Method of Preserving Eggs, Fruit, and Eatables in General.
Year: 1898

page_text: Method of Preserving Eggs, Fruit, and Eatables in General.
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of the Firm of A. M. & Wm. Clark, of 53,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Fellow of the Chartered Institute
of Patent Agents, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communica-
tion to me by Fritz Dippel, of 14, Bergheimerstrasse, Heidelberg, Germany,
Merchant), to be as follows:-
This invention relates to a method of preserving eggs, fruit (particularly fruit
for the table), and other perishable articles, and has for its object to prevent the
eggs, as they are taken from the nest, the fresh fruit and edible substances
generally, from being injuriously affected by the action of the air as well as to
protect them from being broken or otherwise damaged.
The invention consists essentially in enclosing the eggs or other articles within
a thin covering of caoutchouc or a mixture of vulcanized caoutchouc and gutta-
percha adapted to come into intimate contact with the shell of the egg or other
article to be preserved, throughout its entire surface so as to effectually prevent
access of air. In the following description by the term caoutchouc there is
vulcanized caoutchouc or a mixture of vulcanized
always to he understood
caoutchouc and guttapercha."
<<
As is well known, an egg shell consists of carbonate of lime containing
numerous pores through which the atmospheric air can pass to the egg and it
is owing to this fact that eggs which are kept for long periods (as for example
when they are exported to more or less distant countries) are liable to become
dried up and otherwise deteriorated. Attempts have been made to overcome
this difficulty, generally based on the immersion of the eggs in solutions of various
substances such for instance as lime, resins, and the like, for the purpose of
closing the pores and providing the eggs with an adherent protective covering
or coating, but as this mode of preservation involves, on the one hand, trouble-
some and inconvenient handling of liquids and, on the other hand, the immersion
of the eggs in certain solvents for the purpose of restoring them to their natural
condition such attempts have failed in practice.
The object of this invention is to preserve eggs, etc., in the natural state in the
most efficient manner and with a minimum of trouble, and it consists, as above
mentioned, in the employment of a caoutchouc covering into which the eggs are
enveloped as soon as they are taken from the nest. The covering is slipped over
the egg so as to fit the shell tightly and when the egg is to be consumed the
covering is removed by merely slipping it back over and off the egg, so that the
same covering may be used again several times if desired.
The accompanying drawings illustrate various forms of the caoutchouc cover-
ings which may be employed to carry out the present invention. For example,
as shewn in Figure 1, the covering may be in the form of a bag the mouth of
which, after the bag has been drawn over the egg so as to wholly enclose it, is
tied by means of any suitable ligature or by a clip or the like; or which is closed

page_text: (as shewn in Figure 4) by a piece e of rubber or other substance placed over or
underneath the same, the closure in either case being so made as to be practically
air-tight. Or the egg may be enveloped (as shewn in Figures 2 and 3) by a pair
of rubber hoods or caps a and b slipped over the egg from opposite ends each of
said hoods or caps almost completely enclosing the egg and the one partly over-
lapping the other. By this means the close and perfectly tight contact of the
rubber covering with the entire surface of the shell of the egg is ensured.
In all cases for the purpose of effecting a perfectly tight closure or contact
of the covering with the shell of the egg, it is advisable to employ coverings of
caoutchouc which are smaller than the eggs to be preserved and are distended
when applied thereto and which have a shape corresponding to, or approximately
corresponding to, the shape of the egg. The covering of the eggs in the manner
shewn in Figures 2 and 3 has this further advantage, viz., that certain parts of
the eggs have a double covering, thus obviating the production of air spaces such
as are very liable to be formed when the eggs are laid aside for a long period.
Furthermore, certain parts of the eggs are protected by the double elastic caout-
chouc layer from being broken in handling, packing, and transport.
In order to still further increase the protection against breakage or cracking,
the caoutchouc covering may be provided at certain places corresponding to those
parts of the eggs which are more particularly liable to be damaged (as indicated
in Figure 4) with thickened portions c at one or both ends, and the covering may
be provided over its whole surface with ribs d or other prominences, to afford a
further means of protection against breakage (Figure 3).
Thus it will be seen that, according to the present invention, all access of air
to the egg is cut off by means of a thin covering of caoutchouc which can be
easily withdrawn again from the egg whereupon the latter will be found to be in
its original and natural state without the necessity of submitting it to the action
of liquids which are liable to damage the egg by penetration into the interior
through the porous shell.
