The evening times., 1898-07-11
7vfctorioua VeEetarfans.

Beefsteak and mutton chops have
been distanced by vegetables in a sew
enty-mile feot-race in Germany The
purpose was to determine the relative
powers Of endurance of meat eaters and
vegetarians. For some time the latter
have ceased their lamblike submissive
ness under the sneers of the baefeaters.
They have assumed the aggressive, af-
firming that courage and strength and
all the nobler qualities are the par
ticuiar virtues promoted by an exclu-
sively vegetable diet. They have cited
the alleged superior bravery of the ma
tive. troops in India IS compared with
the English regulars. One writer as
serts that at r!otous d9monstrau
in Trafalgar Square himself and haif
a dozen other; vegetar ans alone remain
ed unmoved after dash into the crowd
by the police. All this is in the nature of
a revelation. 1t has bsen assumed that
carnivorous men take on the savage
characteristics of the lion and bulldog
" hile a vegetarian diet is calculated to
promote the gentleness of the sheep and
COW.
In the Berlin contest there We're
twenty-five starters of whom eight
were vegetarians The first six to reach
the goal were vegetarians. Then came
one exhausted meat eater The two re-
manning vegetarians went five miles out
of their way. but reached the end in
good time. All the meat eaters, except
the one, fell out before achieving thir-
ty-five miles. The best time was four
teen and one-quarter hours, the six
making the distance in seventeen and
one-half hours. 1t is noted that
the vegetarians We're all in splendid
condition and could have walked the
whole distance back.
If this is to be taken as a conclusive
demonstration Of the superiority of a
vegetable to. a carnivorous diet, the
affirm that meat is digested and assim-
Hated with a less expenditure of ener-
gy than is required for the disposal Of
vegetable food that the increasing
prominence of vegetables in the food
articles of man is responsible for an in
crease in the number of disorders. due
TO difficult, digestion. They point out
that the COW is equipped with very
digestive apparatus be-
cause of the difficult nature of vegeta-
BILE food, and that mans attempt to ex-
ist on a diet essentially vegetable in
evitably multiplies his diseases.
The only answer to the meat eater can
offer to such demonstrations as the Ber-
lin walking match is that the vegeta-
to inspire him, while the meat eater had |
nothing to gain by a long and rapid |
walk in hot weather. The statistics |
show that the consumption Of meats is |
enormous-enough, in fact. to prove |
that the persons who live exclusively |
on vegetables are insignificant in num- |
ber. There was no good reason, there |
Gus diet should exert themselves to |
demonstrate what most people alrs ady |
believe. The vegetarian, who is al |
ways an intense reformer, was sustain
ed by the knowledge that if he should |
defeat his rivals it would give a boom |
to his cause. There is no doubt that |
A high inspiration, determined spirit |
has more to do with success in any
enterprise than the character of the
food. Then, too, the man who cares
enough about the subject of diet to be-
come vegetarian is almost certain to
avoid the most common faults of eating
and it is probable that this is really
more important than the character of
he food. Not one, and not many, walk
ng matches can alone determine
he relative value of a mixed and an
Exclusive diet. Occupation, too, counts
or something. 1t is certain, however,
hat most people could live better than
hey do, with a less expenditure of en-
,rgy in digestion, if they should give
more attention to the cooking of food
lrticles.