-ul-ba ("ekewan") (fall run).
b. Blue-bock--krasnaya ryba, Alaska red-fish, Idaho red fish, sukkegh,
Frazer's River salmon, rascal, oo-chooy-ha.
c. Silver salmon--kisutch, winter salmon, hoopid, skowitz, coho, bielaya
ryba, o-o-wun.
d. Dog salmon--kayko, lekai, ktlawhy, qualoch, fall salmon, o-le-a-rah. The
males of _all_ the species in the fall are usually known as dog salmon, or
fall salmon.
e. Hump-back--gorbuscha, haddo, hone, holia, lost salmon, Puget Sound
salmon, dog salmon (of Alaska).
Of these species, the blue-back predominates in Frazer's River, the silver
salmon in Puget Sound, the quinnat in the Columbia and the Sacramento, and
the silver salmon in most of the small streams along the coast. All the
species have been seen by us in the Columbia and in Frazer's River; all
but the blue-back in the Sacramento, and all but the blue-back in waters
tributary to Puget Sound. Only the quinnat has been noticed south of San
Francisco, and its range has been traced as far as Ventura River, which is
the southernmost stream in California which is not muddy and alkaline at
its mouth.
Of these species, the quinnat and blue-back salmon habitually "run" in the
spring, the others in the fall. The usual order of running in the rivers is
as follows: _nerka, chouicha, kisutch, gorbuscha, keta_.
The economic value of the spring running salmon is far greater than that of
the other species, because they can be captured in numbers when at their
best, while the others are usually taken only after deterioration.
The habits of the salmon in the ocean are not easily studied. Quinnat and
silver salmon of every size are taken with the seine at almost any season
in Puget Sound. The quinnat takes the hook freely in Monterey bay, both
near the shore and at a distance of six or eight miles out. We have reason
to believe that these two species do not necessarily seek great depths, but
probably remain not very far from the mouth of the rivers in which they
were spawned.
The blue-back and the dog salmon probably seek deeper water, as the former
is seldom or never taken with the seine in the ocean, and the latter is
known to enter the Straits of Fuca at the spawning season.
The great majority of the quinnat salmon and nearly all blue-back salmon
enter the rivers in the spring. The run of both begins generally the last
of March; it lasts, with various modifications and interruptions, until
the actual spawning season in November; the time of running and the
proportionate amount of each of the subordinate runs, varying with each
different river. In general, the runs are slack in the summer and increase
with the first high water of autumn. By the last of August only straggling
blue-backs can be found in the lower course of any stream, but both in the
Columbia and the Sacramento the quinnat runs in considerable numbers till
October at least. In the Sacramento the run is greatest in the fall, and
more run in the summer than in spring. In the Sacramento and the smaller
rivers southward, there is a winter run, beginning in December.
The spring salmon ascend only those rivers which are fed by the melting
snows from the mountains, and which have sufficient volume to send their
waters well out to sea. Such rivers are the Sacramento, Rogue, Klamath,
Columbia, and Frazer's rivers.
Those salmon which run in the spring are chiefly adults (supposed to be at
least three years old). Their milt and spawn are no more developed than at
the same time in others of the same species which will not enter the rivers
until fall. It would appear that the contact with cold fresh water, when in
the ocean, in some way caused them to turn toward it and to "run," before
there is any special influence to that end exerted by the development of
the organs of generation.
High water on any of these rivers in the spring is always followed by an
increased run of salmon. The canners think, and this is probably true, that
salmon which would not have run till later are brought up by the contact
with the cold water. The cause of this effect of cold fresh water is not
understood. We may call it an instinct of the salmon, which is another way
of expressing our ignorance. In general, it seems to be true that in those
rivers and during those years when the spring run is greatest, the fall run
is least to be depended on.
As the season advances, smaller and younger salmon of these two species
(quinnat and blue-back) enter the rivers to spawn, and in the fall these
young specimens are very numerous. We have thus far failed to notice any
gradations in size or appearance of these young fish by which their ages
could be ascertained. It is, however, probable that some of both sexes
reproduce at the age of one year. In Frazer's River, in the fall, quinnat
male grilse of every size, from eight inches upward, were running, the milt
fully developed, but usually not showing the hooked jaws and dark colors
of the older males. Females less than eighteen inches in length were rare.
