Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1888-02-17
AROMATIC SPICES.
EvergQuarter of the Globe Ran
sacked for Sweet Savors.
How Pepper. Cinnamon and
Cloves are Prepared.

Don't stand so near the wheel! 1t
weighs two tons and is making 6oOrev
lutions minute The suction is enough
to draw you in
So sYke the engineer as New York
Mail aud Express reporter looked at the
machinery that operated long lines of
shaiting and betting. The engine
works aH Of the machinery in great
spice pin, one Of The largest and best
equipped in the country. and located
right intho heart of New York City
Standing CA the top floor the supcrin-
tendent said "IIerc are the spices as
they come to US. This bin contains
mustard seed this one is full Of whole
peppers from Singapore, and here we
have cinnamon from Ceyloa aad ginger
from Jamaica. There are several bins
Of each kiad of spice, an each contains
different grades The mustard seed is
fed through pipes to a pair Of large steel
rollers on the floor below. These crush
it out into small flakes. The first
quality Of mustard is made by putting
these flakes into a long row Of iron
mortars, in which the flakes are pounded
to an impalpablc powder by steam trip
hammers"
Twenty-Five Of these hammers began
rising and falling at this moment and
the noise was so great that all further
words were lost. The powdered
mustard was shoveled up into screens
made Of the finest silk and placed in
sets Of eight on oscillating tables. The
second grade of mustard, after being
crushed IS placed in bags between hair
mattresses IN a hydraulic press and
subjected to pressure of ). 1000
pounds to the square inch. This re-
moves large proportion of the oil, and
leaves b dry hard cake, which, when
ground is sold for sccond-gradc
mustar The oil is used by conrec-
tioners land also in place of olive oil for
packin sardincs.
Lond pipes connect with the pep
per liE on the top floor, and feed the
whole kpper seeds to the mills. These
80 js7os VI y -four our mills-revelvlpg
picked up by an endless chain of buck
cts and taken to revolving screens; the
coarse parts arc returned to the mill, and
the fine pepper passes into bins in the
packing room below Cinnamon, all
spice ard cloves are ground in similar
manner. Herbs, such as thyme and
sage, require a special mill. 1t is pair
of stone wheels that travel around a
centre, grinding substances on the stone
floor They are enclosed in a tigh,
room SO that nothing escapes when they
arc at work.
In the packing department Of the mill
two dozen girls are at work making and
filing boxes With the different spices
A box-folding machine does the work of
ten girls. 1t takes the fiat cardboard,
fo.ds and pastes it and turns out box
every three seconds. The automatic
weighing machine is a revolving marble
table, on which are four sets Of scales.
The weights are set at one pound on
each OF the scales, cardboard box is
placed on the scale and tube from
above fills the box until it contains just
ono pound. When the scale reaches the
Lalance point valve shuts off the sup
Ply until an empty box takes the place
the full one.
Stepping into the office the superin-
tcndcnt explained that the best pepper
i the 'shot" pepper, as it is in heavier
grains than the Singapore pepper,
which is the second grade, but 10th
kinds come from Singapore. A still
lower grade comes from the island of
Sumatra. White pepper is the kernel
with the she'll removed, and though
just as fiery it has not the flavor Of the
black pepper. Pepper is often aduItcr-
ated with charcoal and buckwhcat
The best red pepper comes from Natal
and costs fifty cents a pound. A lower
grade comes from Zanzibar
Brown nutpcgs from Penang, w.
l., are the best. They arc in their natural
state, and are SO full Of oil that it will
ooze out if an incision be made The
nutmegs kept by most grocers are the
lower grades that arc put through a
sweating process to remove the oil, AMI
arc rolled in lime to cover up all the de-
fects. Thu best cloves come from
Penang and are sun dried. Cheaper
grades come from Zanzibar, and are
kiln-dried, with much Of the oil extract
ed. Ground cloves are adulterated by
leaving in the stems. Pimento, or all
spice, comes from jamaica
The best ginger also comes
from the same place, and IS blcachcd
white. Borneo ginger is often chaIked
to make it look like the blcached arti-
Gle African ginger is dark in color and
poor in quality, but as it is very much
cheaper than the other klnd it is most
used. Ceylon cinnamon is worth 81 a
pound, and is very little used. Cossia,
the outside bark OF the tree, is the sui
stance in general use and costs about
one-tenth of the genuine article.
Somewhat Impatient.