The herald., 1896-02-14

bon. They pass up and down the table
where the boxes are set, putting one
piece, neither more nor less, from the
trays they carry into each SUBDIVISION
of the box The candy must be handled
delicately, and for the most part with
tongs. Then the waxed paper is folded
over, the top put on, and the box wrap
ped and tied. After that it is sealed and
stamped with the makers name and
guarantee.
Once upon time the process of can
dy making was summed with two
words-sugar and skill; but candy in
these d-of-the-century days means
very much more. Whatever the world
yields of flower or fruit, of nut or spicy
essence, has been laid under tribute for
the sweets of our time.
a candy factory has very much the
look of any other factory-except that
it is, in every part, kept scrupulously
clean. The machinery, too, may look q
thought more incomprehensible than
the ordinary bands and pulleys, and
shafts and cog-wheelS. But there is no
mistaking the use of the big, deep,
beautifully polished copper kettles. Su-
gar Is put into them, a barrel at a time,
with more or less water according to
its ultimate purpose. A steam jacket
comes two-thirds up the side of each
kettle and steam cooks the contents
thereof without the least possibility Of
burning or Scorching. If the syrup is
to be creamed--as it is, three times in
five-it goes from the kettles straight to
the creaming mill, where big curved
iron arms beat and twirl it into white,
light, fOamy mass.
Next the cream is packed down in
big tubs, and set away to await making
up. That is perhaps two years ahead
since cream improves wonderfully for
good keeping. The big candy makers
have tons and tons of it always in stor-
age. But that is not surprising when you
remember that q single factory In the
height of it's season uses daily more
than half a ton of pure chocolate for
fiavoring its goods.
To make up the cream, girls sit about
a steam table in which dozen or twen-
| ty small kettles are sunk flush with it's
| face. In them the cream is heated, and
worked smooth and semi-fluid. Then 1t
Is ready for the dipping" which the
girls do by means of bit of twisted
wire. The walnuts or dates, or what
ever is to be dipped. are piled at the
| dipper's elbow She sets one in her wire
| loop, plunges it below the surface Of
| the cream, lifts it out and drops it
| lightly upon coarse sieve. Each nut
| is now a shaDelesS oblong, with the
: yellow of the skin showing through a
sparse pink coating. A second girl sets
one of them in her wire, thrusts it
again into the pink cream, and brings
| it up about doubled i'll size. With a
| quick, indescribable wrist motion, she
| sets it upon white paper where already
| there are other pink sweets arrow. But
she does not abruptly withdraw her
| looped wire. Instead she draws it up
one side, and to the top, shaping the
! warm candy as it passes into two fine,
slightly curled horns, which give an
artistic finish.
| But three times in five, no matter
| how they begin, candies end by be-
coming chocolate of some sort. Choco-
late dipping Is much like the creaming
process-with the difference that while
it is possible to mould cream candies
/ Of some sorts, nothing yet invented can
take the place of the ten fingers for
chocolate.
One Of the most interesting sights is
the making of the blown candy"
which looks and tastes fit for fairy s
feasts. Men are the workers here They
take a lump of hot candy bigger tha
ones head, toss and twist it hither and
yon, and end by flinging it across big
hook, against which they pull as fran
tically as though life depended on it.
They double the extended mass. redou-
bic it, fling 1t high in air, draw it back,
and play such fantastic tricks before
J high heaven that one cannot wonder
that the stuff is so full of grain
though it seems miraculous to note the
tlansmutation of motion so violent
into the gay glistening ribbons of
sweetness.
Rose leaves and violets are crystal
lized by dropping them one minute in
very hot candy. skimming them out
and spreading thin. then shaking hot
sugar over them. 1t is q tedious pro-
cess-but hardly SO much so as the
making of fruit glace, which must first
be boiled in syrup until it is clear, then
| spread, sugared and dried with infinite