All, large and small, then in the river, of either sex, had the ovaries or
milt well developed.
Little blue-backs of every size down to six inches are also found in
the Upper Columbia in the fall, with their organs of generation fully
developed. Nineteen twentieths of these young fish are males, and some of
them have the hooked jaws and red color of the old males.
The average weight of the quinnat in the Columbia in the spring is
twenty-two pounds; in the Sacramento about sixteen. Individuals weighing
from forty to sixty pounds are frequently found in both rivers, and some as
high as eighty pounds are reported. It is questioned whether these large
fishes are:
(_a_.) Those which, of the same age, have grown more rapidly;
(_b_.) Those which are older but have, for some reason, failed to spawn;
or,
(_c_.) Those which have survived one or more spawning seasons.
All of these origins may be possible in individual cases; we are, however,
of the opinion that the majority of these large fish are those which have
hitherto run in the fall and so may have survived the spawning season
previous.
Those fish which enter the rivers in the spring continue their ascent until
death or the spawning season overtakes them. Probably none of them ever
return to the ocean, and a large proportion fail to spawn. They are known
to ascend the Sacramento as far as the base of Mount Shasta, or to its
extreme head-waters, about four hundred miles. In the Columbia they are
known to ascend as far as the Bitter Root Mountains, and as far as the
Spokan Falls, and their extreme limit is not known. This is a distance of
six to eight hundred miles.
At these great distances, when the fish have reached the spawning grounds,
besides the usual changes of the breeding season, their bodies are covered
with bruises on which patches of white fungus develop. The fins become
mutilated, their eyes are often injured or destroyed; parasitic worms
gather in their gills, they become extremely emaciated, their flesh
becomes white from the loss of the oil, and as soon as the spawning act
is accomplished, and sometimes before, all of them die. The ascent of the
Cascades and the Dalles probably causes the injury or death of a great many
salmon.
When the salmon enter the river they refuse bait, and their stomachs are
always found empty and contracted. In the rivers they do not feed, and when
they reach the spawning grounds their stomachs, pyloric coeca and all, are
said to be no larger than one's finger. They will sometimes take the
fly, or a hook baited with salmon roe, in the clear waters of the upper
tributaries, but there is no other evidence known to us that they feed when
there. Only the quinnat and blue-back (then called red-fish) have been
found in the fall at any great distance from the sea.
The spawning season is probably about the same for all the species. It
varies for all in different rivers and in different parts of the same
river, and doubtless extends from July to December.
The manner of spawning is probably similar for all the species, but we have
no data for any except the quinnat. In this species the fish pair off, the
male, with tail and snout, excavates a broad shallow "nest" in the gravelly
bed of the stream, in rapid water, at a depth of one to four feet; the
female deposits her eggs in it, and after the exclusion of the milt, they
cover them with stones and gravel. They then float down the stream tail
foremost. A great majority of them die. In the head-waters of the large
streams all die, unquestionably. In the small streams, and near the sea, an
unknown percentage probably survive. The young hatch in about sixty days,
and most of them return to the ocean during the high water of the spring.
The salmon of all kinds in the spring are silvery, spotted or not according
to the species, and with the mouth about equally symmetrical in both sexes.
As the spawning season approaches the female loses her silvery color,
becomes more slimy, the scales on the back partly sink into the skin, and
the flesh changes from salmon red and becomes variously paler, from the
loss of the oil, the degree of paleness varying much with individuals and
with inhabitants of different rivers.
In the lower Sacramento the flesh of the quinnat in either spring or fall
is rarely pale. In the Columbia, a few with pale flesh are sometimes taken
in spring, and a good many in the fall. In Frazer's River the fall run of
the quinnat is nearly worthless for canning purposes, because so many are
white meated. In the spring very few are white meated, but the number
increases towards fall, when there is every variation, some having red
streaks running through them, others being red toward the head and pale
toward the tail. The red and pale ones cannot be distinguished externally,
and the color is dependent neither on age nor sex. There is said to be no
difference in the taste, but there is no market for canned salmon not of
the conventional orange color.
