The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-01-18

that, as a rule. those vegetables that are
little more than "relishes'' bring in more
clear profit than the more substantial ones
that possess nutriment.
Lettuce. celery, cucumbers and toma-
toes, to a certain extent, all belong to the
class that may very properly be denomi-
mated ''relishes''-green salad plants They
possess but little nutriment and natural
ly are not regarded as substantial food.
They one and all, go long
ways, however, towards making
other and more substantial foods
more palatable and more digestibe. Alone
though they could not sustain life many
days. They are altogether unlike such
vegetables as potatoes, cabbage peas,
beans and the like.
Nevertheless, as remarked, there are few
vegetables among the two or three score
grown for human consumption that pay
the expert grower the heavy profits that
the four first mentioned usually pay In
proportion to their means, the poor are as
liberal purchasers of lettuce, celery, GU
cumbers and tomatoes as are the rich.
Innutritious as these relishes may be. they
so act upon the system as to lend to de-
velopment of good health and strength
as much so as those others that are es-
teemed more solid and substantial.
With the exception of tomatoes neither
of this great quartette of salad" plants
are used in a cooked state. All can be
cooked. but rarely are. The very great
majority of people prefer tomatoes in their
raw state. A great many abhor boiled cab
bage. while being very partial to it raw.
in the shape of cold slaw." The same
sentiment prevails as to onions.
Among the relishes, or raw salads, we
failed to enumerate radishes-perhaps the
poorest of all vegetables; and yet there
are thousands and thousands of dollars
worth of radishes sold every season in our
large cities. IF radish is good to eat so
is raw turnip, for there is very little
difference between them.
The question is, does cooking increase
the digestibility of any of our common
vegetables? 1t may increase the palata-
bility of some, but does it render them
more digestible? VIII not a given weight
of raw cabbage in the form of "slaw" pro-
duce as much heat and strength as the
same amount when boiled? st. Louis
paper recently described a family in that
city that used no vegetables on their ia
BILE except in their raw state. Not only
those we have denominated 'relishes," but
all others-beets, beans, turnips, peas,
all were served raw. This family, one of
wealth and refinement, claimed that God
did not intend that his delightful vege-
table gifts even to be, cooked. spoiled by
cooking; that 1t was a mere matter of GUS
tom, anyway; that every vegetable was
better in its raw state.
Experiments at the several agricultural
experimental stations with the lower ami
mails show that there is nothing gained in
cooking the various articles on which these
animals were fed. Whether it was corn
or wheat or potatoes or turnips, the re-
suits showed that the several articles were
just as available or digestible raw as
cooked. 1t is quite likely that what APP
plies to these dumb animals will be found
true as to human beings. There is no
question as to the great value to the phys
ical system of these raw salads eaten
freely in the spring time. No one should
be without them. Their appetizing and
medicinal effects justify a valuation of
them just as much as If they were in the
highest degree nutritious.