South Canterbury Times. FRIDAY, MAY 17, 1889.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 5009, 17 May 1889, Page 2

South Canterbury Times. FRIDAY, MAY 17, 1889.

London correspondents of Colonial papers have something to write about just now, which, if it is worth writing about atall.deseiwes column after column. This is an alleged newly discovered process for preserving foods. The Financial Neios , a London paper which devotes much of its space—too much some people think —to colonial finances, published a glowing account of this discovery. The correspondents of several New Zealand journals have sent by mail equally glowing descriptions of luncheons to which they were invited, and at which they partook of fish, flesh and fowl, and of vegetables and fruits, that had been subjected to this new process, and kept for mouths before being- served, and when served were as fresh ns ever they were. The process is as described as excessively simple, and ridiculously cheap. The meat, vegetable®, fruit or flowers to be operated upon are placed in an air-tight chamber, which may be a room of any size, or merely a big box. Above this is a smaller chamber, with a grated floor through which air or vapours can pass freely from one room to the other. In the top compartment is a receptacle for ice or cold water, and an iron plate. On this plate a quantity of a certain powder is placed and set fire to. It burns freely and gives off fumes or vapours. These are cooled by the presence of ice or cold water, and descend into the lower chamber among the food to be treated. After being left only three or four hours in this vapour the food, it is declared, :s rendered incapable of decay. “ It may be taken out and stored anywhere, in any temperature, for any length of time.” The process is simplicity itself; the only secret about it is the composition of the powder. This secret is of course jealously guarded as it is in that lies the money value of the discovery. The powder is cheap, its cost being 9d per pound, and one pound is sufficient to treat half a dozen sheep. A number of persons testify to the success of the process, as tried by themselves, by keeping by them for three months game and other articles of food that had been submitted to the action of the vapours for a few hours. If these accounts are true there are bad times in store for our freezing companies but an incalculable advantage for stock-raisers. They seem too good to be true. The descriptions we have seen of the results of the new process are too favorable and as there is some error plainly visible in them, one may be excused for suspecting that there is more Carcases“from three weeks to three months old ” are declared to be “fresh and juicy in appearance.” Oranges cut three weeks before were still " as juicy as when first picked.” Sprays of delicate fern, which ordinarily wither in a day, are preserved “ fresh looking ” for weeks. Later on, however,

it is admitted that meat kept “many” months has & “ tendency to get dry.” Naturally, unless it is left in a moist atmosphere it will get dry,—dry up as completely as a mummy. The enthusiastic correspondents however, do not admit that there is any such “ tendency ” to get dry in a few months, say three. The English capitalists who have put their faith and money into the invention say they took good care not to be “ done ” by another “ Electric Sugar ” fraud, and tested the thing thoroughly before buying. Nevertheless it is possible that MrDaniells, “ the American chemist who had been at work upon it for fourteeen years,” may have managed to “ sell ” them. Time will show. The civilised world could do with a cheap antiseptic, and if this “ marvellous discovery ” turns out valueless for the preservation of carcases, it may be of some use in preserving the living, as a disinfectant in sanitation.