The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-06-12
SOLDIERS' FAR 4.
Not All Pork and Hard Bread. by Any Means.
Says This Veteran or the civil War.

Est All Pork and Hard Bread, by Any N1eaus.
Says This Veteran OF the civil War.
81 sec the men are growing moro or less about
the food" said an old soldier. They have al
ways done 80 and they always will. And there
can be no doubt that with long continued reiter-
alton meals Of pork. hard bread and coffee may
at last become distastoful even to the man of
tho hardest stomach; but worse things can hap
pen, namely. the absence of pork and so on,
when not replaced by something else; and as
for the other side Of the question, why. some Of
the most delightful meals / have over eaten l
had in the army; tho recollection of them lives
with me vividly still.
las | understand it. the army ration is rather
more elaborate now than 1t was in civil war
times. or the cOmmissary carries a greater vaIi-
city of things which may under certain condi-
tions be drawn, and, ms l understand it., there Is
now no sutler accompanying the troops. ] i'm
agine that, take IL altogether. the ration now Ia
rather better than it was. We had n sutler,
who did not, OF course. 20 on the march. but
found lis as soon as he could. or whenever circum,
stances permitted, whom we we're in camp. And
we used to buy things of him when he was there
or VIC had the money or the credit to buy with.
when We were whore we could do so we
used to build ovens and have fresh bread. just
as they do now. Potatoes were issued ms u
ration with moro or less frequency, and alaC
sometimes onions. though ! do not at this mo
ment recall that potatoes and onions were oyoI
issued at the Same timo. But l do recall thai
when we have had potatoes as a ration and the
sutler was in camp and he had onions. ! have
drawn my potato. or potatoes. II ] got more
| than one. of tho company cook, and draw from
him also my ration Of pork, and bought
enisn' With Ri the 3 rt iqtj'F hard FF SSsaj iAs sSS. i5PS i +
whom it was finished. ] have commended
and personally cooked an Irish stew that looml
up in my memory rs a cloud of fragrance
that will never fade. | get the folks where
live now Occasionally to make mo a stow jusl
that way. nothing else In it, no. nothing exccp'
potatoes and onions and strips of pork anC
crackers. This may indicate n low md do
PRAYED gastronomic taste on my part. VERY
likely go; hut II live to be a million years old
We were more or less in regions where oys
tiers abounded. Two often seen colored peopl,
going through tho company streets carrying
oysters In buckets and selling them at 10 cent
cup. which held about a pint and a quarter o
pint and q half. Under such circumstances. II
man liked oysters it was simply n question o
whether nc had the money to buy them with
which reminds Inc that It's a mighty good thin
to have q little money In your pocket whereye
you may be.
1T was the same with sweet potatoes. whicl
l remember we used 10 cook in "A camp KEITH
with Just water enough 10 cook 'em and n
more, so that thoy'd cook dry. And sometime
We used to take sweet potatoes along on pickle
and roast them in the fire. II you were wher
you could have a lire; in camp we would bur
them in the ashes OF tho cooks fire at the end o
the company street.
II remember once we had a possum-'possuu
stew, The FIRST fresh figs l ever ate | got In tn
army, and the same with en-
pomegranGtcs. Maybe you don't like all thcs
things, but they're all n good WAYS from porl
] don't know just what tho boys will get In tn
West Indies and Philippine Islands, but
won't be all pork and bareback"