Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1892-01-02
A BIG KITCHEN.
How Veterans Are Fed at the
Soldiers Home at barton, Ohio.

That department Of the Home of great
est interest to housekeepcrs is the dining
hall and kitchen Both arc contained in
nne building. the front portion of which
is occupied on both The upper AMI lower
floors by two dining-rooms each 90xl30
feet, and together comprising an area OK
story portion contains the kitchen,
bakery, bread and pic rooms, cooling
vaults, and all the paraPhcrnslia neces.
sary to the providing for the vast house,
hold Each din n groom seats / loom
making 2.200at sting; and when the
first set is thr,ngi eating 50 large is tina
force of walters and so accurate the dis
cipline that only twenty minutes are re-
quired TO clear the tables. anil prepare
them for the second 1900 diners After
the first lot of men hare left the hall,
bell is rung, and the army Of walters
dash in Gloss on each Others heels, but in
perfect order, remove the dishes, crumbs,
and clean the tables; after them come
files of men with heaps of Glenn plates
and bowls which they sap down Oh the
tables regardless of hicks. and with
noise, should think, like artillery. The
meat is brought in on huge trays, and the
coffee served from lnrge tin pots at each
end of each table An this is accom-
plished by 1925 men, par of them regu-
larly paid, and part detailed from tho
outside as help All the work is done
by the veterans, no wemcn being en-
ployed at the Home.
A large archwav from tho dining hall
Ae s,,R1 81.
sided over by head cocs and thirty-two
assistants. Here are 10 be seen the
range, twenty feet long, the vast copper
caldrons for cooking soup and vegeta-
bles, AMI scven coffee boiiers, each hold
upwards of a hundred gallons, which are
filled and emptied twice { day the year
through. In describing ;Eis part of the
Homo there is nothing Left to do but do
plunge into statistics, or | cannot do it
justice. Here are some verified figures
of quantities of food usel at the Home:
it takes seven bar els OF mackerel, 81
bushels of pontoe., and $50 gallons of
coffee for their Friday breakfast; seven
tubs of mashed potatoes and three whole
beeves go to one day s dinner; IS pounds
of tea every night fdf supper; 1900
dozen eggs for Easter breakfast; 40
sheep go to pot-p pie; and 900 pounds
of corned-beef, with 80 bushels Of pota-
toes. for one mess of hash. Twelvehn
bred pies, requiring three tubs of butter
to the upper crust, and three tubs of lard
for the lower, with 10 barrels of apples
for the filling, make one days dessert
Four hundred square feet of gingerbread
haE rod tFrtn
day the veterans are treated TO 400 tur-
keys, seven harrels of cranberry sauce,
1,200 mince- pies. and oysters, celery, and
other delicecies in proportion. Bread is
baked every day. beginning at ulidnight.
1t is kncaded by steam, sly hsrrels of
-four to u mixing the maehips being filed
three times. These eighteen barrels Of
-four fill room shelved to the ceiling
with fragrant loares, which sre all eaten
In one dny.
The following is bill of fare, selected
at random from their printed jsts:
suSpAs
Breakfast-Friei han OF sausage, pot4toes,
bread, but or. and coffee.
Dinner Roast mutton, 81 eot-potatoes
turnips, pickles, bread, buttsi. coffee and
apple pie.
Supper-itewad fruit, eoskies, Dretd,
but er, and tea.
WEDNESDAY.
BreakfPt-Co'n bsef hash, bread
butter, and coffee.
Dinner Roast beef baked potatoes onions,
bread, butter, and coffee.
Supper-P gs' tongues or tripe, beets,
tomato catsup, bread, tea, gingerbread.
The average cost to the government Of
this boarding houseis twenty cents day
for each soldier; not so expensive when
we consider the quality and variety of
food used The Congressional appro-
priation, covering all expenses of the
Home, for the fiscal year ending juno
80, 1890, was $40, 1906. SOL arpers
Weekly.