Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1869-11-19
miscellaneous.
THE DIET OF BRAIN-WORKERs.


The meals of brain workers should, so far
as possible, be leisurely enjoyed at a pleasant
social t95le This rule is of preeminent i'm
portance, and is usually acted upon in most
civilized lands. Restaurants are an abomi-
nation, for the reason that they compel
their patrons to select their meals by the
names on the carte and not by their ap-
pearance and favor when brought upon the
table We cannot tell what we desire until
we see the articles spread before US, as at
the ordinary family table The European
plan charging dearly for each mouthfll
as it IS swallowed, works sadly on the
health, because 1t distracts the mind from
the pleasure of eating.
The maxim, "Chatted food is i'll digest
ed, is Just as untrue as the idea that brain
workers should eat less than laborers. The
three best digesters are, sound health, q
good table, aud pleasant conversation; but
the greatest Of these is conversation, for
it can divert the mind even when the
health aud food are both unsatisfactory.
In the charming biography Of Charlotte
Bronte, by Mrs. Gaskel, we are told that
the father Of the accomplished authoress, on
account of a weakness of DIGESTION, was ac-
customed 10 take his meals by himself,
apart from the rest of the family II that
had been bis habit long, it is no wonder
that he was often compelled to give vent to
his attacks of bypochondriasis by firing
pistols out Of the back door =" Solitary
dining is slow death To board long in
restaurants IS not to live cbeaply, but to
die expensively. Keepers of hotels aud eat
ing houses are the highwaymen of our civ
ilization. They lie in wait at every corner,
allure by their tempting surroundings, and
lead Oh their deluded victims to misery.
and perhaps to slow destruction. We may
visit such places at occasional intervals, to
pass a pleasant hour with a friend; but
when we really need a substantial meal, we
should seek for the bumblest family circle
IN preference to the most brilliant saloon in
the land. The great objection to dining by
bill Of fare Is, that we cannot tell what
We most desire until we see the articles of
food and inhale their savory fragrance.
The eye and the smell guide the sense Of
taste and really control it. French names,
with high prices annexed, are at best poor
appetizers. This is the philosophical ex-
PLANTATION Of the fact that, in sitting down
to public table, we often study over the
schedule in nervous despair, and then de-
eide npon dish, which, as soon as it is
placed before us, we find we have no relish
for. Nothing can redeem the life at a pub
lie table but a pleasant circle of very dear
friends, to share the misery with us. Stu
dents iu colleges, aud clerks in stores, are
often compelled to board themselves from
motives of economy. The necessity is dire
one but if it must be met it should not be
By one handed, but BY two or three
in company
To recapitulate 10 few words: the diet
of brain-workers should be of a larger
variety, more delicately served, aud more
abundantly nutritious than that Of mechaa-
les and laborers. We should select those
articles that are most agreeable to our il
diyidual tastes, and so far as possible, We
should take our meals amid pleasant social
/ surroundings. In great crises that call for
unusual exertions, We should rest the sto-
mach, that for the time the brain may york
the harder; but the deficiency of nutrition
ought always to be supplied in the first IN
terval of repose.-DE G. H. Beard, N,
| Rnnrs nt Ho1ne- for NenterlLc.