An inquiry concerning the etiology of beri-beri / by Henry Fraser and A.T. Stanton.

  • Fraser, Henry, 1874-
Date:
1909
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: An inquiry concerning the etiology of beri-beri / by Henry Fraser and A.T. Stanton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    149/374 (page 21)
    The whitened grain now passes to the polisher which consists of a revolving conical drum covered with strips of sheepskin, the whole being surrounded by a casing lined with wire-cloth. The polishing is accomplished by the rice passing down between the sheepskins and wirecloth. In the milling and polishing machines the rice meal or “ polishings ” passes through the wire-cloth casings and is collected. Rice polishings are commonly used as a foodstuff for cattle and pigs. We are informed that the natives in the neighbourhood of the rice mills in Burma consume rice meal in the form of gruel. White rice is graded commercially as Rangoon and Siam, also in accordance with the unbroken condition of the grains as No. i quality, or the grain mixed with broken grains as No. 2 quality and so on. Siam rice of the best quality is a long slender grain, almost white and free from dust. Rangoon rice of the best quality is a shorter and more plump grain, white and free from dust. We should be glad if it could be made clear that in using these trade terms we do so merely as a convenience and with no intention to suggest that the padi produced in Indo-China or Siam is inferior to that produced elsewhere. Misapprehension has arisen in commercial circles as to the significance of these researches and the matter has even been the subject of corres- pondence between the various Governments. At the local Agri- Horticultural Exhibitions Padi Siam and Padi Rangoon grown locally are exhibited among a host of others. A certain type of grain in commerce has come to be associated with these names and in our use of the terms we do not mean to suggest that they necessarily indicate the country of origin of the rices used in our experiments. With the important questions of the nutritive values of different kinds of padi and the influence thereon of soil, climate, and methods of cultivation we have not concerned ourselves.