The Washington herald., 1914-02-23
WOMAN And THE HOME
WHO AMONG
PROGRESSIVE WOMEN
Miss Hannah L. Wesslins Is Official
Bread Baker for Uncle
By MARY B. MULLETT.


Copyright. isl4)
A versatile gentleman Is Uncle Sam.
He Is as much interested In heur con-
tents as he IL in foreign countries. he
is as determined to get the best bread
as he Is to eliminate tainted trusts.
To carry out this purpose IN regard to
bread he has started genuine. thougn
not an old-fashioned. bakery OF MS own
In this official bakery there Ii. OF course
a baker. Her name Is Hannah L. Wess-
ling, and what she doesn't know about
bread isn't worth mentioning In culinary
circles.
Miss wesaing's mother was Balti-
morean and her father was German
who became a naturaiized American So
both Germans and Baitimoreans being
famous cooks, Miss wessling had dou-
Bile heritage of talent in this line.
But In addition to being good COOK.
Miss Wessiing had also scientific
training which secured for her n position
in the Chicago branch Of the Bureau OF
Chemistry of the Department of Agrt-
culture. When. therefore. our Uncle
Samuel decided to turn baker and want
ed a combination cook and scientist to
do the, work. Miss wesslins was invited
to Washington I'LL the role.
The idea in having this ofnciai bakery
Is to determine by scientific experiment,
how the housewife can make the best
bread possible. As good flour Is one OF
the essentials for good bread. nours from
all over the country are tested at the
Bureau Of Chemistry. first by analysis
and then by baking.
OF this Official breadmaking Miss Wess-
ling has entire charge. When a batch"
OF her bread Is out OF the oven. she and
two other experts test It for weight.
volume. texture. color. and flavor: the
previous analysis of the -four having al
ready shown its percentage Of starch.
sugar, gluten. and so on.
Her Own Kitchen.
She has her own kitchen; not at her
home. but In the government building.
Her mixing bowls arc Of gray stone
crockery. scrupulousy kept. A round
glass cover fits over each Of these bowls
SO that Miss Wesslins can watch the
progress Of the rising without lifting the
cover and exposing the dough to the air.
Her rising closet Is her pride and
JOY. II stands on a table and contains
two broad shelves. There are small glass
doors which close tightly. and through
which one can see what Is going on in
side. The interior is heated by electric
wires and Is equipped with a thermome-
IudANcT OF temperature OIlt
which Miss Wessling considers most i'm
portant. She has decided on S. degrees
as the temperature which produces the
best results She found that temper
allure of % degrees in the rising closet"
caused the formation Of certain acids so
that the bread was sour. On the other
hand a temperature OF 10 degrees was
too low to give the best results. II bread
is put to rise in very warm room,
which gradually becomes colder. the re-
suit is worse than IL 1t were set in a
cool room which gradually became
warmer. But the ideal is to have a tenn
tain it at that point.
Miss wessling doesn't believe In the
old-fashioned idea Of using the same
sponge" year after year. She tells Of
one housekeeper who boasted, that she
was stin using the sponge her mother
had started for her sixteen years before,
During the entire period this sponge"
had occupied the same crock. not even
being taken out to allow OF the crock
being washed.
Miss Wessling has experimental with
all kinds Of ovens. and rather inclines
to the electric variety. These have heat
ing wires across the top as well as the
bottom. SO that the bread bakes evenly
on both sides.
Are Not Wasted.
or course a good many loaves are
turned out by Uncle Sans busy baker.
Most of them are smaller than those
made by the regular housekeeper. and
some are scarcely larger than play"
loaves. But. large or small. they are
not wasted. After they have been test
ed and a record made OF them, they are
distributed among the most needy en-
ployes Of the department, such as jani-
tors and scrubwomen.
Miss Wessling is at work at the task
of making out a formula, or rather a set
of formulas, which will be of practical
use TO the average housekeepers in their
own breadmaking. The formulas must
differ according to various conditions.
For instance, the formulas might not be
the same for different 1ours. And the
flour cannot be the same in all sections
of this country, with its wide range of
climates and OF attitudes.
One of the objects OF all this expert
mentation Is to determine which grains
are best adapted to different places; the
best for the North. the South, for wet
climates, and for dry.
Another aim Of the experimenters is to
find a -four which can be used by the
poor as a substitute for expensive fine
white flour. They have been anslyzing
kaffir corn, chestnut -four, soy bean -four
the last said to be adapted to the use
of people who cannot digest sugar and
starch. The official bakery is also try
In govt banana -four, which will be a
great thing for jewellers in the Canal
Zone IL it can be perfected.
1t seems particularly fitting that a
woman should be engaged in this work.
for women have been breadmakers
through all the centuries. So. not only
is Miss Wessling to be congratulated on
her unique position, but other women.
too, must be glad that woman has
been chosen to bake the national loaf.
Craze for Beads.