The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-20

er Twist and ask for WV "a
the sumum bonum of pleG0 ~
The pumpkin pie deserves ~
ity. Nor should it be forg0N "a
original pumpkin pie was AL w
Like other pies, il contained IA
brown sugar or molasses. But uff ~
it contained eggs, nutmeg, cifS X
cloves, allspice and ginger Steam go
made the world very small, and cheeW
freights have enabled the poorest to enjoy
the fragrant spices of the far East. But il
was not so two hundred years ago. A sin
gle nutmeg cost a shilling or a bushel Of
wheat, and the cinnamon, ginger and all
spice used in one baking cost even more. A
pumpkin pie as late as 1890 was more Of
d luxury than is stewed terrapin or canvas
back duck to-day.
No Wand has a cleaner or purer lineage
The bodybuilding of the seventeenth CEN
fury is as obsolete as the dainties Of the
Pharaohs. The 'goodly bear s-meate pas
tie is as extinct as the dodo or the eohip-
pus Even old-fashioned homemade bread
has been driven to the wall by the products
of Partisan and Viennese bakeries, by
Parker House rolls and the uncanny crea-
tons of Graham, Kellogg and other Diet
reformers and deformers But the pumpkin
pie of 1898 whether made in the Waldorf
Astoria or the little Dutch bakery around
the corner, is practically the same as that
which tickled the palate of Cotton Mather
or of Bishop Berkeley.
The first in point of time is an heirloom
of the Adams family and dates from the
early part of the eighteenth century. 1t Is
eloquent to one who can read between the
lines and tells of a generous and Well-fed
race. one which was bound to produce jul
rsts scholars orators and presidents,
From the pies made pursuant to its pro-
visions sprang John Adams and John
Quincy Adams, two of the noble names in
American annals. Here is the recipe:
/ cup pumpkin boiled down quite thick.
u cup muscovado.
|, l egg.
l piece of butter big as an egg.
i cup of cream and milk
A little salt.
A little cinnamon, Glove, nutmeg, alspice
and ginger.
Bake in a quick oven thirty minutes.
The Alden family has an ancient recipe,
for which extreme antiquity is claimed by
such members of the family as belong to
the Mayf1ower Society. Some go as far
as to declare that it was this formula
which enabled the fair Priscilla to charm
Miles Standish and John Alden. 1t runs
as follows:
/ pint pumpkin.
l egg. ~
! gill molasses.
a pound muscovado
l piece of butter big as an egg.
l gill Of milk
Salt.
A little cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
Bake forty minutes.
The Wilson's of Hartford, Conn, can
trace their recipe back to 1910. II shows
a slight progress over the two more an
Client ones, but not enough to Justify com-
ment. 1t reads
large cup of boiled pumpkin.
tablespoonful -four stirred up In
II cup milk.
egg
l piece of butter large as a walnut.
u cup yellow sugar.
II teaspoon salt.
A little nutmeg, Glove, cinnamon and
ginger.
Bake forty minutes.
1t win be seen that in a hundred years
no radical change had occurred I'M
doubtedly many experiments had been
tried and many variations tested, but all
had been found wanting. Out of these
attempts undoubtedly sprang the squash
pie and the sweet potato pie. Both OF
these are good dishes; they are slightly
also filing; but to compare them with
pumpkin pie, golden. brown-barred, aro-
matte and soul-satisfying, is simply sac
rilege.
In the present century the change has
been less than in the last. There has been
an improvement IN the uhdercrust or In
ing. Flour is better and more wholesome
to-day than ever before, and the making
of pie crust and pastry has been develop
ed into both a science and an art. Though
the lining has changed for the better, the
filling is the same glorious golden paste
delicately Drowned on the surface. as II
was in the days of George Washington.
-------s-s-s-
Every day when the weather Is favor
able John Ruskn Is out OF doors and takes
comparatively long walks for a man OF ms
years. He occupies a part OF each DAY
In playing chess. Ills eyesight remains