As the season advances, the differences between the males and the females
become more and more marked, and keep pace with the development of the
milt, as is shown by dissection.
The males have: (_a_.) The premaxillaries and the tip of the lower jaw
more and more prolonged; both of them becoming finally strongly and often
extravagantly hooked, so that either they shut by the side of each other
like shears, or else the mouth cannot be closed. (_b_.) The front teeth
become very long and canine-like, their growth proceeding very rapidly,
until they are often half an inch long. (_c_.) The teeth on the vomer and
tongue often disappear. (_d_.) The body grows more compressed and deeper
at the shoulders, so that a very distinct hump is formed; this is more
developed in _0. gorbuscha_, but is found in all. (_e_.) The scales
disappear, especially on the back, by the growth of spongy skin. (_f_.) The
color changes from silvery to various shades of black and red or blotchy,
according to the species. The blue-back turns rosy red, the dog salmon a
dull, blotchy red, and the quiunat generally blackish.
These distorted males are commonly considered worthless, rejected by the
canners and salmon-salters, but preserved by the Indians. These changes are
due solely to influences connected with the growth of the testes. They are
not in any way due to the action of fresh water. They take place at about
the same time in the adult males of all species, whether in the ocean or
in the rivers. At the time of the spring runs all are symmetrical. In the
fall, all males of whatever species are more or less distorted. Among the
dog salmon, which run only in the fall, the males are hooked-jawed and
red-blotched when they first enter the Straits of Fuca from the outside.
The hump-back, taken in salt water about Seattle, shows the same
peculiarities. The male is slab-sided, hook-billed, and distorted, and is
rejected by the canners. No hook-jawed _females_ of any species have been
seen.
It is not positively known that any hook-jawed male survives the
reproductive act. If any do, their jaws must resume the normal form.
On first entering a stream the salmon swim about as if playing: they always
head toward the current, and this "playing" may be simply due to facing the
flood tide. Afterwards they enter the deepest parts of the stream and swim
straight up, with few interruptions. Their rate of travel on the Sacramento
is estimated by Stone at about two miles per day; on the Columbia at about
three miles per day.
As already stated, the economic value of any species depends in great part
on its being a "spring salmon." It is not generally possible to capture
salmon of any species in large numbers until they have entered the rivers,
and the spring salmon enter the rivers long before the growth of the organs
of reproduction has reduced the richness of the flesh. The fall salmon
cannot be taken in quantity until their flesh has deteriorated: hence the
"dog salmon" is practically almost worthless, except to the Indians, and
the hump-back salmon is little better. The silver salmon, with the same
breeding habits as the dog salmon, is more valuable, as it is found in
Puget Sound for a considerable time before the fall rains cause the fall
runs, and it may be taken in large numbers with seines before the season
for entering the rivers. The quinnat salmon, from its great size and
abundance, is more valuable than all other fishes on our Pacific coast
together. The blue back, similar in flesh but much smaller and less
abundant, is worth much more than the combined value of the three remaining
species.
The fall salmon of all species, but especially the dog salmon, ascend
streams but a short distance before spawning. They seem to be in great
anxiety to find fresh water, and many of them work their way up little
brooks only a few inches deep, where they soon perish miserably,
floundering about on the stones. Every stream, of whatever kind, has more
or less of these fall salmon.
It is the prevailing impression that the salmon have some special instinct
which leads them to return to spawn in the same spawning grounds where they
were originally hatched. We fail to find any evidence of this in the case
of the Pacific coast salmon, and we do not believe it to be true. It seems
more probable that the young salmon, hatched in any river, mostly remain in
the ocean within a radius of twenty, thirty, or forty miles of its mouth.
These, in their movements about in the ocean, may come into contact with
the cold waters of their parent rivers, or perhaps of any other river, at
a considerable distance from the shore. In the case of the quinnat and the
blue-back, their "instinct" leads them to ascend these fresh waters, and
in a majority of cases these waters will be those in which the fishes in
question were originally spawned. Later in the season the growth of the
reproductive organs leads them to approach the shore and to search for
fresh waters, and still the chances are that they may find the original
stream. But undoubtedly many fall salmon ascend, or try to ascend, streams
in which no salmon was ever hatched.
