The Wingham Advance Times, 1926-09-02, Page 8.G474'40 z//Y//'6".S
O,�-TES C..:s'' -sir
//Y c-/'ei.49r`Y'
P lice Regulations Maintained By theu-
thorities to Protect America From
Low-
ered. Standards -- Experts At Work
Dy NORMAN C, McLOUD
EA testing is a fine art in existent in a considerable per-
which much must depend centage of the importations:
upon the accuracyof the hu- Forty years ago American con-
man tongue and palate—with;sumers woke up to the foot that
con -
incidental o al assistance :from the they were being made the victims
sense 1 sgrad� of imposition. Recognition of this
In the grading and lumbar, theha truth brought the . first step to-
potatoes, distinctions
gasolineof wards protection. Under a law of
' is ma on
analysis, but the one 'best way to made that
determine the quality of tea is be held in bonded warehouses
through actual consumption by until the. Government authorities
practiced tea drinkers. Other had taken samples and satisfied
tests are applied, as a matter of themselves as to the quality of
courge,, but the tea that Pails the the merchandise.. The' effect of
sense of taste.Is an. outlaw. The the new' law was'' to -establish an
steaming CO) is a thing for which Ellis Island for. the examination of
science has ` discovered no substi tea, with .a view to' keeping out the
undesirables,
foto. The move was a step in the right
There are police regulations .for but' it lacked the finish -
speeders.
Well .as for. automobile direction,
tea asing touch that was essential to
scss a loathe stringentgeand
adequate protection. 'Under this
of consumersiidyn rc as erules
and legislation there was no provision
as. rigidly enforced' as the rul ewes for
setting :uP official standards as
the traffic court or the statutes for se g
and counterfeit- a gauge for inspection. An m-
ing,
burglary aniiner might not be entirely sada-
chance.
The tea outlaw hasn't a fled with a sample brought before
chance,' him for adjudication, but:he was
Formerly Posed s Tea • without a ` true measuring rod of
Trash Fo y lvt
In the United' States the teacup comparison.
not always bad adequate pro Accurate Measurements
has Y
tion. Until a generation or two In latter-day practice the meas -
ago the ports of this country were uring rod ,is provided by strict reg -
for • trashy' mer- ulation, Every inspector, or each
dumping aces_ s before him a set- of
chandise that wpuld not be ac- importer,, has
enables him tb,
cepted by the tea drinkers of any standards which
they oto
ether nation on the globe. Leaves classify all samples comes
and stems were admitted to the :long. The specimen which
with fine • dis up to requirements is permitted
gird L markets
worthlessness as .to enter the American market in
regard far their wa hick 'it has been.
�i foundation for the.cup that file grade In �' all short
cheers without inebriation. The classified. . The tea that falls
best that could be said of the stuff is barred
fo`Qr mentssmaintains a•
was that it came from the tea Th
plant. Real quality was non- board ,:f...,:::=:=....:1=2_2:........_______ f
fire clistinctioi y be left to was
other forms of inspection and the early alllghtiesjrnpo Sprovision
of t i
imports of tea should
/V Two r
etettemaalereaseeketeaye„ er,,",
Of/` -/CE
CL/.Q T�S'T f 0 ' G2e4.0. TY.: �/Yl� .7-;,5!4""_4'. -.m-.O 7=47,17-
their
=47'7_
theirspecial: fitness as tasters of
tea. To .these men fall the duty of
prescribing the standards which
must be met by each consignment
of tea offered for .admission.
through an American port. The
official board is the supreme court
of the trade.
The board meets at. the office of
customs appraisal, in' New York
City.. Each year there is a formal
gathering which fixes the stand-
ards of purity, quality and fitness
for beverage purposes that will be
used for the following year in
measuring the admissibility of all
tea offered for import. The meet-
ing is widely 'advertised to the
trade, and importers are invited to
submit samples of available teas
which they consider, best suited for
Government standards.
The membership •of the board
consists Of men representing the
various sections of the United
States. Six of the members are in
the tea business as importers 'and'.
jobbing obbin .'merchants... The seventh
man,. is a representative of the
Government, experienced. in rich
examinations.
Trained Tasters
At the annual meeting the seven
men gather around a big table with
nothing to do but drink tea and
pass upon its quality... Various
samples are opened and - prepared
for the cups which serve as the
man 'at the table tastes a cup of
eaoh decoctionthat is prepared.
