The Washington herald., 1921-10-31
DAHI.IA ROOT sYRUP
WILL SWEETEN S0DAs.

| The roots Of the dahlta, the beau-
tiful flower that is now blooming
at its best, will provide the syrup
that Will swesten many FOUNTAIN
/ drinks, preserves. and desserts OF
! the future, according TO DR.. W. +.
\ Stafford Of the Bureau Of Plant In
idustry Of the Department Of Agri-
culture. who talked to the Btologi-
cal Society Saturday night
The feshy roots Of this flower are
not starchy like potatoes. but they
\ contain a substance which fs known
chemically as Inulin. Prom this,
\ sugar 60 per cent sweeter than cane
sugar can be obtained by the chem
list. This sugar, known a. levulose
or fructose. has heretofore been
very expensive and Of little com
mercial Importance.
Dr. r. +. Jackson, Of the United
States Bureau Of Standards. has
been making experiments with
view 20 simplifying the methods OF
extracting the sugar from the inulin
OF dahIia roots. The sugar crystal
lIIKes with great dificulty and the
expense In the past. has been chiefly
due 10 the fact that IL was neces-
sary to use much alcohol In elimi-
mating the water.
For the tests a large number OF
roots was furnished by Richard
/ Vincent, Of White Marsh, Nd presi-
dent Of the American Dahlia So
ciety, and from DR.. Jackson's re-
tsults Il Is evident that the dAhlia
has an important commercial future
ahead OF IL as a sugar plant. Al
ready a company has been formed
to cultivate thousands of acres OF
dahIias. the roots Of which will
be used as a source OF levulose
sugar.
Attempts have been frequently
made to use dahlia roots as food
tter anfrnais. but. owing 20 their IN
ipleasant taste. they are rejected
both by cattle and pigs
TT Is a very wise dahiia tusS
knows its own father says -Dr.
\ Stafford. who has looked into the
history OF the dahlia family. VERY
few dahlias indeed even know their
lown mothers, for the species which
4 occurred in nature. after having
fallen into the hands Of horticultur-
lists and plant breeders. have been
crossed and recrossed 20 such an
extent that IL almost Impossible
Go trace their ancestry. There seems
to be an impression that the first
dahlias 20 be cultivated in Europe
} and America were singie-nowered
! forms. This is a mistake: the very
first species 20 be described and
: figured. dahlia pinnata- was a rorn
I with a duplex or double head. IL
/. was propagsted in the Royal Garden
r at Madrid from roots OF Mexican
E origin, and was named by the bot
: anist Cavanilles, in 1891. in honor
= of Andreas Dahl. q distinguished
: pupil OF Linnaeus"
The earliest descriptions Of the
{ dshlia were made about 1870 by
= Francisco Hernandez Spanish
0 physician who was sent by Philip IT
e TO study the resources Of New Spain.
l. and observed many forms Of dahIiss
r adjoining the gardens OF the Mexi-
e cans. II Is interesting to note tnat
n at that early day types that are
o usually held 20 be modern were al
2 ready developed. The dahlia was
: known to the Aztecs under the Ma
! hustl name Acocoxochitl. which NAV
Q be translated ''water-tu flower"
E This name was applied to them on
r account OF their hollow jointed
/ stems bearing a certain resemblance
TO canes used by the Mexicans for
= water pipes.
r DR.. Bassler showed that although
q sex characters are usually discern
ible in the skeletons Of fossil verte-
brates It is seldom that any dis
tinction of sexes can be made in
! the investebrate animals OF past.
. times where only the shell or SIM
= liar parts have been preserved. In
certain classes, however. for exam
pie, the bryozoa or moss animals
aud the ostracoda or minute BIZ
r Waived crustacea. the female Is
, often distinguished by the develop
! ment Of brood pouch. varlously To-
= Gated upon the exterior OF the shell
, developed by these animals. In
, this pouch the eggs ere Matched
! and the young are evolved. These
brood pouches are composed Of lime
carbonate and thus become pre-
served as fossils. Most species in
these two classes develop their
own particular style OF brood
pouch, thus affording a ready means
for accurate determination.
r The study Of such a subject
would seem TO have little impor-
r lance from economic standpoint,
} but when Il is realized that these
: two classes OF. fossils are abundant
in the rocks where oil and gas are
likely to be found and that their
, remains are contained in well drill
ings, often TO the exclusion of other
: types of fossils. their value be-
comes apparent" DR.. Bsssler said.
: "Often the driller has only these
4 fossils to rely upon in identifying
l the rock horizons. Since the female
3 forms show the specific characters
!. without question they thus become
/ very accurate aids in determining
: the oil and gas horizons"
q MAP OF NEW YORK