Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1858-09-30
NEW SERIES, No, l44.
TEQMS 80 strictly fn advance
UIOMO, s2,0O at the yesr's end.
One Mans Meat. another Mans Poison.

The substance which nourshes one animal af-
iords no nourishment for another, nor will any
table OF g nutritiye equivalents, however pre-
clse, convince us that substance ought to
noursh In virtue of its composition. When ex-
perence tells us that it does nouurish in virtue
OF some defect relative between it and the or
ganlsm. That one mans meat is another mans
poison, is proverb of strict veracity. There
are persons, even in Europe, 10 whom mutton
chop would be poisonous.
The celebrated case of Able dc Villedieu is n
rare, but not unparalleled example of animal
food being poisonous from his earliest years
his repugnance to it was so decided that neither
the entreaties Of his parents nor the menaces of
his tutors could induce him to overcome it. AT.
ter reaching the age Of thirty, on regimen Of
vegetable food, he was over-persuaded, and
tried the effect of meat soups, which lei to his
eating both mutton and beef but the change
was fatal; plethora and sleepiness interviewed,
and he died of cerebral inflammation.
In 1874, French soldier was forced to quit
the service because he could not overcome his
violent repugnance and disgust toward animal
food. Dr. Prout, whose testimony will be
more convincing to English readers, knew a
person on whom mutton acted as poison " He
could not eat mutton in any form. The pc
culiarity was supposed to be owing to caprice,
but the mutton was repeatedly disguised and
given to him unknown but uniformly with the
same result of producing violent vomiting and
diarrhea, And from the severity of the effects
which were, in fact, those of yiruent poison,
there can be little doubt that, if the use of
mutton has been persisted in, it would have
soon destroyed the life of the individual" DR..
Pereira. who quotes this passage, adds - IL
know of gentleman who has repeatedly had
an attack of indigestion after the use of roast
mutton"
Some persons, it is known, cannot take coffee
without vomiting; Others are thrown into
general inflammation if they eat cherries or goose
berries. Hahn relates of himself that seven
or eight Strawberries would produce convulsion
in him. Tissot says he could never swallow
sugar without vomiting. Many persons, are
unable to eat eggs and cakes or puddings hav-
ing been employed, they are soon undeceived
by the unmistakable effects.
Under less striking forms this difference in
the assmlating power of different human be-
ing is familiar to us all we see our friends Free
ly ndulging, with benefit instead of harm in
kinds of food which, experience too painfully
assures, Wa can eat only with certain injury
10 this fact the attention of parents and guar
dams should seriously be given, that by it they
may learn to avoid the petty tyranny and fol-
ly of insisting on children eating food for
which they have manifest repugnance. 1t is
too common to treat the child's repugnance as
mere caprice, to condemn it as " stuff and nom
sense when he refuses to eat fat or eggs, or
certain vegetables, and g wholesome pudding :"
Now even caprice in such matters should not
be altogether slighted, especially when it takes
the form of refusal because the caprice is
probably nothing less than the expression of
particular and temporary state of his organism
which we should do wrong to disregard. And
whenever refusal is constant it indicates
positive unftness in thefood. Only gross ig-
norance of physiology-and ignorance unhap-
PLY too widely spread-can argue that because
a certain article lswholesome to many, it must
necessarily be wholesome to all. Each individ-
ual organism is especially difernt from every
other BIackrood.