When eggs are to be kept for very long periods, they are, as they are taken
from the nest, and before being covered, dipped into a saturated solution of
common salt or other preservative liquid suitable for human consumption as food,
and then immediately inserted within the covering which being elastic forces
the solution adhering to the shell through its pores into the interior of the egg.
Or the new-laid eggs are subjected, in a closed vessel filled with a preserving
liquid (for instance with a 10% solution of common salt) for several hours to a
pressure of from 1 to 2 atmospheres in order to ensure that the air contained in
the eggs shall be replaced by the preserving liquid. The immediate effect of
this is to render the white of the egg slightly salt and as the said white of egg
has a more fluid consistency in its deeper layers near the yolk of the egg, the
salt impregnation also reaches the yolk and thus affects the outermost zones of
the yolk as well. Now as it is here, that is to say immediately under the skin of
the yolk, that the speck or germ skin ("cicatricula") is situated, in which
germination or development has already begun, even in a newly-laid hen's egg,
this germination is at once arrested by the above process and thus all the con-
ditions are ensured which are requisite to permit of keeping the egg for a long
period.
If impregnation with the preservative liquid (for instance a solution of common
salt) were to be carried to such an extent that the yolk of the egg became pene-
trated, an excess of the liquid would have to be introduced, and assuming that a
solution of common salt had been used, the contents of the egg would be over-
salted. If therefore it is desired to supply the preserving liquid only to the yolk
of the egg, this operation is effected by means of a squirt or syringe, such as
those which are employed for subcutaneous injections. After having pierced
the egg in the centre for this purpose, the hollow needle of the syringe is in-
serted through the aperture right into the centre of the yolk of the egg where
the contents of the syringe are discharged. The quantity and strength of the

page_text: solution is determined by the effect which it is desired to obtain. Thus for
example even 1 cubic centimetre of a 10% solution of common salt has a strong
preservative action upon the yolk of the egg. After the hollow needle of the
syringe has been withdrawn from the aperture in the shell, the egg is covered
with the caoutchouc covering in the manner above described. But in this case
also, the use of the caoutchouc covering which encloses the egg in an air tight
manner, is essential and must be applied immediately after the egg has been
impregnated. If this caoutchouc covering were not used, the evaporation of the
water introduced with the solution of common salt into the egg, would take
place without hindrance. But the main object of the present invention is to
keep the egg completely filled, just as it comes from the nest.
Finally there might also be strewn in between the caoutchouc covering and
the shell of the egg, preserving agents (such as for instance common salt, salicylic
acid, and the like) in the form of powder, which are dissolved by the liquid that
exudes outwardly through the pores of the shell, and which are thus carried into
the inside of the egg. As the coverings can be easily slipped off, fresh quantities
of the preservative powder may be distributed over the shell from time to time,
if found necessary.
In the preservation of fruit or eatables particularly fruit for the table,
which shrinks through loss of liquid on exposure to the air, the recessed parts
(for example around the stalk or the outside leaves of the flower) may be filled
up with wax in order that in this case also the caoutchouc covering shall be
everywhere in uniform close contact with the article. In the case of articles
which are approximately of spherical shape it is advisable, as in the case of eggs,
to employ two caoutchouc coverings which are drawn over the article from its
two ends and overlap each other in the middle.
In the case of pears it is advisable to employ only one caoutchouc covering
which extends up to the stalk, the closure being effected by means of wax or the
like; or the covering may be fastened around the stalk which may, if necessary,
be partially nipped off.
Delhi 1
1
1000
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.
Method of Preserving Eggs, Fruit, and Eatables in General.
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of the Firm of A. M. & Wm. Clark, of 53,
Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Fellow of the Chartered Institute
of Patent Agents, do hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communica-
tion to me by Fritz Dippel, of 14, Bergheimerstrasse, Heidelberg, Germany,
Merchant), and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to the preservation of edible substances and more par-
ticularly to the preservation of hen's eggs, and has for its object to prevent the
eggs (from the time they are taken from the nest to the time they are used) from
being injuriously affected by the action of the air as well as to protect them from
being broken or otherwise damaged in transit or while being handled.
The invention is also applicable for preserving fruit (particularly fruit for the
table) and other perishable articles, and although in the following description
reference will be made to the preservation of eggs only, it will be understood
that the invention is not limited in this respect,

page_text: .
