Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 53.djvu/698

678 the production of a soup almost invariable in quality. Second, the greatest possible amount of broth was in this way obtained from a given quantity of meat and bones, no other process approaching it in this respect. Third, the labor involved was very small; nothing, in fact, between the placing of the vessel in the oven and removing it for straining. It suited our convenience also, in that the cooking could be done at night, the meat being prepared during the day; and although the lamp under the oven went out some hours before the soup could be strained, the nonconducting character of the apparatus kept the heat, and prevented any deterioration of the soup. Fourth, the cost of fuel was reduced to a minimum, twenty-five quarts of soup being made with three pints of kerosene, at a cost of less than five cents."

Mrs. Abel says in her little pamphlet. The Story of the New England Kitchen, after giving an account of their experience in soup-making, and final use of the Aladdin oven for that purpose: "This method, with very slight changes, has been in constant use in the kitchen, and has proved perfectly satisfactory. We consider it a real discovery of great value, and we hope it will in time be adopted in large institutions. Its success, like that of every other method we have used, is based upon the most careful study of every detail, and constant vigilance to see that every part is carried out."

This outline of the basis upon which all food is prepared in the New England Kitchen gives us a fair idea of the training which was necessary to these women before they could inaugurate such a work, and to what eminently practical and philanthropic use they have put it.

After the first seven months during which Mrs. Abel was there, the kitchen has been in charge of Miss Sarah E. Wentworth, a graduate of Vassar College, Mrs. Richards continuing her supervision.

That the success of the kitchen is acknowledged is shown by the "procession of pitchers, pails, and cans brought by men, women, and children of many nationalities, for pea soup or beef stew, as a witness to the fact that a really good food is appreciated and will be purchased." It is also shown by the respect and authority which it has attained in scientific circles as well as others. The Board of Education of Boston requested that the kitchen furnish the luncheons at the nine high schools, which it has done for some time, with the most marked results in the cultivation of proper appetites. The boy who formerly brought a lunch prepared with much maternal devotion, of mince pie, pickles, and cake, now of his own accord pays five cents for four large slices of bread and butter and a cup of cocoa.