Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1881-07-11
THEY PUT IN FLAvORs.
FuseI Oil and SuIphuric Acid
Among the Things.

N. Y. SUM-
There is mighty little genuine fruit
extract in the syrups and havors Of
commerce." the chemist of manu-
featuring house said, pushing aside
glass jars, strainers and retorts, so as
to make clear space for some of his
books of formulas. Natural favors
are both weak and costly. For in
stance, if you sugar down pineapples
or strawberries you get a delightful
natural syrup, but your white sugar
alone will cost you lightweight cents
a gallon, and the fruit is expensive, as
you know. The flavor is Just as its
proper strength and will not go a great
ways in favoring additions to the
syrup; and so only small portion OF
the fruit ,syrups and essences OF com
merce have any fruit about them.
Smell this. "
BE unstopped vial of thin, trans
parent LIQUID. 1t difused strong
pineapple order of irritating pungency.
"That," he said, is butyric acid
Mixed with alcohol, it is the pineapple
oil of commerce, and it enters into
nearly every flavor manufactured and
into most perfumes. 1t is extracted
from rancid fat. The tallow oil which
is the basis of artificial butter will
furnish it. Another prominent in
gredient of artificial havors is amyle,
which you will know better by the
name Of fusel oil. Some one Of its
compounds 20 into the manufacture
OF the favors of pineapple, strawberry,
raspberry, apricot, pear orange, and
apple. Compounds Of methyle. an
extract of coal tar, are also much
used. Succinic acid, obtained from
amber; sebacic acid, extracted from
fat; and benzoic acid, originally ex-
tracted from a vegetable resin, but
now made from naphthaline, coal
oil product, are also much used in
various shapes. Formic acid, another
ingredient, was originally obtained
from ants, and hence its name is
derived from the Latin word for ant,
formica. But it is now manufactured
artifcially. ChlorolOrm goes into
some favors, notably grape essence,
and oxahc acid goes into the bloom of
gooseberry, apricot, lemon and apple.
Tartarie acid is also largely used.
Most of these substances are used in
the form of others, and their strength
Of ordor is due to their exceeding
volatility"
Are not such compounds iniuri-
ous?"
mot when used simply for favofing
purposes" was the answer. THE
reason why they may be used to initiate
natuHl fayors with such success is
doubt ess due to the fact that the favors
of the natural fruits are due to their
presence. Butyric acid is naturally
present in the pineapple, tartaric acid
in wine, citric acid in lemons and OK
alic acid in gooseberries. While arti-
fetal havOrs or essence would be poi
sonous, taken in large quantities, it
does not follow that their use as favors
is injurious any more than that al.
monds should not be eaten because
their concentrated extract is poison
GUS. As matter of fact, soda water
havors and candy favors are almost
invariably artificial, and the bougct
and favor Of many a bottle of wine is
due to the various amylic or fusel oil
ethers."
81 remember" he continued, see
ing some time ago an anecdote about
French wine seller, who said to his
son Always remember, my son, that
wine may be made out Of anything,
even grape juice | have thought
the same thing often when / have
drank the sweet cider Of commerce.
OF course there is a sweet cider that
is made from apple juice, and it may
be kept from getting hard by the addi'
ton Of bisulphate of lime. But there
are immense quantities Of sweet cider
sold that are perfectly innocent o.
apple juice, and there are plenty of re
ceipts for making it. People that
know what good apple cider is are mol
likely to drink much Of the manu-
featured cider; and if they did il
would not hurt them. although
would not like to drink cider mad,
from this receipt"
The chemist showed the reporter {
trade receipt for cider, which calico
for honey, catechu Gan astringen
resin), alum, yeast, bitter almonds
cloves, burnt sugar and alcohol. Tn,
receipt adds: IF too sweet, add sui
phurie acid to suit the TASTE"
"Sulphuric acid" he said, sis not
healthful article of diet; but, as
said before, thing may be perfect,
innocent in a diluted shape and in
very small quantity that would b,
| hurtful in concentrated form. Odd
isn't it, that delicate flowers and per
fumes should come from the refuse o
! the abbattour and the coal oil distil
lery2 But a great many pleasan
things have humble origins.