It is said of the Russian River and other California rivers, that their
mouths in the time of low water in summer generally become entirely closed
by sand bars, and that the salmon, in their eagerness to ascend them,
frequently fling themselves entirely out of water on the beach. But this
does not prove that the salmon are guided by a marvelous geographical
instinct which leads them to their parent river. The waters of Russian
River soak through these sand bars, and the salmon "instinct," we think,
leads them merely to search for fresh waters.
This matter is much in need of further investigation; at present, however,
we find no reason to believe that the salmon enter the Rogue River simply
because they were spawned there, or that a salmon hatched in the Clackamas
River is any the more likely on that account to return to the Clackamas
than to go up the Cowlitz or the Deschutes.
"At the hatchery on Rogue River, the fish are stripped, marked and set
free, and every year since the hatchery has been in operation some of the
marked fish have been re-caught. The young fry are also marked, but none of
them have been recaught."
This year the run of silver salmon in Frazer's River was very light, while
on Puget Sound the run was said by the Indians to be greater than ever
known before. Both these cases may be due to the same cause, the dry
summer, low water, and consequent failure of the salmon to find the rivers.
The run in the Sound is much more irregular than in the large rivers. One
year they will abound in one bay and its tributary stream and hardly be
seen in another, while the next year the condition will be reversed. At
Cape Flattery the run of silver salmon for the present year was very small,
which fact was generally attributed by the Indians to the birth of twins at
Neah Bay.
In regard to the diminution of the number of salmon on the coast. In
Puget's Sound, Frazer's River, and the smaller streams, there appears to be
little or no evidence of this. In the Columbia River the evidence appears
somewhat conflicting; the catch during the present year (1880) has been
considerably greater than ever before (nearly 540,000 cases of 48 lb. each
having been packed), although the fishing for three or four years has been
very extensive. On the other hand, the high water of the present spring has
undoubtedly caused many fish to become spring salmon which would otherwise
have run in the fall. Moreover, it is urged that a few years ago, when the
number caught was about half as great as now, the amount of netting used
was perhaps one-eighth as much. With a comparatively small outfit the
canners caught half the fish, now with nets much larger and more numerous,
they catch them all, scarcely any escaping during the fishing season (April
1 to August 1). Whether an actual reduction in the number of fish running
can be proven or not, there can be no question that the present rate of
destruction of the salmon will deplete the river before many years. A
considerable number of quinnat salmon run in August and September, and some
stragglers even later; these now are all which keep up the supply of
fish in the river. The non-molestation of this fall run, therefore, does
something to atone for the almost total destruction of the spring run.
This, however, is insufficient. A well-ordered salmon hatchery is the only
means by which the destruction of the salmon in the river can be prevented.
This hatchery should be under the control of Oregon and Washington, and
should be supported by a tax levied on the canned fish. It should be placed
on a stream where the quinnat salmon actually come to spawn.
It has been questioned whether the present hatchery on the Clackamas River
actually receives the quinnat salmon in any numbers. It is asserted, in
fact, that the eggs of the silver salmon and dog salmon, with scattering
quinnat, are hatched there. We have no exact information as to the truth of
these reports, but the matter should be taken into serious consideration.
On the Sacramento there is no doubt of the reduction of the number of
salmon; this is doubtless mainly attributable to over-fishing, but in part
it may be due to the destruction of spawning beds by mining operations and
other causes.
As to the superiority of the Columbia River salmon, there is no doubt that
the quinnat salmon average larger and fatter in the Columbia than in the
Sacramento and in Puget Sound. The difference in the canned fish is,
however, probably hardly appreciable. The canned salmon from the Columbia,
however, bring a better price in the market than those from elsewhere. The
canners there generally have had a high regard for the reputation of
the river, and have avoided canning fall fish or species other than the
quinnat. In the Frazer's River the blue-back is largely canned, and its
flesh being a little more watery and perhaps paler, is graded below the
quinnat. On Puget Sound various species are canned; in fact, everything
with red flesh. The best canners on the Sacramento apparently take equal
care with their product with those of the Columbia, but they depend largely
on the somewhat inferior fall run. There are, however, sometimes salmon
canned in San Francisco, which have been in the city markets, and for some
reason remaining unsold, have been sent to the canners; such salmon are
unfit for food, and canning them should be prohibited.
