The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1905-03-24
THE WATER WE EAT.
Sought ms Food. II .. n ToierabIy EE-
pensive Luxury.

sought as Food. II u Tolerably Ex-
pensive Luxury.
Bought as food, water IL a tolerably
expensive luxury. In several instances
It costs something like $3.50 glass. ac-
cording to the estimates Of II. ].
Holmes in Pearson's.
Let us begin with breakfast.
Look at that loaf OF bread. TO all
appearance II Is solid enough. But 1t
Is not When 1t came into the hands Of
the baker as wheat -four II contained
water only to the extent Of II per cent
In working up the materials into
dough by kneadlng and other manipu-
latlon and In baking great change
takes place. and the quantity OF water
has more than doubled. The wheat
-four loaf contains nearly 40 per cent OF
water. Curiously enough, Its value as
a food Is increased thereby. The per-
centage Of water IN the crust Is about
half that In the soft inside.
"Cured" pork does not contain
large proportion Of VI ter. In fact,
wherever there Is good deal OF fatty
matter there Is also scarcity Of mois-
ture. so the man who enjoys his slice
OF breakfast bacon may comfort him
self with the reflection that he is get
ting fairly solid value for his money,
because bacon contains only q per
cent Of water.
Fresh eggs. on the other hand, are
composed Of no less than 65 per cent
Of water.
The best dairy made butter, no mat
ter how carefully prepared, contains a
comparatively large percentage OF wa
ter. Out Of 1900 samples Of butter ex-
amined by well known authorities
small number contained over 10 per
cent Of water The larger number con-
tained between II and 13 per cent.
Carelessiy manufactured or adulter-
ated butter often contains much more
water than is permissible by law. and
the breakfas: table may include a sup
ply OF butter containing as much as 20
per cent OF water.
II Is only to be expected that milk,
owing TO It's origin, should vary consid-
erably In Its composition. Much de-
pends on the health and surroundings
Of the animal yielding It.
II is interesting to know that morn
ing milk as II comes from the COW is
by no means as nonrishlng as the even
ing supply. There Is more water in the
former The daily quart Of milk, even
IL its purcst state, contains an average
Of ST.8 per cont OF water
The choicest fish contains the largest
percentage Of water Thus turbot and
sole are credited with 7S per cent,
salmon rs per cent, while the common
er inhabitants OF the deep blue sea are
content with from 40 to 60 per cent, as
In the case OF the.homely herring.
AS cool as cucumber" ls house
hold term. The GOODNESS Is easily ex-
planned. Cucumbers are almost entire
" composed Of water-that Is, 9J per
cent, or over IA per cent more than is
contained In milk, which Is itself lq-
uld. Lettuce must not be forgotten.
Here Is a further instance Of how little
substance may be In an apparent solid.
for the cabbage lettuce holds 90 per
cent of water.
II will be seen that most Of the good
things Of life are largely composed Of
water, but II Is better for us that this
is so. Nature knows more about our di.
gestlve powers than we know our
selves, and she has designed her prod
ucts-6sh. flesh, fowl and frult-with
so cunning hand that the water con-
talned In each Is essential.
Food containing very little water In
its composition is not, as rule, good to
eat until suitable process Of cooking
has rendered II safe by adding fur
ther supply OF water to 1t, and boiling,
as Is well known. Is the process that
renders our food most wholesome and
easy Of digestion.