The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1899-09-20
THE EATERS OF CLAY
THERE ARE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE
WHO FEED ON DIRT.

In Jnvn the Women Eat Cakes of
Earth to Keep Themselves slender,
and In New Caledonia the Natives
Feed on Frinblc stones.
No collection of national dishes In
cludes earth or clay among them, but
This Is favorte pint with II good
many millions of people up and down.
Even In Europe they are not difficult
to fnd or We're not 90 years ago.
Tastes have changed II good deal since
then, no doubt But human beings do
not readily give up favorlto dish, es-
pccially when II is cheap. If superior
persons denounce 1t. they enjoy the
treat on the sly.
Probably the quarrymen of Kiffhau-
sen no longer breakfast in public upon
slices OF bread "buttered" with fine
clay, MS Humboldt saw them, but we
should be rather surprised TO learn
that thrifty souls among them do not
follow the custom OF their ancestors
in private. humboldt was reminded
OF that eurly experience upon tho
banks of tho Amur. where he saw
Russian soldiers eating what they
called rock butter" similar clay.
Mr.. Lalng had the good fortune to OBJ
serve the first appreciation of the deli
cacy, or almost, in one district of Swe
den. Five years only before he made
la, lot
time there was dearth In tho country
The people had already begun TO eat
Ozark bread" when II very poor wood
man noticed some white stun among
the roots of tree he fclled 1t looked
so clean and nice Tint he carried home
n bnsketful, mixed 1t with rye and
bark ana baked 1t. The loaf proved to
be excellent, and no dlsaRrecable con
sequences followed So the woodman
told his ncighhors, and Il rush set In.
When the magistrates heard of this
abnormal proYcnder. they forbade the
use of 1t, of course; that would be the
natural impulse of tho superior per
son. But the peasantry We're not 10
be persuaded or coerced into rejecting
food which they knew by experience
to be wholesome and nourlshlng.
When Mr. Lalng visited tho district
IL Is called Degenfors they We're us
ing the stuff both for soup and bread.
Samples dispatched To Stockholm for
analysis gave Finely pulveriaed flint
and fcldspnr. lime, clny, oxide of iron
and rcsiduum Of some organic matter
similar to animal which yielded am
monla and IN oil"
1t IL organic matter which contains
the nourishmcnt everywhere no doubt,
If nourlshmcnt there be- But TINT Is
not always the ease, and earth eating
seems to deserve more attention than
reading goes. Commonly II Is dismiss
cd ms n degrading practice of snyages.
But German quarrymcn, Swedes, even
husslnn soldiers. are not TO he classed
with savaEes. Nor are the potterS Oh
Sclndc Their work is fashionable nj
present and they mike money-thnt Is,
by tho Indian standard. But among
their weekly expenses an allowance
must be made for the quantity of
"chaniah" which their wives and chill
drcn consume; "chanlah" IL n white,
unctuous earth used for glazing pot
terry.
But ne n rule, of course. 1t IL say
ages who affect this diet, alike useful
and agreeable to their taste. Few un-
derstand, perhaps, how common 1t Is.
Instances might be found In every con
tlnent aud every zone by any one who
looked into the matter thoroughly. We
give n few which recur to mind.
Tho Amos IRE enthusiastic earth eat
crs. In the north Of their island Is n
valley where alone the material can
be dug, but 1t IL carried TO ull parts.
They boil 1t with tho root Of the wild
lily. When certain proportion Of the
clay has settled. the remainder Is pour
ed off and eaten like cream. Sir
Spencer ST. John reports that the Sen
Dyaks always took supply OF red
ochrc ON their pirntlcal expeditions MS
reserve In case stores should run
short, "and we once found In some de-
serted Serlbns praus many packets Of
white. olcaginous clay used for the
same purpose"
In Java little cakes of earth are sold
in the market; women buy md eat
them to preserve Il slender shape. The
treatment succeeds, for they lose all
appetite. humboldt asserts that tho
Indians Of Quito put earth and quartz
sand into their drinking winter; but
this Is not unusual, so far as the earth
NJ W, hnn ri
family complain that they could no
where get good water when absent
from their home on the banks OF the
Orange The water OF the Orange Is a
"purce" OF mud; hence It's name.
The peoples of New Caledonia eat
pieces OF frlnble stone, "Lapls oil
larls." Messrs Cloquct ana Irischet,
| travelling In those Islands, could get
no food for several days. They came
upon some green laminnte tale and ate
| five ounces each; their strength return
cd, and they never felt any ineonvcni
cncc. Tho Ottomac Indians of South
| America live exclusively on fish when
they can get IT. But during the sea
son Of floods there Is no fishing, and
they manage very comfortably with
carth. Moreover, they find the diet so
agreeable that during the rest of the
year they eat ball Of clay for dessert
| Evidently 1t agrees with them, for the
Ottomacs are very tall and robust.
| Pail Mall Gazette.
Made Him Weep.