The fact that the hump-back salmon runs only on alternate years in Puget
Sound (1875, 1877, 1879, etc.) is well attested and at present unexplained.
Stray individuals only are taken in other years. This species has a
distinct "run," in the United States, only in Puget Sound, although
individuals (called "lost salmon") are occasionally taken in the Columbia
and in the Sacramento.--_American Naturalist._
* * * * *
THE RELATION BETWEEN ELECTRICITY AND LIGHT.
[Footnote: A lecture by Dr. O. J. Lodge, delivered at the London
Institution on December 16, 1880.]
Ever since the subject on which I have the honor to speak to you to-night
was arranged, I have been astonished at my own audacity in proposing to
deal in the course of sixty minutes with a subject so gigantic and so
profound that a course of sixty lectures would be quite inadequate for its
thorough and exhaustive treatment.
I must indeed confine myself carefully to some few of the typical and most
salient points in the relation between electricity and light, and I must
economize time by plunging at once into the middle of the matter without
further preliminaries.
Now, when a person is setting off to discuss the relation between
electricity and light, it is very natural and very proper to pull him up
short with the two questions: What do you mean by electricity? and What do
you mean by light? These two questions I intend to try briefly to answer.
And here let me observe that in answering these fundamental questions, I do
not necessarily assume a fundamental ignorance on your part of these two
agents, but rather the contrary; and must beg you to remember that if I
repeat well-known and simple experiments before you, it is for the purpose
of directing attention to their real meaning and significance, not to their
obvious and superficial characteristics; in the same way that I might
repeat the exceedingly familiar experiment of dropping a stone to the earth
if we were going to define what we meant by gravitation.
Now, then, we will ask first, What is electricity? and the simple answer
must be, We don't know. Well, but this need not necessarily be depressing.
If the same question were asked about matter, or about energy, we should
have likewise to reply, No one knows.
But then the term Matter is a very general one, and so is the term Energy.
They are heads, in fact, under which we classify more special phenomena.
Thus, if we were asked, What is sulphur? or what is selenium? we should at
least be able to reply, A form of matter; and then proceed to describe its
properties, _i. e._, how it affected our bodies and other bodies.
Again, to the question, What is heat? we can reply, A form of energy; and
proceed to describe the peculiarities which distinguish it from other forms
of energy.
But to the question. What is electricity? we have no answer pat like this.
We can not assert that it is a form of matter, neither can we deny it; on
the other hand, we certainly can not assert that it is a form of energy,
and I should be disposed to deny it. It may be that electricity is an
entity _per se_, just as matter is an entity _per se_.
Nevertheless, I can tell you what I mean by electricity by appealing to its
known behavior.
Here is a battery, that is, an electricity pump; it will drive electricity
along. Prof. Ayrtou is going, I am afraid, to tell you, on the 20th of
January next, that it _produces_ electricity; but if he does, I hope you
will remember that that is exactly what neither it nor anything else can
do. It is as impossible to generate electricity in the sense I am trying to
give the word, as it is to produce matter. Of course I need hardly say that
Prof. Ayrton knows this perfectly well; it is merely a question of words,
_i. e._, of what you understand by the word electricity.
I want you, then, to regard this battery and all electrical machines and
batteries as kinds of electricity pumps, which drive the electricity along
through the wire very much as a water-pump can drive water along pipes.
While this is going on the wire manifests a whole series of properties,
which are called the properties of the current.
[Here were shown an ignited platinum wire, the electric arc between two
carbons, an electric machine spark, an induction coil spark, and a vacuum
tube glow. Also a large nail was magnetized by being wrapped in the
current, and two helices were suspended and seen to direct and attract each
other.]
