EMBALMING.

Globe, Volume XX, Issue 1368, 4 July 1878, Page 3

EMBALMING.

At the Society of Arts lately, Dr. B. Richardson, F.R.S., delivered the second of the course of Cantor lectures on “ some researches on putrefactive changes and their results in relation to the preservation of animal substances.” Having in the first lecture given an historical summary, lie now proceeded to describe some of his original work. Ho had to bring forward a new theory, based on experiment, and he hoped a new progress would ensue. His work had passed through four stages, commencing with his attempts in 1850 as a teacher to preserve specimens for anatomical and pathological purposes. His later experiments on the preservation of animal substances for food had been tested by sending preserved specimens to Rio and back several times, and had caused an outlay of about £4OOO. When he commenced in 1850 he started with the popular theory, probably derived from Liebig, that decomposition was purely the result of oxidation. Ho still believed that when deonce commenced, it is oxidat ion that continues it, though it cannot be said that it is oxidation alone that originates it. But bis earlier attempts were solely experiments on the prevention of oxidation. For this purpose he tried the immersion of portions of meat in vessels charged with negative gases, in many cases with good results. In preserving meat for food tho following characteristics must bo maintained :—Color, '--dour, chemical reaction, the water of the tissues, tho consistency, the structure as seen by tho microscope ; and the color and odour must be maintained after removal from the preserving vessel. The odour and natural taste and flavor must be preserved during cooking, and this has not yet been accomplished. The following must be avoided :—The odour of putrefaction, the odour of other taints, some of them, though new, not always unpleasant, and acid fermentation. After a long series of experiments, keeping these points in view, lie had come to this suggestive inference :— lt seemed that decomposition was first set up by tho decomposition of the water of the tissues, and tho way to approach the question of preventing decomposition is to consider the stoppage of tho decomposition of water.