Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-11-24
MORAL ASPECTS OF COOKING.
How improvements In the Art In Ameri.
ca have Affected the Nation.

How improvements In the Art In Ameri.
ca have Affected the Nation.
From the New York Times.
Modern cookery il conceded on all sides to
be Of benefit to the race. There was q time
within the memory of men still young when all
New England and the agricultural portions of
every section Of the country were commonly
said to have dyspepsia. How much suffering
has been caused by the cold pie and hot bread
for breakfast can never be computed. Those
| delights OF the Yankee palate killed more men
from that section than the war did. The south
! ern frying-pan has worldwide notoriety.
Everybody who visited that sunny and genial
| section from section where food was we'll
| prepared got indigestion and bad temper in
| stead OF the pleasure which would have flowed
from normal gastric conditions, and their
\ scoIdlng mas been heard around the world II
II WASH the frying-pan that stirred the vexa-
| tious bile of visitors it was the everlasting
round OF hog and hominy that made them rail.
IL was the law of contrast that idealized the
bouquet OF the southern mint julep. Just az
good lulep could always be had in this town.
Inc reason IL never tasted as good was because
during the present generation at least it has
| not been Offset here either by monotony of
dlet or inferiority of food. Modern cookery
mas done wonders toward sending cold break
.ass PIE, nog ana hominy. and the frying-pan
| to place OF merited seclusion in history.
When cookery was vile, men tried to make up
| for 1t by drink. Nearly all the prominent char
| acters OF this country down to past the times of
Clay and Webster were heavy drinkers of hard
liquor. No gentleman's house was complete
without sideboard we'll filed and cellar
F, abundantly stocked with liquors, of which wines
formed small part. People thought they
needed liquor as a requisite to health They
may not have realized that vile cooking created
and sustained this desire for strong liquid stin-
ulants. but tOtal-abstinence movement when
the war broke out would have been scoffed out
OF the country There might be two honest
opinions on the slavery question, but upon the
necessity OF modicum of good old bourbon or
applejack for every male inhabitant, the coun-
try was one and indivisible. The advocates Of
total abstinence could hardly have mustered a
corporal's guard.
Whena mans liver went under in those old
days and rheumatism got hold of him, or he
Eel! into the clutches of govt or rheumatic govt.
ana ne couldn't retain nourishment, there was
no mlstaklng the cause. Old war horses after
absorbing their tank of liquor, used to Joke each
other about their bandaged feet and affect to
scorn the ope-deserving menials who accused
them OF govt, but all the same they felt rather
proud OF that form Of suffering. It indicated
gentihty. There was a suggestion about it OF
rosy nights, when the man started in with his
elbows on top OF the mahogany and wound up
with his head alongside the table legs. On a
sunny day the old fellows would come thinning
out on the street, and the one who could not
get along without crutches had higher place
In the estimation of the community. and got
much closer to the hearts of his fellows than
dld the one who could propel himself comfort
ably with the aid of a cane. Drinking was not
only tolerated, but admired. Men of the world
measured each other by their capacity to swill
liquor.
There may be AZ much liquor consumed to-
day as ever there was, but its use is by no
means general. Temperance reform is strong
enough to have acquired political standing.
uout ana rheumatism are on the wane. They
are no longer paraded, admired or honored.
Drunkenness is a disgrace, and heavy drinking
positive detriment to young man seeking a
place in the world and to an old one irving to
maintain place. So great has been the change
OF public feeling in this respect that even those
who sell liquor try to disguise their business
under euphemisms. Wine, beer and light
drinks are supplanting heavy drinks in public
favor.
That modern cookery has played an impor-
salt part IN TINS change of habit and of public
1eellng all physicians agree. stomach prop
erly nourished does not crave stimulants as
does one ill fed or one excited by Door food
Even where the desire for drink may be hered-
itary good food tends to check that desire and
to avert the consequences of indulgence. The
temperate and reasonable use Of well-cooked
food is the great boon of the present genera
tlon. VI course there are excuses Modern
cookery is one Of the good things that has suf-
Tered abuse. But excuses have not been con-
hned to this generation. Late suppers of indi-
gestible things were in fashion as far back as
the classic period and probably before, and
certainly ever since. Perhaps the shoppers'
lunch may be strictly modern, and it is a plau-
slble theory that spices and sauces and other
things to disguise bad quality of food are i'm
posed upon many poor woman's faded appe-
tlte What follows is always what might be ex-
pected. There is an easy and safe remedy
within every physicians knowledge for such
troubles. 1t must be admitted that cholera
morous In the winter time from such causes is
not uncommon. The patient in such a case
may be blameless, and a serious charge might
lie against modern cookery if this was the only
cause of shoppers digestive trouble. But when
lady, tired and feverish with tramping. seeks
refreshment In plate of ice-cream and a cup
know where the fault is
Another important consideration is based on
the altered business habits of men, especiallv
In centers Of population. When bad cooking
and heavy drinking were the fashion nearly
every business man lived a good deal outdoors
The oxygen that he took into his system. the
exercise with which he oiled his Joints. were
conducive to good digestion and to health in a
wonderful degree. The average business man
to-day spends most of his time indoors. Phy-
seal exercise is generally neglected. The
juices of the body are not SO active in sedentarv
as In outdoor life. On the other hand, the
nerve forces are correspondingly stimulated.
Nervous diseases are now the class that re-
CURES the most attention from medical men.
IL stands 70 reason that when one changes from
outdoor SO indoor life he should regulate his diet
accordingly. So far as can be learned there ia
wide and intelligent observance Of this law of
health. 1t is therefore by no means safe to
conclude that digestive arrangement in one of
sedentary habits, even in one in whom that
habit may have been lately acquired. is due
either to modern cookery or to overeating. It
may be due to failure to eat well or to some
thing related only alphabetically to the d.
gestive apparatus.
Material Of Books.