On the. verdict of the seven tasters
rests the fate of the imporrtations
for the coming, year. The scale of
standards evolved from the official
decisions on the standard samples
goes forth as the rod by which
all imports are . to be measured.
Chemical examination is practiced'.
for the determination of tea -
making qualities, and there is
physical examination for PuritY
and freedom from trash and adul-
terants, but of all tests the one.
applied through the.teacup'is most
important and decisive.
From ,the official board . the
standards go to the tea inspection
service of the Government, work-
ing tinder the direction of the
D'
official laboratory outfit. Each
Bureau of Chemistry of the e-
riculture. Each reveal to' him the entire life his-
De-
partment of Ag
Is-
raeli. in , this organization is • an tory of the product offeredseemingly
his
m
expert in tea .sampling, with the meager . From this ell to within'
meager data he
a few miles just where the sample
was grown, whether it is this
year's crop qr a remnant of last
season, and just what 'process has.
been used in the treatment of the
leaves in preparing them for ship-
ment.
The inspector's decision is the
first step toward determining the
fate of the shipment. If the 'im
porter is not satisfied with this
man's ruling he has the right. of
. appeal to a board established for the
inspector Relies Ou Taste
The inspector's laboratory outfit
is his sense of taste. Be'must de-
pend on ;this equipment for the
accuracy of his judgments.' The
skill of the man trained to this
work is something uncanny. A.
single sip from a sample cup will
duty of deciding on every consign.-
merit
onsignmeat that mai be presented for
his consideration during the. 12
months for which the standard,
are operative. Thereis but one
inspector at each port of entry.
Upon , thisman's shoulders restsa
the responsibility for making that
port's tea receipts safe for the
American teapot. The inspector
has no fellow -worker with whom
he, can share responsibility or, dis-
cuss cases in . which there is an
element of doubt.
consideration of disputed decisions.
In this phase of . the machinery
there is found a situation that is
interesting because of its apparent
contradictions.
The strange feature of the board
of appeals is that here for the first
time a tea sample goes into the
hands of men who are not experts.
The members ;arechosen because
they are outside of the trade and
because they have, no: knowledge.
of teas. ;Their planof operation is
simple and direct. Their own
senses of taste _play no part in
reaching their decisions.
Curious Process - -
Meeting behindclosed doors, the
board of appeals prepares various
cups of tea, including the disputed
sampleand the official standard.
The bottom of each. cup 'carries 'a
number for identification purposes.
An expert engaged for the occasion
Ti1EA/Y7' %/Y27TfV
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77Q/Y
be less complicated. '
The teas offered for import into
the United States come from many
countries in the. Orient; as notably
China, .ladle, Ceylon, Java, Japan,'
Formosa and Sumatra. The color'
depends on the 'process employed
in .curing the 'leaves.; Ender one
process the leaf becomes green. A
different method- of handling will
produce black or Oolong. The
Product of India; Java and Sumatra ,.
is made Into tea that is known as
black, while China exports both
black, - and green. The Oolong
comes mostly from Formosa. The
trade names gunpowder, hyson and
the like refer to styles of green tea,
from China.
The Government experts are
skilled- in making a cup of tea in
the manner calculated to bring
out the best possibilities . of the
leaf. With' knowledge ' gained ,
through long .experience they use
water that is freshly boiling. Two
earthenware pots are considered
desirable, Both are heated by
filling them with hot water. One
of the heated pots is emptied to.
receive the required quantity of
leaves. The freshly boiling water
is poured over the leaves, three
minutes is allowed for steeping,
and the beverage is then strained .
into Abe 'other heated pot, leaving
its leaves behind. By this process
the experts are convinced that th y
extract practically all of he
stimulating constituents and fra-
grance of the tea without ext
ing too much of the tannin,'
even teaspoonful of leaves is c
sidered a properallotment for each
cup.
is called in•and instructed to taste
the contents of the containers, ar-
ranging them in the sequence dic-
tated by ,their relative merits,
without regard to the numbers. -
The tea, of highest quality is placed
at the left by this expert, and the
others in line, to the right, with
the poorestquality at the extreme
right, of the line. '
The test is now ended. . All that
remains is for the boardto start
at the left and turn the cups
upside' down, with the numbers in
plain sight. The cup bearing the
number of the Government stand-
ard .sample becomes, the dividing
line between good and bad. The
samples represented by the cups to
the left of the standard . are con-
sidered as meeting official require-
ments; those at the right are below
the mark. If the disputed speci-
men is on the wrong side it is re-
fused admission. No system could.
its �.sr�r Ac.,�r.sryo
0 C.?AP;
Science Makes a Study of the Question, and
Decides That the Bee Spends a Good Deal
of Time Loafing —As for Ants, Some
Are So Lazy That They Will
Not Feed Themselves.
