Recently the creams sometimes described as in the heading have enjoyed a vast popularity, and are sold as eatable chocolates in ever-increasing quantities. As far as can be ascertained, they were first manufactured in Switzerland, melt readily, and have a correspondingly large amount of fat, resulting from the addition of cacao butter, which distinguishes them from ordinary chocolates. When readily melting chocolates were first introduced, it was a prevailing opinion that the required property could only be obtained by increasing the amount of fatty content. Now the excessive evidence of fat in chocolates is very objectionable, both as regards taste and digestibility. To avoid this, therefore, the chocolates are treated mechanically, to attain the required character of readily melting. The machines used for that purpose are termed “Conches”, because the trough, in which the chocolate is rubbed into a long cylinder, has somewhat the shape of a long shell. For the working up of chocolates in conches, the necessary conditions are; 1. that the chocolate should have been ground perfectly fine, 2. it must contain such an amount of fat as to become glucose on warming, not indeed so thin as that used as coating material, but nevertheless softer than the ordinary cake-chocolate of good quality. [Illustration: Fig. 43 a.] [Illustration: Fig. 44.] The machine can be heated by means of steam, hot water pipes, gas or charcoal stoking, according as they are available in the place of installation, and the temperature should rise above 70-80° C. for fondants, and 50° C. for milk chocolates. In factories with water power or electricity, continuous fondant machines can be worked day and night, but when only worked during the day, must be kept warm overnight. Constant tending of the machine is unnecessary, as it works automatically. After a treatment of from 40-48 hours, the chocolate attains the requisite character (i.e. it melts readily), and a rounding off of taste, which are the properties of all good brands. Milk chocolates can also be advantageously prepared in the conche, as also covering or coating cacaos of all kinds, which harden considerably in consequence of this treatment.