To make a magnet, then, we only need a current of electricity flowing round
and round in a whirl. A vortex or whirlpool of electricity is in fact a
magnet; and _vice versa_. And these whirls have the power of directing and
attracting other previously existing whirls according to certain laws,
called the laws of magnetism. And, moreover, they have the power of
exciting fresh whirls in neighboring conductors, and of repelling them
according to the laws of diamagnetism. The theory of the actions is known,
though the nature of the whirls, as of the simple stream of electricity, is
at present unknown.
[Here was shown a large electro-magnet and an induction-coil vacuum
discharge spinning round and round when placed in its field.]
So much for what happens when electricity is made to travel along
conductors, _i. e._, when it travels along like a stream of water in a
pipe, or spins round and round like a whirlpool.
But there is another set of phenomena, usually regarded as distinct and of
another order, but which are not so distinct as they appear, which
manifest themselves when you join the pump to a piece of glass, or any
non-conductor, and try to force the electricity through that. You succeed
in driving some through, but the flow is no longer like that of water in an
open pipe; it is as if the pipe were completely obstructed by a number of
elastic partitions or diaphragms. The water can not move without straining
and bending these diaphragms, and if you allow it, these strained
partitions will recover themselves, and drive the water back again. [Here
was explained the process of charging a Leyden jar.] The essential thing to
remember is that we may have electrical energy in two forms, the static
and the kinetic; and it is, therefore, also possible to have the rapid
alternation from one of these forms to the other, called vibration.
Now we will pass to the second question: What do you mean by light? And the
first and obvious answer is, Everybody knows. And everybody that is not
blind does know to a certain extent. We have a special sense organ for
appreciating light, whereas we have none for electricity. Nevertheless, we
must admit that we really know very little about the intimate nature of
light--very little more than about electricity. But we do know this,
that light is a form of energy, and, moreover, that it is energy rapidly
alternating between the static and the kinetic forms--that it is, in fact,
a special kind of energy of vibration. We are absolutely certain that light
is a periodic disturbance in some medium, periodic both in space and time;
that is to say, the same appearances regularly recur at certain equal
intervals of distance at the same time, and also present themselves at
equal intervals of time at the same place; that in fact it belongs to the
class of motions called by mathematicians undulatory or wave motions. The
wave motion in this model (Powell's wave apparatus) results from the simple
up and down motion popularly associated with the term wave. But when
a mathematician calls a thing a wave he means that the disturbance is
represented by a certain general type of formula, not that it is an
up-and-down motion, or that it looks at all like those things on the top of
the sea. The motion of the surface of the sea falls within that formula,
and hence is a special variety of wave motion, and the term wave has
acquired in popular use this signification and nothing else. So that when
one speaks ordinarily of a wave or undulatory motion, one immediately
thinks of something heaving up and down, or even perhaps of something
breaking on the shore. But when we assert that the form of energy called
light is undulatory, we by no means intend to assert that anything whatever
is moving up and down, or that the motion, if we could see it, would be
anything at all like what we are accustomed to in the ocean. The kind of
motion is unknown; we are not even sure that there is anything like motion
in the ordinary sense of the word at all.
Now, how much connection between electricity and light have we perceived in
this glance into their natures? Not much, truly. It amounts to about
this: That on the one hand electrical energy may exist in either of two
forms--the static form, when insulators are electrically strained by having
had electricity driven partially through them (as in the Leyden jar), which
strain is a form of energy because of the tendency to discharge and do
work; and the kinetic form, where electricity is moving bodily along
through conductors or whirling round and round inside them, which motion
of electricity is a form of energy, because the conductors and whirls can
attract or repel each other and thereby do work.
And, on the other hand, that light is the rapid alternation of energy
from one of these forms to the other--the static form where the medium is
strained, to the kinetic form when it moves. It is just conceivable, then,
that the static form of the energy of light is _electro_ static, that is,
that the medium is _electrically_ strained, and that the kinetic form of
the energy of light is _electro_-kinetic, that is, that the motion is
not ordinary motion, but electrical motion--in fact, that light is an
electrical vibration, not a material one.