B., tENE BACHE
busy bee is credited 'with generations, they.have beco tle
the bY the, invention of the' savings helpless to hike care of themsely s,
bank. That is enough to en- and, if deprived of servants, they
title her to celebrity, She is starve to death.
observation in
Men held up as a model of industry, The above
q
' with the net a long- regard to honey been was made at
sharingan in that re- the Government Bee Station, at
established reputation Bethesda, Maryland; where experts
gaud. � , are' engaged in an intimate study
But in this world It often hap s trying to incl cut
r that a reputation is acquired of those insects, y g t de out
]icor they fly
withoututfyand so the rig merit tot]nectar i produaingl tiowe s, and
h
justify b, and i the rth whille o their deinest1e habits in,
h@eve tllouglit it Worth while to Watching Ives laced Indoors
Study of the bee and the glass -walled h >S
Aatt A l tole h an opening to Outdoors
They lips that the. but tivtt p
"w tt r r"tters. exit and. eritrancta,
"worker"bee does not work Hearty for
workeX , .:
She �n supposed, LOaft.r
has lies p
o, hard as,
y a good deal of her val.- ,e gentlemen bee, &Is every-
relies away n"1
business is honey- never does ;any. work.
e Unit.. rice boot knows,
tool o e Y
that purp s tt !Defer,;and,
tblltl, ''Ciris iY,ehCSraUYSiS-I;Ot S'
,aalierltygi. ;ie ,
ee four trips a day - be must oat,, ooiisunt-
i1v rllals:. asrtluril ats
UHLYdi.,.. In.,
lT
She could do better ,is shoes stifle honisY.
e hive. Sri ing at least l
Cnit7 the
Ores,something tc lteels him it
taa,al iltttt It carie ch it';cestit eom g
. . „ e pita a
4 r +rotate one has b Co
As for tints. there ti Pi viCtuaia. 1�1
at .,. for idle, worthies§ fel.
ter do.arty�'lvark e nCti3yn an e,
�'¢ctee C int never Y
fi slaves leen
w�
upon naptu �
I1, de. tit n i tl 1bee colony
it: ora there, to t.11�rr1, t;t1d 1''yOrilYles:i Or trot, the b im
welt,
tit.rvra clears PYstviti tlrtiitiWd'.perhaps et get shit' gre ilizest that,
tied fioil �'0r tl�r;1� ,'1sW
.fid/.1''G7JY`
Honey bees havegot to have a
father. When a young queen is.
ready to mate, she leaves the hiv
Arid 'i11oe high up In the air,
whither she is followed by eager
suitors. But for that mating in the
sky, her eggs would net be fertile;
and, fie will be remembered, all the
young produced in the colony are
he eggs f}ern i she lays,
in .pa ordinary, old-fashioned.
Many hive there are too ma Y drones,
but nnsvada
ys the skilled bee-
keeper reduces tri eir r number to it
it the hive
ia,'inimum' 1>y supplying Y Fz
- fund tion stamped,
with wax Comb f a
sit -sided Worker
with pattern of
cells which are et ; exactly a certain
size. When, in tiro brood tomb, the
.
walls for trios&' Bells
have been built
up by the bees, following the pat-
tern they predudO' workers only,.
I`1'tiI1ftbly the least ltttown, lit,d
Certtiiitly the most remarkable
t-
an
dustry. But, as it 'would seem,
there are ants and ants, and some
species. of them are .the laziest
creatures on the face of the earth.
Perhaps the most 'interesting of
all are the agricultural ants, which
plant and grow crops of mush-
rooms. In Brazil, where, they are
vastly numerous, they are called
parasol ants, being commonly seen
marching in single• file, each one
holding a piece of green leaf over
its head, as, if for shelter from the
the two thorns at, the point of their
joining, they convert the interior
of both into a house, using it for
living purposes and for the rearing
of their young. .
