Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1893-05-25
THE ETHICS OF FOOD.
Georges Experience with Prof
Spatling's Course OF Lectures.

Food" under our knocker, and brought
it In to me.
George, dear, isn't II fortunate?
You know you were telling me the
other day that disease is often COM
municated by food-and here's the
very thing we want. A course of six
lectures on the something or other of
food; only guinea the course, and by
Prof Spatling, too. Don't you think,
as you are always so busy writing, Id
better go and see what the lectures are
like? Itll be so useful to know what
one is eating"
The only occasion on which had
spoken on the subject at all was one
Sunday afternoon, when ! had read
from the British Weekly question
from correspondent, whether toma-
toes were ever the cause of canccr2"
and had remarked on the iinprobability
of such an event But then was now
ly married, and unused to the ways of
women, or possibly unduly tolerant;
SO made only faint murmur at 'thc
expense"
Expense? But wouldn't it be false
economy to study that when our health
what suffering and disease we may cs-
cape by taking little care"
Well, the long and the short OF IL was
that my wife was present at the Ice
ture, while remained at my flrcsidc
to thump out on my Typewriter an
article for the Olympian Review. be-
came SO absorbed in this, that when a
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, II seemed but few
minutes since she had left me.
"Oh, George dear, am so glad saw
that handful. It's so providential; for
II hadn't gone tonight, goodness only
knows what might have happened"
what on earth do you mean, love2"
My wife was too ngitated to answer,
but went into the next room and rang
the bell for Pauline. As matter of
fact, Pauline's kitchen 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
involved; and to that my wife is ready
to sacrifice any amount of personal
comfort
Pauline, after repeated tinlSlings,
"came up smiling" from a novelette,
she had just been reading. Pauline is
good girl, with character which
some day intend to work into a novel.
But that as Mr.. Klpling would prob
ably say, is quite another story.
Pauline" said her mistress, take
that meat away" The table was al
ready laid for supper, aud attempted
feeble protest against having my
meal spirited away thus before my
eyes But my wife was determined,
and said do you know, George, what
the consequences of our eating meat
may be? It's quite possible that we
may go into consumption. Prof. Spat-
ling says that meat is a prolific cause
Of consumption, owing to the capacity
OF animals to contract that disease.
The 'basilica', or whatever you call
those horrid little insects, get from the
meat into your system, and do the mis-
chief. Jews are much freer from con-
sumption than we are, solely owing to
the fact that their food is always rigid.
ly inspected by the rabbis before being
used
"For human consumption" / sug,
gested, jocularly. But my wife was
very much in earnest
Then those pickles, too. Pickles
are simply poisonous. Sulphate OF cop
per is largely used in their manufac,
ture, accounting for their bright green
colors. You can give the beef and
pickles TO Mrs PriGgs tomorrow, Pau
line, to take home to the children"
my dear" ventured TO suggest
'if these are to disseminate the germs
of consumption and to poison their re
cipients, do you think it quite the
thing"
| was going to say ito give then
to our washerwoman," but a vision o.
mothers.in-law fitted across my brain
and | was about to suggest that hel
mother might be glad of them wheI
my wife continued: Then that bacor
every body who eats bacon gets trich
inosis. And you know you said your
self, George, dear, that tomatoes
brought on cancer"
But, my love-" ventured mildly I,
suggest, III we mayn't eat meat OF AM
kind, or tomatoes, or pickles, what OF
earth is there left 10 live on2"
"oh, heaps of things-egPs, fish
t. poultry, vegetables, everything, al
p most. And am sure it wouldn't b,
right to fly in the face Of Providence,
after Prot. Spatlings lecture"
So for the next week we were livinI
on eggs vegetables and fish, and b,
the time of the second lecture weT
rather longing for Il change Of diet,
Pauline had Just laid our supper
oysters and sardines, eggs, pastry an
a chcese-when my wife returned, teai
a fully anxious.
q George, darling, do you-have 20
are there any-any spots about you?
said had no doubt ! could obiig
4, her, but could not tell with any eel
tainty. But she was evidently severe
ly serious.
a. please, don't joke, George dear; IL
a matter Of life or death. Do run NJ
EtsirS aud AAA hafnrA It Is too late"