The Bozeman weekly chronicle. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1883-1889, 1885-08-19

Discoveries of much importance on &C
count of the relation they bear towarC
u more who esome food supply and con
seqlently upon the pubic health, have
been recently made in the process of re
filming cream of tartar. Cream of tartal
as is well known, is bitartrate of potas
sa purified from the crude tartar, or ar.
gol, which collects in a crystalline de-
post upon the bottom and sides of wine
casks during the fermentation of the
wine This tartar in it's crude state con-
tains lime and other Impurities, which
no process Of refining known prior tc
that here described was able to entirely
remove. 1t has been possible, it is true
to neutralize the lime to some extent by
the aid Of chemicals, and this method
was resorted to in order to procure cream
of tartar in small quantities for pharma-
ceutical purposes, but it was open to SER
ious objection in view of the fact that
the chemicals employed for this purpose
were not always washed out but remain
ed in quantities that were uncertain and
prejudicial to its quality. The supposed
imposslbilitY of removing the lime has,
accordingly, caused cream of tartar to be
classed and sold as pure whenit did not
contain more than five per cent. of this
imrurity. The major part, however, OF
that used in commerce or for culinary
purposes, contains the tartrate of lime to
an extent much greater than FIVE per
cent not infrequently being found, upon
analysis, debased to a degree equalling
one-iourth or more of its entire weight
In report upon the subject of food
adulteration made to the New York
State board of health by Professors
Chandler and Love, it is stated that Of
81 samples OF cream Of tartar bought
from dealers as pure l6 were adulterated
with various substances from to 90 PEI
cent, while the remainder all contained
tartrate Of lime, some as high as 1059
per cent.
The serious character of this
adulteration is more readily appreciated
when it is recollected how largely cream
of tartar enters into the preparation OF
the food of every family. In connection
with soda in baking powder it is the
chief agent now employed for raising
and making light and digestible all ouI
biscuit. cake and other pastry, and is be
sides in many communities, supersedinp
the old fashioned yeast for all leavenine
purposes, SO that it is employed to some
extent in almost every meal of which we
eat. The amount of cream of tartar
used in this country in year in baking
powder and otherwise in the preparation
Of food, is estimated at ten million
pounds. Ifthis were 80 per cent pure
high estimate-we would consume one
million pounds or more Of lime annually
as a substitute Tor bread So large de-
terioration becomes appreciable in the
deprivation of our food Of portion itf
nutritiye elements. not only, but if, as is
now supposed, this excess of lime taken
into the tystem has a relation to the
painful affections of the kidneys 50 pre-
valent in this country, lbs being uponthe
entire health of the community is toe
important to be overlooked.
The new process by which cream Of
tartar is produced 100 per cent pure
that is, with the lime totally eliminated
by treating the'crude material under
pressure insseadsf using any chemicals
whatever for the purpose, was the dis
coyery originally ola German chemist