On November 5, last year, there died at Cambridge a man in the full
vigor of his faculties--such faculties as do not appear many times in a
century--whose chief work has been the establishment of this very fact, the
discovery of the link connecting light and electricity; and the proof--for
I believe it amounts to a proof--that they are different manifestations
of one and the same class of phenomena--that light is, in fact, an
electro-magnetic disturbance. The premature death of James Clerk-Maxwell is
a loss to science which appears at present utterly irreparable, for he was
engaged in researches that no other man can hope as yet adequately to grasp
and follow out; but fortunately it did not occur till he had published his
book on "Electricity and Magnetism," one of those immortal productions
which exalt one's idea of the mind of man, and which has been mentioned by
competent critics in the same breath as the "Principia" itself.
But it is not perfect like the "Principia;" much of it is rough-hewn, and
requires to be thoroughly worked out. It contains numerous misprints and
errata, and part of the second volume is so difficult as to be almost
unintelligible. Some, in fact, consists of notes written for private use
and not intended for publication. It seems next to impossible now to mature
a work silently for twenty or thirty years, as was done by Newton two and a
half centuries ago. But a second edition was preparing, and much might have
been improved in form if life had been spared to the illustrious author.
The main proof of the electro-magnetic theory of light is this: The rate at
which light travels has been measured many times, and is pretty well known.
The rate at which an electro-magnetic wave disturbance would travel if such
could be generated (and Mr. Fitzgerald, of Dublin, thinks he has proved
that it can not be generated directly by any known electrical means) can
be also determined by calculation from electrical measurements. The two
velocities agree exactly. This is the great physical constant known as the
ratio V, which so many physicists have been measuring, and are likely to be
measuring for some time to come.
Many and brilliant as were Maxwell's discoveries, not only in electricity,
but also in the theory of the nature of gases, and in molecular science
generally, I can not help thinking that if one of them is more striking and
more full of future significance than the rest, it is the one I have just
mentioned--the theory that light is an electrical phenomenon.
The first glimpse of this splendid generalization was caught in 1845, five
and thirty years ago, by that prince of pure experimentalists, Michael
Faraday. His reasons for suspecting some connection between electricity and
light are not clear to us--in fact, they could not have been clear to him;
but he seems to have felt a conviction that if he only tried long enough
and sent all kinds of rays of light in all possible directions across
electric and magnetic fields in all sorts of media, he must ultimately
hit upon something. Well, this is very nearly what he did. With a sublime
patience and perseverance which remind one of the way Kepler hunted down
guess after guess in a different field of research, Faraday combined
electricity, or magnetism, and light in all manner of ways, and at last he
was rewarded with a result. And a most out-of-the-way result it seemed.
First, you have to get a most powerful magnet and very strongly excite it;
then you have to pierce its two poles with holes, in order that a beam of
light may travel from one to the other along the lines of force; then, as
ordinary light is no good, you must get a beam of plane polarized light,
and send it between the poles. But still no result is obtained until,
finally, you interpose a piece of a rare and out-of-the-way material, which
Faraday had himself discovered and made--a kind of glass which contains
borate of lead, and which is very heavy, or dense, and which must be
perfectly annealed.
And now, when all these arrangements are completed, what is seen is simply
this, that if an analyzer is arranged to stop the light and make the field
quite dark before the magnet is excited, then directly the battery is
connected and the magnet called into action, a faint and barely perceptible
brightening of the field occurs, which will disappear if the analyzer be
slightly rotated. [The experiment was then shown.] Now, no wonder that no
one understood this result. Faraday himself did not understand it at all.
He seems to have thought that the magnetic lines of force were rendered
luminous, or that the light was magnetized; in fact, he was in a fog,
and had no idea of its real significance. Nor had any one. Continental
philosophers experienced some difficulty and several failures before they
were able to repeat the experiment. It was, in fact, discovered too soon,
and before the scientific world was ready to receive it, and it was
reserved for Sir William Thomson briefly, but very clearly, to point
out, and for Clerk-Maxwell more fully to develop, its most important
consequences. [The principle of the experiment was then illustrated by the
aid of a mechanical model.]
This is the fundamental experiment on which Clerk-Maxwell's theory of
light is based; but of late years many fresh facts and relations between
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