The invention consists essentially in enclosing the eggs within a thin covering
of caoutchouc (or a mixture of vulcanized caoutchouc and guttapercha) adapted
to come into intimate contact with the shell of the egg to be preserved through-
out its entire surface so as to effectually cut off access of air. In the following.
description wherever the term "caoutchouc" is used, "vulcanized caoutchouc
or a mixture of vulcanized "caoutchouc and guttapercha" is always to be under-
stood.
As is well known carbonate of lime constitutes the shell of an egg and this
shell contains numerous pores through which the atmospheric air can pass to
the egg itself and it is owing to this fact that eggs which are kept for long
periods (as for example when they are exported to more or less distant countries)
are liable to become dried up and otherwise deteriorated. Attempts have been
made to overcome this difficulty generally based on the immersion of the eggs
in solutions of various substances (such for instance as lime, resins, and the like)
for the purpose of closing the pores and providing the eggs with an adherent
protective covering or coating, but as this mode of preservation involves on the
one hand troublesome and inconvenient handling of liquids and on the other
hand the immersion of the eggs in certain solvents before use for the purpose
of restoring them to their natural condition, such attempts have failed in practice.
The object of this invention is to preserve eggs in their natural state in the
most efficient manner and with a minimum of trouble, and it consists in the
employment of a caoutchouc covering into which the eggs are enveloped directly
they are taken from the nest. The covering is applied by merely slipping it
over the egg which it fits tightly and it is removed by doubling it back on itself
and slipping it off the egg so that the same covering may be used several times.
The drawings accompanying the Provisional Specification illustrate various
forms of the caoutchouc coverings which may be employed to carry out the
present invention.
For example, as shewn in Figure 1 the covering may be in the form of a bag
the mouth of which, after the bag has been drawn over the egg so as to wholly.
enclose it, is tied by means of any suitable ligature or by a clip or the like; or
which is closed (as shewn in Figure 4) by a piece e of rubber or other substance
placed over or underneath the same, the closure in either case being so made as
to be practically air-tight. Or the egg may be enveloped (as shewn in Figures 2
and 3) in a pair of hoods or caps a and b of vulcanized caoutchouc or a mixture
of vulcanized caoutchouc and guttapercha which are slipped over the egg from
opposite ends each of said hoods or caps almost completely enclosing the whole
egg and the one partly overlapping the other. By this means the close and
perfectly tight contact of the rubber covering with the entire surface of the shell
of the egg is ensured.
In all cases for the purpose of effecting a perfectly tight closure or contact
of the covering with the shell, it is advisable to employ a caoutchouc covering
which is smaller than the egg and needs to be distended when applied thereto
and which have a shape corresponding to, or approximately corresponding to,
the shape of the egg. The covering of the eggs in the manner shewn in Figures 2
aud 3 has this further advantage, viz that certain parts of the eggs being provided
with a double covering, the production of air spaces such as are very liable to
be formed when the eggs are laid aside for a long period is obviated. Further-
more, certain parts of the eggs are protected by the double elastic layer from
being broken in handling, packing, and transport.
In order to still further increase the protection against breakage or cracking,
the covering may be provided at certain places corresponding to those parts of the
eggs which are more particularly liable to be damaged (as indicated in Figure 4)
with thickened portions e (either at one or both ends) and the whole surface of
the coverings may be ribbed or roughened for the purpose of affording additional
· protection from breakage as shewn in Figure 3.
Thus it will be evident that all access of air to the egg is cut off by means of

page_text: the thin covering or envelope which can be easily withdrawn again from the egg,
leaving the latter in its original and natural state thus avoiding the necessity of
submitting the egg to the action of liquids as in processes heretofore proposed
which are liable to penetrate into the interior through the porous shell and thus
damage the egg.
