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Show Miss Muffet Didn't Know She Was 'Eating' for U. S. Victory She Ate Her Curds and Whey, Thereby Helping Nation Dispose of Enormous Surplus Supply of Skimmed Milk What little Miss Muffet didn't know about her humble fare of "curds and whey" would fill a big book. Today, America's men of science are busy writing new chapters to that book. Bringing Miss Muffet up to date: At the moment she was unceremoniously unceremoni-ously disturbed by the spider, she was unconsciously "doing her bit" for the United Nations she was helping to dispose of the enormous skim milk surplus that was a difficult dif-ficult by-product problem for America's Amer-ica's dairy industry right up to late 1941. Skim Milk Surplus Disappears. That dairy by-product problem has recently disappeared. America's Amer-ica's fighting Allies in Europe and Asia are taking much of the surplus in the form of evaporated evaporat-ed and powdered milk, and the textile, plastics and cosmetics industries now are large users of casein, or skim milk curds. Little Miss Muffet may eat her curds and wear them too, notes a National Geographic society bulletin. A few short years ago the thought of a skim milk shortage was fantastic. fantas-tic. Today the shortage is a reality as United States laboratories develop devel-op new products from casein. Casein is even being imported from Argentina. Argen-tina. Fiber From Milk Curds. The idea of making a cloth fiber from milk is at least 40 years old but not until last year was an acceptable ac-ceptable milk fiber produced for the textile industry. This fiber is made by chemically treating and heating casein to the consistency of honey. Then, as with rayon, it is forced through tiny holes from which .it emerges in fine, gummy threads. Further treatment renders the fiber soft and luxurious. It resembles the fluff of the milkweed plant. Fabrics for winter suits containing con-taining the milk fiber blended with wool and with rayon now are on the tailor's shelves. The fiber also is spun with cotton, mohair and fur. Stylists assert it adds "body" and "drape" to cloths in which it is blended. Somewhat more expensive than cotton or rayon, it is strong, takes and holds dyes well and withstands laundering. ! Blankets, draperies and uphol- 1 stery materials are being made of fabrics employing the milk fiber. Its first and most general use was in felt hat manufacture. Replacing BelgianSand Polish rabbit fur for this purpose, it is said to have "taken the rabbit out of the hat." |