The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-04-17
EATERS OF CLAY.
from the Washington Post.

3
a tour of investigation through the
wilderness of the Smoky mountain
region of North Carolina several years
since, when near the watershed which
drains westward into the New river in
West Virginia and the headwaters of
the Big Sandy. was informed by resi-
dent mountaineers that about twenty
miles away there was a neighborhood
in which every resident was said to be
clay eater. Accompa MED by Capt.
Denton, mountain guide, and a negro
servant, we crossed the range through
a narrow gap, and descended after
a ten-mile ride, upon a narrow creek,
which subdivided little valley be-
tween two parallel mountains. Here
we struck the first cabin in a strung
out settlement of perhaps forty or fifty
families
Every pusson on this yer erik is a
clay-eater," said the guide, as we ap-
preached low-roofed, rude log cabin,
the door of which stood wide open, fac
ing the stream.
A tall, sallow, stoop-shouldered man
of forty or fifty stood near the door,
from which on our approach streamed
nearly dozen bare-headed, barefoot
ed children, ranging from two to eight
cen years of age. The man was clad in
a coarse hempen shirt and trousers.
Like the children, he was hare-headed
and bare-foOted.
Our guide spoke to the man, calling
him by name, Dinker, and abruptly in
troduced the subject of our call.
''Dinker." said he, ''they-uns hev rid
over the mount'n jes' to see sum NV
you-uns eet clay. They-uns SEE they
uns don't b'leev we-uns kin eet it."
"You-uns lite an kun rite in," said
Dinker, ''Morg," turning to one of the
largest boys, tick Off n they-uns saddrs
an brides an turn they-uns' bosses in
ter the pasture.
The boy took charge Of the animals
and led them into small patch of
ground fenced in with brush fence.
We declined to enter the house, Civ
ing as an excuse that it was much
pleaSanter under the shade of big
tree which stood near the door. At our
request Dinker sent one of his boys, a
sallowfaced, tow-headed lad of fifteen
or sixteen, after some of the clay
which was said to be edible. The
guide and myself accompanied him to
the creek, where he stopped in front
of a layer or ledge of blush
gray clay several inches in thickness.
The stuff, when taken in hand and
moistened, felt pliable, soft and oily
like putty, and bore much the same
general appearance. The boy carried
handful of the clay to his father.
who, after taking il, gave it another
wetting. then, rolling it into ball.
began manipulating it as a painter pre-
pairing putty for use. He rolled it,
pressed it out and manipulated it until
the greasy, slippery mass became soft.
pliable and tenacious. Then he
separated it into pills or boluses. from
the size of a bullet TO that of an ordi
nary marble, with two or three as
large almost as walnut He gave the
smaller children several of the small
est balls or pills. and the larger ones
of the balls of clay.
The boys, girls and the man then
put the balls of clay in their mouths,
when, by constant chewing and the
aid of the secretions, they soon con-
verified them into soft. mucilaginous
masses, which, with no apparent diff
Guilty, they swallowed.
For fear that thsre might be some
sle;ght-of-hand hocus-pocus about the
affair l determined to try the clay
myself. / took piece about the size
of bullet and put it into my mouth.
In short time, without chewing or
manipulating it at all, I found that
the saliva had completely dissolved
the mass. There were no gritty parti-
cles apparent, but, on the contrary,
the stuff. left an oily feeling, but with
out semblance of taste
1 didn't swollow the stuff, but could
have easily done so but for the repug-
nance / naturally felt toward eating
dirt
After the clay had all been swal-
lowed by the man and children said:
Does this stuff satisfy your hunger?"
''Sartin; thet's why we-uns eet IL
Teller kin eet nuf 10 las three or fob
days, but this yer bunch'll only last till
to-morry."
Doesn't the stuff make you sick7
Doesn't il affect you some way when
you make what you call a meal out Of
it?'
Never heerd nv nobody gettin' sick
on it, but thar's some ez say it makes
theyun weak"
i'Does any body else in this neighbor-
hood eat clay?"
Bout all of they-uns do VEINS
don't eet i. all nv the time. We eet it
when we-uns' short nv grub an ,hsr's
no game Summer an fall thar's plenty
uv grub, an then we don't tech the
clay.
Shortly after we left and continued
our ascent Of tho creek to another
cabin. prototype of the first. even 70
the appearance and number OF the
family. They were all lznk. cadavsr-
Gus and blush looking. with duh.
leaden eyes and a physical appearance
of partial pzralyzaticn- They were
slow IN movement and obtgse, and %
my mind apparently mentally deficient
At this cabin the same questions were
asked, and the same admission made
as 20 the custom o. elaT~ating, and
the same process OF manipulation was
gone through with in preparing tie
stuS
We tEied three or foar other cabins
and toano family o. clay eaters in
each one. and not one appeared
TO think aETth5ng strange or unusual
in the custom Thex aid that sss