WOMAN'S WORLD.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 82, 3 May 1909, Page 4

WOMAN'S WORLD.

AYJIY IiOMIvMADE JAM Iti THE . , BEST. t Housekeepers who adhere to the old- , fashioned practice of putting up their 1 own preserves and jams will be gratified , to learn (says an American writer) that j science recognises the superiority ot , their home-made product to that of the , factories. Xo au authority than the j Loudon Lancet testifies to this. Every ; housewife-who makes jam Unowe that ] the keeping powers of the several ( batches may vary. Some samples will , go mouldy in a short time, while others will keep in good condition almost in- , definitely. The differences observed may b e due to souie jams being more con- . I centrated than others, as, ot'course, it is I only a concentrated solution of sugar which is antiseptic. It seems certain, also, that cane sugar is a much more satisfactory preservative than glucose, and the argument of jam-makers that glucose is necessary in order to keep the jam from crystallising is put out of court by the fact that if the jam is well made the acid* of the fruit should change enough cane sugar into invert sugar to ensure against sugar crystals separating. This involves, however, long boiling, and nowadays jams, we are told, must be made as cheaply as possible. Hence the superiority of the home-made jam, which contains a larger proportion of digestible sugar (and parenthetically, it may be added, more fruit- too) tlnm as a rule does the com-mercially-prepared article, ft would be somewhat curious fact if it'were proy.nl that, after all. jam owed its keeping powers not entirely to sugar, but in part ■ to what may lie regarded as an artificial preservative—-namely, formaldehyde. It | has been agreed that fonnaletlhyde '» an objectionably preservative for foods on account of its toughening effect upon foods in general and upon protein in 1 particular. And yet it would appear that formaldehyde is readily formed iu • small quantities by merely boiling solutions of can« sugar, the amount pro- ■ dnced depending possibly on the dura- ' tion of the boiling. According to this, it would not I>e surprising to find formal- ■ di'hydc present in many jams as a per-fn-tlv unintentional, or even normal, ; constituent. Its presence, indeed, may 1 be essential to the keeping powers of ' the jam. The subject deserves further ' investigation, since analysts may die put ' off their guunl and be the means of J instituting proceedings for fraud where ' no fraud exists.

It is said that the women of York are not a little piqued at Signor FcrreroV; reminder that while America imvs five times as many diamonds as Europe, it will still take a long time to surpass the European collections which represent the accumulations of centuries. The retort conies quickly, i "It may -be/' savs a leader of New York i fashions, "that' New York women can not display such opulence of jewellery as the women of London and Paris, but they can easily excel them in the magnificence oi' their winter clothing." Indeed. it would seem that furs represent 1 as much wealth as diamonds, fortunately. furs may wear out, whereas diamonds do not. We are told of a voluminous fur coat "with wide sleeves of sable, iwitli muff. cape, stole, and turban to match. This sumptuous garment I cost £7OOO. while Mr*. Philip Lydig I wears furs that are said to be worth ' £OOOO. Xcw York women are proj verbially extravagant in the matter of ; gloves. ' We are told of a young lady | who recently entered a fashionable shop in Fifth Avenue and ordered a pair of driving gloves which she insisted should be of the finest sealskin, costing £IOO. Winter hats worth £SO to £BO are now quite commonplace, while £2O lor a plume or £l2 for a pair of stockings are considered quite within the veaeh of "moderate incomes." A competition in extravagant display between the old and the new worlds is not a wholesome sign of the times, and seems to point not so much "to a common opulence as to a common catastrophe.