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170
their bread, several of them stoutly maintained that
the alum must have been contained in the Flour.
Without in the least denying the possibility, it
must be stated, in common justice to the flour dealers
of Camberwell, that in seven samples brought to me
for analysis, only a trace of alum was found in three
specimens, and in quantity too small to weigh. The
Flours were also free from admixture with grain of
any other kind than wheaten, the few rice granules
in two of the samples being clearly due to previous
grindings.
The objectionable character of alum in bread,
however, should not blind us to the difficulties under
which bakers labour, when the seasons are ill adapted
to the ripening of the corn. One remedy he has
always at his command, and that is to keep the flour
as much as possible in a dry locality. But if, from
circumstances over which the baker has often no
control, the glutten of the flour should be in a moist
condition, it undergoes changes that produce an
action upon the starch, which makes the resulting
bread heavy and sodden, and which has led to the
employment of alum. Instead of using alum, which
is an adulteration, the process recommended many