' Most important is the protection
which the 'acaciathus obtains
against the leaf -cutting "parasol"
ante, which, to get material for their
mushroom beds, will climb a tree
and rob it of all its foliage in a
few, hours. The thorn -dwelling in
sects are believed to be the only
living creatures that do .not fear.
the robber ants,' called "ecitons,"
which, having no 'permanent,
homes, are continually on the
march, attacking and devouring
every animal` they come across.
The leaves, however, are carried
for quite ::another purpose. Taken
to underground rchambers, they are
chewed to pulp and allowed to
ferment . in - a mass, through which
'a vegetative fungus soon begins to
run in white threads: Before long
tiny mushrooms appear, which the
workers bite off and feed ,to the
babies, Experiments have proved
that these mushrooms, if permitted
to ,grow, will attain a diameter et
six inches,
•
Farmers Ants
In our far Southwest there are
ants that •are seed -eaters, and
which regularly harvest fields of
grain, The hone of a colony is
marked by a circular clearing' a
few feet :in' dianieter, en which
nothing is allowed to grow. Around
this clearing• is a broad ring of
luxuriant grass, : which: furnishes
the insects with subsistance, its
crop of goods being gathered every
autumn and stored undergrb1Yind.
;A.ui'oss the ring of grass that sur-
rounds each, ant town run cleared
roads a ;feW melee wide, which
facllltato the gathering of the gratin
at
harvest time, the WOrknrs liars.
ing along in single filo, elicit] 0110
carrying tw Seed, After the erob
las bean §torted, all the;fitribbte ie
cut away ins reliieved
to flip Center of eittrh elatixtbig
a hole which tldi"voti no fir j1'ttt0Wtiyt
and wltl iii tlin gate 1ta a •vettibtlle
front which et taisstlpov+tty leads
downward at 0 sift.tit IU the ?atilt§
beneath, The ;moths are ilhtihted
somewhat , lilte havildtlltdtitt, l i
waste iYYlfl Heart§ (featly and sirieot
it' fililtriitlti 'With platter, etitutlYtittett
of ottrtli'mld lttatla ttdhoelvo by ilio
saliva of he Attie,
!riiur't1al)10411144 Adis
many cultivated crops.
With the conlmon black garden
ants every one, is familiar.VerY
now and then e. nest .of thelia is
raided by red. Amazon ants, whose
slrnd'ee, sickle -shaped mandibles
are adapted ,for lighting and 110
use for ' any other purpose: The
workers of the attacked colony flee
n panic; if they offer: any resist-
ance, they are killed. Then the
conquerors tarry ole the pines of
the vanquished, and the young, on
emerging 'from the pupte-rases,
And themselves slitter,
helpless Slave.OWfters
The object of such a raid iff
solely to procure slaves, tor the
Amazons are unable to make
nests, or even to feed tlientablVee
and take dare of their owti yottine.
They never work, knowing only
how to fight, Why Should ct war.;
tier toil?
-
f these •slave.rti detail
Sneaking o , „ ,
x
f
st has w
ritttin
live b sucking the ants, a 1latttrali
The latter Y
Terrors Of The Forest
The robber ants march in col-
umns of military formation, spine
-
times 200 or 300 yards in length,"
the workers carrying the young -in,
their jaws. Nothing that lives can.
successfully oppose' them, and the,
largest•and fiercest creatures of:the
forest fly 'before their" approach."
The workers are fighters, and for'
every 1,000 there are fifty soldiert'1
ants specially built for war, w tai
large heads and strong jaws. T
trot along on the flanks of .'tile'
column, distributed at regular' in-
tervals like subaltern officers, their
shining white heads very oonspicu-
ous as they bob tip and down while,
the regiments, pass over inetlualio'
ties of the read. '
Skirmishers are thrown out here
and there, and even sent up into
the trees to hunt for nests of birds,
Wasps, and. bees. When any such,
arty found, intelligence is quickly
conveyed, -to the main force belove,i
arid a Verepany is detailed to climb
and Pillage, A man encountering
ft Toren of these military ants le
ineittiltly astalled, nurnbers of the
feroelous insects swarming' up his
logo, lilting ,with their pincer -like
Ante stings
With 6t heir hilts ed Inflicting p Ifo heir would
oeett!Ye with his fife, he must rut
for it.
