SWEETS PAR EXCELLENCE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2929, 15 November 1916, Page 10

SWEETS PAR EXCELLENCE

THE FIRM THAT SUPPLIES THE DISTRICT HOW JU-JUBES ARE MADE. This would be a very sad, grey old world were it not for the sweets of this life. By some strange peoplo sweets are regarded as a luxury, and some eccentric folk say that they tend to decay tho teeth. Good, scientificallymado sweets, manufactured by experts, may be regarded as a necessity, and are now well known to be one of the healthiest and sustaining of foods. Bernard Shaw pointed that out in "Arms and the Man," when he represented his hero as a soldier who carried chocolates in his pouch instead of cartridges. Now all the world is sending sweets to the brave fellows at the front, not because they aro a luxury, bdt because they aro a sustaining comfort, that help a man, when regular meals are out of the question. Children are always soothed by sweets,-not altogether becauso they please the palate, but because the whole system welcomes them as a healthy food.

Probably the most successful firm in the sweet manufacturing line in tho district is T. H. Rice and Co., of tho Avenue, AVanganui. From humble beginnings this firm has, by supplying _a good article, attained a position in Wanganui and the surrounding district, that is a clear and distinct title to sheer merit. Such has been tho growth of their business—wholesale as well as retail—that they have, during the past year, had to erect a new twostory brick factory. The top flat is restricted to the storago and handling of .bulk articles employed in the manufacture of sweets. Thero is the great sugar bin, from which all the sugar (No. 1 A from-the Colonial Sugar Refining Co. is the only quality used) runs through a metal chute to the receptacles helow, when it is transferred to the copper boilers. These are two in number, and always kept scrupulously clean. They are placed on great, clear coko fires, until tho sugar is boiled to the proper consistency, when the clear syrup is treated for the manufacture of tho different classes of sweets. These include boiled sweets, barley sugar, all kinds of drops, liquorice all-sorts, chocolate all-sorts, the firm's special "Princess" mixture (which is in acti\o demand all over tlio district) and jujubes. Does anyone ever pause to think how ju-jubes aro made when they feel tho soft cloy of the delicate sweetmeat on the palate? As tho staff was engagod in making ju-jubes when the writer visited the manufactory, a brief description will be interesting and educative. The first operation is to spread potato starch about an inch thick in an iron tray. This starch is most susceptible to impression, so it is an easy matter to make a host of tiny moulds by pressing tho surface with a board faced with small wooden-buttons the size and shape of a ju-jube. Having so marked tho surface, the rest is easy. All tho operator has to do is to get a four-spouted can full of tho already prepared liquid jelly, and pour it into the little indents in the starch. AA'hen cool they aro taken out, whatever starch adheres is washed off, and tho jubes are placed in a heap of pure white sugar to dry off.

Another delicatessen Rico and Co. specialises in', aro. salted peanuts— treated in a manner that gives them a peculiarly nutty piquancy. In this line alone tho. firm has a largo and always growing business.

Rico and Co. have a fine confectionery store in the business part of the Avenue. To this store has been added this week an "American Lounge," where all the latest fruit syrup drinks may bo- obtained from the elaborate soda fountain that gleams and glistens in the background. Tho fountain is a very handsome electro-plated affair, set in Parian marble, with a marble counter, and beautifully shaded lights. The whole outfit is a distinct credit to the firm and to AVanganui.—(Published by arrangement.)