The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1893-04-28
5rlrrt Misrelluug.
The Ethics Of Food.

Soon after our marriage, my wife, who Is
somewhat of s:ickler for hygiene, found the
advertisement of q course of lectures on the
"Ethics Of Food" under our knocker and
brought it into me.
"George, dear, isn't it fortunate: You know
you were telling me the other day that disc ase
is often communicated by food-and here's
The very thing we want. A course Of SIX lee
lures on the something or other of food; only
a guinea the course, and by Prof Spatling too.
Don't you think, as you are always so busy
writing, Id better 60 and see what the lectures
are like: It'll be so useful to know what
one is eating.
The only occasion on which I had spoken
Oh the subject at all was one Sunday after
noon, when had read from the British Week
y question from correspondent, "whether
tomatoes were ever the cause of cancel?" and
had remarked on the improbabilty of such an
event. But then was newly married, and
unused to the ways of women, or possibly un-
duly tolerant; so made only faint murmur
at ''the expense"
"Expense? But wouldn't it be false econo-
my to study that when our health is concern
ed? Why, we don't know what suffering and
disease We may escape b, taking little care.
Well, the long and the short of it was that
my wife was present at the lecture, while re
mained at my fireside, to thump Out on my
typewriter an article for the Olympian Re-
view. l became SO absorbed in this, that
when gust of cool air blew into my room,
and my wife, with the usual outdoor smell
that one notices in winter about her clothes
came in, 1t seemed but few minutes since
she had left me:
s:Oh, George dear, am so glad | saw that
handbill. It's so providential; for if l hadn't
gone tonight, goodness only knows whal
might have happened"
"What on earth do you mean, love?
went into the next room and :ang the bell fol
Pauline. As matter of fact, Pauline's kitcl
IN is almost as near as the next room, and
she might have called her much more easily
| than by ringing the one perfect bell that We
possess. But the principle of style was in
golved' and to that my wife is ready to sacrl-
flee any amount Of personal comfort.
"Pauine, after repeated tinklings, ''came
up smiling" from novelette, she had jnst beer
reading. Pauline is good girl, with char
icter which some day intend to work into q
novel. But that, as Mr.. Kiplns would prob
ably say, is quite another story.
"Pauine,' said her mistress, ''take thai
meat away" The table was already laid fol
supper, and | attempted feeble protest a
,ainst having my meal spirited away thus be-
fore my eyes. But my wife was determined
| md said: ''Do you know, George, what the
consequence of our eating meat may be? IT.
quite possible that we may go into consump-
ton. Prof. Spatling says that meat is pro
life cause of consumption, owing to the ca
pacity of animals to contract that disease.
The 'basilica,' or whatever you may call those
horrid little insects, get from the meat into
your system, and do the mischief. Jews are
much freezer from consumption that we are,
solely owing to the fact that their food is al
ways rigidly inspected by the rabbis before be
ing used.'
ssFor human consumption" l suggested
ocularly. But my wife was very much j.
earnest.
"Then those pickles, too. Pickles are SIM
ply poisonous. Sulphate of copper is largely
used in their manufacture, accounting fol
their bright green colors. You can give the
beef and pickles to Mrs. Priggs tomorrow,
Pauline to take home to the chill lren."
"My DEAR" ventured to suggest, "if these
are to disseminate the germs of consumption
and to poison their recipients, do you think it
quite the thing
was going to say ito give them to our
washerwoman," but vision of mothers-in-
law fitted across my brain and was about to
suggest that her mother might be glad of them
when my wife continued: "Then that bacon
everybody who eats bacon gets trichinois.
And you know you said yourself, George,
dear, that tomatoes brought on cancer"
"Blt, my love-" ventured mildly to sug-
,est, "if we mayn't eat meat Of any kind, OF
tomatoes, or pickles, what on earth is there to
live on:"
"Oh, heaps of things-esgs, fish, poultry
vegetables, everything, almost. And l am
sure it wouldn't be right to fly in the face o
Providence after Prof Spatling's lecture"
So for the next week We were living or
eggs, vegetables and fish, and by the time OF
the second lecture were 'ather longing for q
change of diet.
Pauline had just laid our supper-oysters
and sardines, eggs, pastry and cheese-when
my wife returned, tearfully anxious.
'.George, darling, do you-have ycu--sre
there any--any spots about you:'"
| said had no doubt that | uld oblge
her, but could not tell with any certainty
But she was evidently severely serious.
"Please, don't joke, George dear; it's mat
of life or death. Do run upstairs and see be-
fore it is too late
SO finally, after useless protests, l was sen'
up to my bedroom with pencil and paper to
report on appearance and location of any
spots | might happen to possess.
"Oh, I'm so thankful" said my wife when
she was told that but few pimpIes that had
existed long before the era of food lectures
my skin had clean bill of health. 81 am
glad that our folly has not, up to the present
had any serious consequences. DR. Hutchin-
sen, the greatest surgeon in England, says
Prof Spatlng, has proved conclusively that
Ieprosy is solely caused by eating too much
fish; coast districts are always the parts prin-
cipally affected. Norway, the only European
country where leprosy tiourishes to any con-
siderable extent, finds in fish its staple food.
And oysters oysters for supper! Good gra-
l lsa 4cGsls ali