Evening star., 1915-11-21

81 E AN I signs point 10 tne eAiSeeiSe
IMl of a buttermilk cult, more
GV4 sensible practice than most OF
those things which are called cuits
and fashions. No dairy lunch seems
now to be able to do business without
the aid Of buttermilk. and " IS oe1ns
served in drug stores and in barrooms
Though the virtues and the palataoli-
ity of buttermilk have been known for
ages, 1t is now being honored with the
appreciation of more patrons than ever
before The butterrnilk renaissance
set in when the statement gained wide
currency that sour milk was an ala 10
longevity. No doubt a great many per-
sons were led to tasting buttermiik
through reasons Of vanity. but finding
it good have got the habit every
now and then there Is a statement from
some man of medicine that certain
poisonous germs in our stomachs are
destroyed by buttermilk and that per-
haps the human family would be bet
ter off If it drank more buttermilk and
sweet milk and less of many other
beveraees recommended as thirst
quenchers.
1t has been written that from i'm
memorial days curdled milk in various
forms has not only been favorite ar
ticle of diet among pastoral people,
but has been credited with mediclnal
properties Sour milk figured conspic-
uously in the Aryan system OF medicine
and medical historians say that that
system antedated by centuries the the
cries and practices of Hippocrates, and
by some writer's it is maintained that
Hippocrates acquired much of his medi-
cal wisdom either in the land OF the
Ayrans or from members of that great
division of the human family.
Milk was known to possess remarka-
prescribed fresh and in the form of
curds and whey. II was highly rec
commended by ancient physicians In the
case of intestinal disorders. and some
ascribed to the milk of the COW. buf-
falo, goat, sheep. elephant, ass and
camel.
Pasteur made researches into the ma
ture of fermentation. and 1t Is said
that the facts which he observed laid
the foundation of bio-chemistry and
bacteriology. He established what was
then new, but what is now universally
admitted. that in the matter OF sour
milk the chemical changes were eff
fected by micro-organisms. which
cause the souring Of milk by convert
ing lactose or milk sugar into lactfc
acid, and produce analogous changes
in other sugar containing fluids.
What has come to be called the
Tactic acid theory was a step toward
combating harmful bacteria with bac-
teria which in themselves were harm
less and which were the natural enc
mics of the harmful bacteria.
a*
Prof Metchnikoff, observing the high
number of cases Of long life among
the peasantry of Bulgaria, made an
Investigation into their habits OF ltv-
ing and. of course, among other things
found that they led a simple life and
that an important article of their diet
was curdled milk. In making care
full meteorological analysis : of this
food three acidforming organisms
were isolated, and one of these, es-
ia blished to be the most active of the
three. was named bacillus bulgaricus.
OF this organism 1t has been written
that il acted In counteracting the
putrefa ctiye changes set up in food
products by other bacteria inhabitins
| the intestine. This result or decision
| was reached at the Pasteur I .ns.ituae tua.
at Paris The theory was reached that
| acid forming organisms have the prop
erty of arresting the growth and acttV-
| ity of putrefactive alkaline ones.
| which cause secondary iermen.auon
with the production OF poisonous
changes, especially In the large in
| testine, and are absorbed.
The cleansing quality of sour milk Is
quite generally believed and there has
| come to be very large demand for
buttermilk. 1t is worth noting that
the buttermilk Of commerce. the kind
that a man gets when no walks UP to a
counter, is not "buttermilk." but but
terless milk" or skinned milk which
has been turned sour after butter fat
has been removed by IL separator"
| In the old days In the country and
| to some extent in the country today
when the housewife or the maid churn-
was removed. good deal remained
in the sour milk and 1t was really but
termilk Very little buttermilk OF that
] kind 10 to be met with today, except in