Mit the thorn -dwellers aro
theillst ivod met Ness fierce, and that'
Hike uMe to light or any robber
ante t tat :atteMpt to Climb th
keltela, t htis it neater about thatat
small bit't9s fr'eeiiubntly build t
iihi to Citi - the balite-hem thorns,
finding Pettily there; and, oddis/
tYitimit,'the defender an
ts
do
n
ot
in the Itrtriiobject to these
f i's.
tailed iillOttd
i •
t» CiYtttrittl latitudes ants-ilijYi fl � e
Yilllillt°linott8 everywhere,iii bite
Meat Of there net anis
tilii[v
_' itaienatolhl� stings In
the
l•
t1'1118.hl�r, The r a ,CY 'f Ok't7stf4 literally SW'at'i
' overt this, trees are filly,
�1iI'1f11 thermn
is the MI
malty
�1'yitlt 'illttlht,. til tact
iVIititt
e• #arretwYrter, in thea
]•alit set Wile, 'stte1t111g."'tit obtab
1ltifill'llrlgd trete the netts, ha§ beet
o bitten and sating as, to fall t
lti, iter, .
� i his
thing about None trees is that the
honey:bees
queen 'is: able to ventral the sex of
her offspring.' she walks over
brood rood doarli;9 in perferreing her
t srliood, she de -
Petits
Of nit h
r1 each worker cell an egg
pnslts l
that willhate 4ut_a fainale'babY.
' ,
e ger, and ,10 each
fJrCtre' is"alis are larger, ,
of thoseshe diol 5
an egg that will
produce a ntaleaa
1%nta ifteep Cattle
n e t~ies of Ants kee p
� v
� Y �
"ditwitor cattle,,, which are tite hie
Beeth known to tad as "plant•
lice•,"
sugary juices f
a is Which the 1 it ' is found necessary to cichangeo
pl n ,
ants draw from their bodies by a
sort of milking process, stroking
effect fihe plant
them gently: In
lice are domesticated by the ants,
,
it -e
whigl'i 'collect the eggs In the fall;
winter, fair in
Store tht:nl, over the
si
i-hn.taled
spring',disiribui,o the naw J
young ,oyer suitable plants. In this
y
Way the 'common garden. ant (Ilse
tributes',plant lice aver the room
and by ORS Meant de -
earthed ±push trjury 1s caused to
their place of abode, the slaves
select the anew honia, and carr"'
their masters to 11. Sri' utterly
helpless ar
e 'that Whoa utility
o they
of them were shut up 'without a
lent of their
but with py
GhoseYl toed, inane'
died of lit.talgbr,
a einit
Thet1-le clave ant Wag 'intro-
'
ducat], and site 'Instantly 'slit to
work,',ted and masted ` the du vlyrate,
and Put all to right*,
' 'lift 410l Hips rt, nodal, et lti-
Tit. irtaplt'al ,htiitkri'tt i"li6i'ti tri tt
11
WW1, trx iti�ttt`lti, itflbirVii ti., tilts
i
" rt ilyo.1ini-n • 1111 r11," lt0rttiisti 111'
.i
Wink and 11rt1:tit:il10 aft 1,ltic'k1' stye
with arrow I'1tttt0tl 11 trrner Of litigtl
n, ize f t°iUti 8i1;hi pairs and
l
11titi l tits broth ol! tY tl ilriittr elf �' y
g
hill], '.['he§e..' tlttl;tftl.; tofil0ti'i', It
'.alt pulp irl;Y �whltYli l§;ilio 1'i`GhtYiltr!i
t1+,'vee11
stit
' : tt11'1.lilt 0ltttr (1f1-
Ctrcrtl oft,+.#lttlil'stYi
tYhttil
ll. o
�r 1 v n .
Yr#
ltg,v
'
lltieringtiering#1 little near ho,i1� t4f
hitt mitt.
One of the(11. t)rt1Nl�
t the lltitg. '00ti.
iftltt 1 Y':108 c01hdtfte, 0tttl,• bres;kiog
lrawxi C1 .
iril'1111:1011 Pit Sfsty;st;rttt at
tii Y