St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1900-06-13
A Discourse on Bread and Cake.

1T is nearly TWO years since COlIecC'
ed from experts some curious and inn
portant statements regarding the cost Of
food, and published them in this column.
They justified that question OF the Bour-
bon princess, who has been much ridi-
culed for herinquiry respecting some bread
riots among the poor people in Paris.
She was told that the people had
no bread" and she asked, with that sim.
plicity which gave her a certain charm,
why they did not eat cake.
Now that we are bringing food and
agriculture more to the standards of ac-
curate science, it proves sometimes that
her ridiculed questionhada fit foundation.
That is to say, molasses, sugar, butter and
eggs,-the four mostimportant materials
in the change of simple bread into cake
may be so cheap, and wheat -four may
be so dear, that more nourishment may
be obtained at the same price by mixing
these four ingredients INTO flour than is
gained from the bread made from -four
and salt alone. The yeast, in bread or
in cake, is hardly a matter of nourish-
ment.
| am told by the experts that the food
market is now in this condition. Bobby
must not be told, as matter of course,
that he must have only one piece of cake,
as if, OF necessity, his father would be
bankrupt if he had two. l am told by
one of the most accomplished professors
that, at the present price of ginger-snaps,
the baker who sells them sells more
nourishment for the money than he sells
when he sells bread.
do not propose now to discuss the
details which the experts make so in
teresting. But shall be very glad to re-
ceive for the readers of Good News any
working formulas-such as our fine Yam
kee dialect calls receipts which may
help our readers in varying the daily pro-
vision of cereals, without extravaganza.
When was in college, President Quincy
told me that in his boyhood-say IN the
SOS of the last century-wheat bread
appeared on his fathers table only as an
occasional luxury, such as was provided
for favored guest. took the impress
sion that it was generally provided every
week, but that it did not regularly
appear on the table. RYE and Indian"
was the daily bread on which he and
his brothers and sisters were brought up.
One would be glad if one of the experts
would tell us what is the comparative
cost to-day of rye and indian and OF
white wheat bread and what the atoms
OF nourishment which they carry.
We need to call attention to such de-
tails now that the northern states seem
to have to take the contract for feeding
half Asia, nobody can say how long. 1t
is for this reason that l refer to them.
With very wise prescience, the national
government several years ago sent out
agents into the heart of Europe, who
should open the blind eyes Of the people
there to the stores of Indian corn and
meal which we have waiting for their
daily food. The results of the gospel of
these missionaries of corn-bread have al
ready been marvellous, and they are very
important in the solution of the ques-
ton how the world is to be fed. 1t
would seem as if much more may be
done in the same direction.
am assured by persons well acquant-
ed with China and Japan that there is
neither any religious instruction nor any
diseased taste which induces the people
of those nations to eat rice. 1t is as va
Did and "uninteresting" to them as it is
to us. As soon as we can introduce the
better cereals at as low cost as rice
bears, the natives Of the East gladly pur-
chase them. In this fact is an important
lesson. In The famine days OF 1S49,
when we had starving Irish families
dumped upon us in Worcester, where l
then lived, we who were boys were try
ing our first experiments in practical
sociology. Mr.. Emerson, the Buddha of
the West, was visiting Worcester; and l
said to him, really with sad disappoint-
ment: "They cannot eat our Indian
meal. l sent some nice sweet meal to
Pine Meadow to starving family, and
it was thrown away.
"Mr. Hale, you should have sent them
hot cakes" This was the practical
answer of the practical seer. 1t contains
the lesson for our immense duty now, as
we are shipping the breadstuffs for Starv-
ing India. Some one mnst teach them
how to handle Indian meal.
So far as these poor people have learn
ed the Christians prayer, they are every
morning asking God to give them their
daily bread. He is quite ready for the
appeals; and he is good enough to make
us his commissariat officers in carrying
out his wish and in answering their
petition. 1t is not only every plow-boy
nj