Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1885-07-17

/ etc, on huge copper vessels, and sc
constant Is the sound of metal that
the visitor might imagine himself in
an armor-smithy i2stead of sweet
meat factory, among workmen max.
ing bonbons Tor women and children
to crush. On all sides are piles ot
sugar barrels, gallons OF liquors,
sirups, and essences wine,
aniseed, maraschino, curscao, pine
apple, apricot, strawberry, cherry
vanilla, chocolate, coffee, and tea
with sacks of almonds and baskets OF
chestnuts, pistachio nuts, and filbsrts
being emptied into machines which
bruise their husks, fay them and
blanch them all ready TO receive their
saccharine coating.
Most bonbons are made BY hand
only those which are fiat at the bot
tom are cast in moulds In the hand>
made bonbons the sugar paste Is rolls
ed into shape by the aid of an instru-
ment formed of a stout piece of wire,
one end OF which is twisted and the
other fixed into wooden handle.
With this the paste is taken out of the
caldron and worked into the desired
form by a rapid stroke of the hand.
FOR bonbons of particular form,
such as those In imitation of various
fruits, etc, models are carvsd in wood
A certain number of these, say from
fifty to sixty, are fixed on s. narrow
strip of wood, and the confectIoner
takes aolds of them in starch, con-
tanned in series of large, shallow
drawers. As soon as the molds be-
come dry they are filled with liquid
sugar, already colored and favored.
after which. the drawer is put ON one
side for twenty-four hours, when the
bonbons are ready for sale. The del
icate sweets, containing some essences,
such as pineapple, etc., are always
cast in starch molds. 1t puzzles older
heads than those of children to know
how this drop of delicious liquid gets
into the center of the sweet. Like
many other puzzllng matters, it is very
easily explained. The favoring es
sence is mixed with the liquid sugar,
and when poured into the mould tke
latter crystalizes Immediately over
the former, These essences, so nice
to the taste, are the most remarkable
examples of the power of chemistry
to transform very repugnant mater
ials into delicacies. Fusel oil is the
base of the pear essence, and pine
apple essence is obtained by diluting
ether with alcohol. The chemist, IN
his laboratory, with great cunning,
manufactures scores of these essences,
which are supposed to be the veritable
product of delicate fruits Some of
the pretty forms that are made to take
the fancy of the little ones are simply
punched out of fat films of sugar
rolled; some are cast, some are press
ed into shape when saft between en-
graved rollers. The drops and sweets
that are quite clear are boiled SO long
that the water has evaporated out of
them. Such sweets must be immedi-
ately bottled up, Or preserved from
the air, otherwise they absorb water
an! become semi-liquid. Barley sugar
is an example in point. If it is not
Theoretically sealed down in tins, it
deliquesces, and loses all its crisp
ness. 1t is as we'll to know that this
is the purest of all sweets-being ab.
solutely clarified sugar, and therefore
the most wholesome for children. On
the other hand, peppermint drops are
the most open to sophistication. They
should be made of crushed white
sugar, mixed into a paste with gum.
But the temptation to adulterate is too
great for the dishonest trader to resist; :;
Consequently, in order to supply the
cheap market, one-half plaster Paris
is mixed with inferior sugar. One
can quite understand the sickness that
overtakes children sometimes after
sucking those comfits. The wonder
is that such mass of plaster does not
interfere more signally with their di-
gestion. Jujubes, those flexible loz
engers which stick so in the teeth,
contain large portion of gum. They
are poured into tins to cool, standing
for several hours, sliced into sheets,
and then cut by scissors into the we'll
known diamond shapes
The veritable sugar plum, or all
moad drop, is lnade in very inter
esting manner A um5er OF almonds
after being coated with little gum to
catch the white sugar, are thrown in
to deep pan surrounded with steam
This pan revoives side ways at an aA-
gle of forty-fve degree. AS it revolves
the almonds, of course, tumble over
one another, and while they are doing
SO the workmen pour over them from
time to time liquid white sugar, al
lowing sufficient time to elapse be-
tween each supply for the sugar to
harden upon the comfit. In this way
it grows by the imposition of layer
upon layer until it IS the proper size.
By this simple motion the sugar is de,
posted in the smoothest and most
regular manner. Girls are largely
employed in the sugar plum trade.
They are quick and stick we'll to their
work, but they have sweet tooth and
help themselves to the lozengers pret-
ty literally. As it is impossible to
stop this petty pilfering they are
given the liberty to eat as msch as
they can.
The manufacture of the surprise
nuts is done with the utmost speed by
those little workwomen. The nut is
first opened by means of rose cutter
the kernel is then cleared out with a
penknife, the hollow is filed with
seedsweets and the hole by which
they have been introduced is sealed
with chocolate. Il is great fun, of
course, when you have cracked nut
to find your mouth full of these small
sugar seeds, whether you expect the
surprise or not. In one part of the es-
tablishment came upon the little ar
fists coloring the small articles cast in
sugar 1t was all vegetable color, of
course, and quite harmless. There is
no great artistic talent required in the
celoring operations they have to per-
form and it is too cheaply paid TO be
very carefully done, but, however
poor they may be as works of art, they
arc not unwholesome, which, as /
have already stated, was far from be-
ing the case few years ago, before
the board of health iaterfered in New
York for the good of our little child
rem.
But if the bon5ons themselves are
IN some degree works of art, the bags,
baskets, and boxes made TO contain
them are still more so. Some OF item
are reproductions of antique master
pieces. Others of modern invention
are models of taste and elegance. At
Easter, when sweetmeats are almost
as much In request for presents as
they arr at the New Year, the windows
of the bonbon establishments are fill
Il L.