When eggs are to be kept for unusually long periods they should be, as they
are taken from the nest and before being covered, dipped into a saturated solution
of common salt or other preservative liquid which may be consumed. As the
covering is elastic it forces the solution adhering to the shell through the pores
of the latter and into the interior of the egg when it is applied. Or the new-
laid eggs may be subjected, in a closer vessel filled with a preserving liquid (for
instance with a 10% solution of common salt) for several hours to a pressure of
from 1 to 2 atmospheres, to replace the air contained in the eggs by the pre-
serving liquid. The immediate effect of this is to render the white of the egg
slightly salt and as the white has a more fluid consistency in its deeper layers
near the yolk of the egg, the salt impregnation also reaches the yolk and thus
affects the outermost zones of the yolk as well. Now as it is here, that is to
say immediately under the skin of the yolk, that the speck or germ skin
("cicatricula") is situated in which germination or development has already
begun, even in a newly-laid hen's egg, this germination is at once arrested by
the above process and thus all the conditions are ensured which are requisite
to permit of keeping the egg for a long period.
If it is desired to supply the preservative liquid to the yolk of the egg only,
this operation should be effected by means of a syringe similar to those used for
making subcutaneous injections, otherwise the remainder of the egg would be
rendered too salt (assuming that a solution of common salt be used as the pre-
servative agent). After having pierced the egg in the centre for the purpose,
the hollow needle of the syringe should be inserted through the aperture right
into the centre of the yolk of the egg where the contents of the syringe are
discharged. The quantity and strength of the solution is determined by the.
effect which it is desired to obtain. Thus for example even one cubic centimetre
of a 10% solution of common salt has a strong preservative action upon the yolk
of the egg.
After the hollow needle of the syringe has been withdrawn from
the aperture in the shell, the egg should be immediately covered with the caout-
chouc covering in the manner above described. But in this case also, the use of
the caoutchouc covering which encloses the egg in an air-tight manner, is essential
and must be applied immediately after the egg has been impregnated. If this
caoutchouc covering were not used, the evaporation of the water introduced with
the solution of common salt into the egg would take place without hindrance.
But the main object of the present invention is to keep the shell of the egg as
completely filled as it is when it is taken from the nest.
Finally there might also be strewn in between the caoutchouc covering and the
shell of the egg preserving agents (such as, for instance, common salt, salicylic
acid, and the like) in the form of powder which becoming dissolved by the liquid
which exudes outwardly through the pores of the shell, filters through the shell
to the inside of the egg. As the coverings can be easily slipped off, fresh quanti-
ties of the preservative powder may be distributed over the shell from time to
time, if found necessary.
The protection afforded by the covering may be increased by introducing a
suitable antiseptic into the envelope. For this purpose sulphurous acid or sub-
stances capable of producing sulphurous acid may be introduced into the envelope.
In the preservation of fruit or catables (particularly fruit for the table, which
shrinks through loss of liquid on exposure to the air), the recessed parts (for
example around the stalk or the outside leaves of the flower) may be filled up
with wax in order that in this case also the caoutchouc covering shall be every-
where in uniform close contact with the article. In the case of articles which
are approximately of spherical shape it is advisable, as in the case of eggs, to

page_text: employ two caoutchouc coverings which are drawn over the article from its two
ends, and overlap each other in the middle.
**
In the case of pears it is advisable to employ a single caoutchouc covering
only, said covering extending up to the stalk, the closure being effected by means
of wax or the like; or the covering may be fastened around the stalk which may;
if necessary, be partially nipped off:
"
1.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
L
"
*t.
1. The herein described method of protecting eggs fruit and other perishable
articles from the action of the air and from breakage, which consists in wholly
enveloping the eggs or other articles to be preserved, in a closely adherent or
skin-like covering of vulcanized caoutchouc or a mixture of vulcanized caoutchouc
and gutta, percha substantially as 'specified.
2. The employment for the purpose specified of a protective envelope or cover-
ing constituted by a pair of-hoods of vulcanized caoutchouc or a mixture of
vulcanized caoutchouc and guttapercha applied substantially as described with
reference to Figure 3 of the drawings.
'
..
3. The employment for the purpose of protecting eggs and other perishable
articles, of a closely adherent envelope or covering made in halves and of the
material referred to, each half being adapted to almost entirely envelope the egg
and afford double protection to the ends thereof substantially as specified.
4. In the method of preserving eggs, etc., as specified in Claim 1, immersing
the eggs in a preserving liquid or introducing the said liquid into the interior
of the egg, etc. before applying the cover thereto substantially as and for the
purpose specified.
5. In the method of preserving fruit and other perishable articles as specified
in Claim 1, filling up the recesses in the article with wax before applying the
covering so as to cause the covering to closely adhere to the article over its entire
surface substantially as specified.
Doted this 90th day of August 1000
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.