04
PRESERVED MEATS, FIS1I, AND VEGETABLES.
Class II.
cold climates, their use'was extended to hot ones, and forthe sick on board ship under all circumstances. Hithertothey had only been employed as a substitute for saltbeef or pork at sea, and, if eaten ashore, it was, at first,as a curiosity merely. Their use in hot climates, however,speedily became evident, especially in India , whereEuropean families are scattered, and where, consequently,on the slaughter of a large animal, more is wasted thancan be consumed by a family of the ordinary number.The consumption of preserved meats became, at once,enormous: hundreds of tons are annually transported tothe East Indies and all our colonial possessions, and manyare consumed by our fleets.
The cheapness of these preparations is most remark-able. This arises from the processes and materials forthe cases being inexpensive, and from there being nowaste of the meat: all that is good goes into the case,which is always filled. It is affirmed by the manufacturersand others, and probably with truth, that meat in thisform supplies troops, and the fleet, with a cheaper animaldiet than salt provisions, from avoiding the expense ofcasks, leakage, brine, boue, shrinking, stowage, &c.,which are all heavy items, and entail great waste andexpenditure: added to this, the damage of one cask ofsalt meat risks the loss of all its contents: whilst themeat canisters are, comparatively speaking, imperishable,and an accident to one occasions a loss of at most butfrom 2 lbs. to 4 lbs. of food.
Several hundred canisters of meat are exhibited fromvarious countries, and in some of these by many differentpersons. Their merits were tested by a selection fromeach: the cases were opened in the presence of the Jury,and tasted by themselves; and, where advisable, by as-sociates. The majority are of English manufacture,especially the more substantial viands; France and Ger-many exhibiting chiefly made dishes, game, and delica-cies—of meat, fish, soups, and vegetables.
The Jury desire to draw attention to the fact of viandsof this description being extensively prepared in Aus-tralia, Tasmania, the Cape of Good Hope, Canada , &c.,of equally good description with the English . Animalfood is most abundant and cheap in some of those colo-nies. In Australia , especially, during seasons of drought,it is wasted in extraordinary quantities: flocks areslaughtered for the tallow alone, and herds for their bonesand hides. Were the meat on these occasions preserved,it cannot be doubted that it could be imported into Eng-land, and sold at a cheaper rate than fresh meat in ourmetropolitan markets, to the great benefit of the lowerclasses.
Among all the preparations exhibited by France ,England, &c., there is no perceptible difference either inthe mode or perfection of preservation. To seal, herme-tically, full tin canisters is the general principle adopted ;and it is effected by plunging them in boiling water, andsoldering a small orifice left purposely, by which all theair is expelled; this principle, variously modified, beingthe same throughout.
The contents of all the cases, of whatever kind, have lostmuch of the. freshness in taste and flavour peculiar tonewly-killed meat: they are always soft, and, as it were,overdone: the nutritious principles are, however, perfectlypreserved. As nutriment they are unexceptionable:they are wholesome and agreeable, and often pleasantlyflavoured. Vouchers are given for some of the samplestasted by the Jurors having been preserved for twenty-five years and upwards : these were in a perfectly soundstate, and did not perceptibly differ from the contents ofcanisters only a few mouths old. So long as the sealingremains sound, the viands appear to undergo no change.Any difference between the contents of the properly-pre-pared cases is to be attributed to the state of the foodbefore preparation, or to the cooking, and not to themethod employed for preserving, which is simple anduniversally applicable.
Vegetables, preserved in a similar manner, have beenconsidered by the Jury with the animal food. Generallyspeaking, their flavour is fresher than that of the meats,especially in the case of those abounding in saccharineprinciple, as beet, carrots, parsneps, salsafy, which pre-
serve to advantage. The more farinaceous do not pre-serve so well, such as green peas, &c.; whilst thoseabounding in volatile oils are hardly worth preservationat all (especially cabbages, turnips, and celery), except asanti-scorbutics.
M. E. Masson’s dried compressed vegetables (13-4®, p.1240; demand especial notice, as showing one of the mostremarkable discoveries of modern times in this branch ofmanufacture: they have been awarded a Council Medal.By M. Masson’s process, the most bulky, soft, and suc-culent vegetables are reduced to a fraction of theirvolume, and are preserved in a dry, indestructible state.After boiling for a rather longer time than usual, theyare restored to something of their original form and con-sistence, retaining all their nutritious principles, andmuch of their flavour. Chollet and Co., the manufac-turers of these preserved vegetables, use only desiccationand compression in the process, which is Masson’s inven-tion. According to a statement published in the “ ComptesRendus,” as read before the Paris Academy, the vege-tables are reduced seven-eightlis in weight, and propor-tionally in bulk. They require to be boiled for one hourand a-half to one hour and three-quarters, and on cooling,are found to have regained nearly all their evaporatedjuices.
If, as the Jurors have reason to believe, these prepa-rations retain their good qualities for several years, theycannot be too strongly recommended to public attention.It would probably be necessary for long voyages thatthese square cakes be packed in perfectly dry casks ortanks, as biscuits are.
In the British Department, J. II. Gamble (12, p. 201)and Ritchie and McCall (15, p. 202) exhibit very finesamples of preserved viands and vegetables, and to each aPrize Medal is awarded for excellence of material and pre-servation. Richie and McCall’s articles deserve especialnotice for the great size of the pieces of meat, combinedwith all the firmness of texture that is attainable. Allare said to be prepared by Goldner’s process, the resultsof which are equal, but not superior, to the ordinary pro-cess, as far as the Jury could decide, after a veryprotracted examination and comparison.
Copland, Barnes, and Co. (11, p. 201) exhibit fewmeats, but abundance of fish, hams, and vegetables,dressed in various ways. A Prize Medal has been awardedfor these in conjunction with the admirable tart-fruits re-ferred to elsewhere.
A preserved pig, entire (14, p. 202), a conspicuous fea-ture in the English Department, deserves notice as aremarkably successful instance of curing on a large scale.
J. and J. P. Leonard’s fresh meats (26, p. 206), pre-pared on Toplin’s principle, are not so successful a sampleof preserved animal food as would be imagined from theirappearance of freshness and goodness. Whitney’s freshbeef (grated?) (26, p. 202) looks sound, but is not ex-hibited in sufficient abundance, and particulars of trialare wanting.
Madame D. St. Etienne exhibits specimens of vegeto-animal substances, meat flours, &c., prepared for longvoyages; also a bottle of dried and pulverised spinach (1.38,p. 208), of which Honourable Mention is made. It is acurious preparation, resembling M. Masson’s; but thequantity exhibited is too small, and the general applica-bility of the process is not known.
Canada demands very prominent mention for theabundance and excellence of the preserved viands exhi-bited; but all are of the ordinary description of curedmeats, and none have any peculiar merit or novelty toentitle them to reward, except the hams of G. Rein-hardt, of Montreal , which have been awarded a PrizeMedal. There are barrels of beef, pork, and tongues,cases of smoked hams, bacons, and sausages, kegs of lard,&c., all produced at a remarkably cheap rate.
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia contribute excel-lent fresh salmon, preserved in tin canisters, and quiteequal to the English . Honourable Mention is made ofthat of T. Holliday, of Halifax, and W. J. Fraser, ofMiramichi (24, p. 969).
Australia.— H. E. & M. Moses A01) are exhibitorsof excellent preserved fresh meats, m all respects equal