Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-07-09

NetsOcQ on II. III Is tut sOlt ulel OF lnEdllus III
Brazilian hospitals A mild intoxicant Is dis
titled from it which is the universal drink Of
the lower classes, and it appears In no end of
strange culinary messes whose other ingre-
dlents are unSuessable conundrum-
The plant. which is indigenous to Brazil,
has various local names. mandioca being the
most common and jatrOphs manihot its scien-
tifc appellatiOn. Il is also called yucca. cas-
sava. maniac and mandiac. and was eaten by
the Indians centuries before the discovery Of
this hemisphere by Europeans. The wonder is
that those untutored savages learned its nutri-
tous uses. because in its natural state it is
deadly poison. containing 80 much hydrocyanic
acid that thirty drops OF the clear juice will kill
q man in six minutes. The art Of rendering il
innoNiOus and MT for food was, next to the po-
tato. the most valuable gift of the aboriginal
South American to the civilized world. and one
which reflects no small credit on the donors
because had it not been accompanied by infor-
nation on its culture and conversion into the
staff Of life (the result of their own primitive
experiments) no attention would ever have been
paid TO the poison weed Perhaps YOU remem-
Der that Southey says IF Ceres deserved
place in the mythology Of Greece far more
might the DELEGATION Of that person have been
expected who instructed his fellows in the use
OF Elandlac.
ONE OF THE TRADITIONS.
OF course there are many traditions and le-
Gends connected With il. The most common is
that OF a venerable stranger, dressed in white,
with long yellow hair and eyes the color of a
summer sky-s sort Of Peruvian Manco-Capac
or Aztec Quetzalcoatl-who taught the early
BraziliaEs the secret Of cUltivating and prepar-
ing nnand,ocs. and also the of fire to clothe
themselves and dwell in houses-though to this
day the lower classes do not indulge to any
great extent in either Of the two latter accom-
pishments. The Amazonian Indians who were
once cannibals. have another story concerning
II. 10 the effect that, MANY years ago. O babe
was born in one Of their tribes who when only
one day DID, walked and talked and instructed
the people. She WINS named Mani, and died
within the yea-. According to the custom Of
the tribe. she buried inside the hut Of her
parents. and the thatch was removed so that
The tears of heaven (rainD might fall every
day upon her resting place Soon plant, be-
fore unknown, sprang out Of the grave. and
presently The earth opened and revealed some
large white roofs. which a ysterious voice babe
them eat. The found the new food pleasant
to tbs taste. and believing il to be the body Of
Mani Eamad il Mani-oca. ''the house OF Mani"
A cultivated hell of this queer shrub looks like
q nursery of Young peach trees. The plants
grow about five feet high. the stem Of each
being isolated. With a few long-poiuted leaves
at the top. and a bud or projecting nucleus of q
sproUt occurring at nearly every inch of the
otherwise naked stem. Dig down bit and you
wi! fad cluster Of irregular-shaped tubers
resembling very large. long parsnips five or six
to The plant. weighing all together TWENTY-FIVE
OF thirty pounds. The roots only are eaten
When field ha- been reaped the stems are
chopped into pieces about four inches long.
and these are planted They quickly take root
sending forth shoots from the buds, and in two
years matare new crop.
HOW IT Is PREPARED FOR Foop.
The indian mode of preparing the roots for
food. in vogue nobody knows how many Gen.
turtles before tine arst Spaniard or Portuguese
came To the country. has never been much i'm
proved upon. though modern machinery has
somewhI: shortened the process. With a shell.
or a rude rRsp made by setting a small sharp
stone into a bit of bark the roots were scraped
into a fine pulp. The pulp was then rubbed
between stones until all the poisonous Juice was
squeezed out and the remaining moisture evap-
GRATED by exposure to the IRE or to the hot
sun During the driving it Is stirred or broken
into coarse grains. and this IL fsrina or man
dora Hour. the bread OF the rural Brazilian
The savaSes of the interior eat the dry -four
tossing IL into the mouth with the fingers SO
deftly hat not grain Is lost. Travellers say
that white men have often tried TO perform the
sane Feat. bat always powder their clothes and
faces, 10 the Infinite amusement Of the Indians
The Portuguese soon invented millssor prepar-
ing ri,sndioca no. unlike Yankee cider presses
VIII ;heri the modus operandi Is first to wash
The roots and remove the rind. and then to hold
the pieces in the hand IN contact with u circular
Crater reyoiyed by water power. The puiveriz-
ing material IL placed in sacks several Of which
thus flled are subject to the action Of a screw
prcss for the expulsion OF the liquid, or il Is
hung up in loosely woven bags of palm fiber
sJ,sJ aided from a pole. with weight at the
lower end Of The bag. which brings a pressure
uycn the pulp. The mass thus sohdified is
beaten line in mortars and then transferred to
open ovens OF concave plates, heated beneath
ard stirred constantly until thoroughly dry.
When properly prepared the farina is very white
and beautiful. in coarse particles, which, sub
Jec;ec to a second pulyerizing process, become
tbs "arrowroot' of commerce. The poisonous
JUICE Is carefully preserved in watts where it de-
POSTS a nee sediment after standing a few hours
and This snow-white substance Is not only
harmless, but very nutritious-the tapioca. 30
well known in the culinary line ali over the CIV
ilzed world, one of Brszii's important articles
OF export
WORK CONFINED TO THE OLD WOMEN.
The early Indians believed that the operation
Of preparing 1t was very unhealthy, and there
fore the work was confined TO the old women Of
each tribe (mothe-s-in-law and others whose
lives were considered of little valued. who for
titled themselves with various charms and In
cansatiO,ls, and every day before beginning ate
the flower Of the rchambi and the root Of the
'ceruca, 10 strengthen the heart aud stomach. !"
The Portuguese, who came afterwsrd, reIogated
the work mostly to slavos, in buildings erected
On parE ose, where 1t was least kkaly to oeca-