Beef and Mutton Suet

—When fresh, this is an insipid, nearly inodorous fat, of a firm consistence, almost insoluble in alcohol, entirely so if taken from the kidneys and mesenteric web of the ox, the sheep, the goat, and the stag. It varies in its whitene , consistence, and combustibility, with the species and health of the animals. That of the sheep is very white, and very solid. They may all be purified in the manner above described. Strong sulphuric acid develops readily the acid fats by stirring it through melted suet. Alkalis, by saponification, give rise at once to the three acids,—the stearic, margaric, and oleic. Beef suet consists of stearine, margarine, and oleine; mutton and goat suet contain a little hircine. The specific gravity of the tallow, of which common candles are made is, by my experiments, 0·936. The melting point of suet is from 98° to 104° F. The proportion of solid and fluid fat in it is somewhat variable, but the former is in much larger proportion. Mutton suet is soluble in 44 parts of boiling alcohol, of 0·820; beef suet in 44 parts. Marrow fat consists of 76 of stearine, and 24 of oleine; it melts at 115° F.