The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1906-06-27
ART OF COOKING.
Progress Of human Race Closely Al.
lied to II,

prosreos Of human Race Closely Al.
lied to II.
It may well be said that the deyel-
opment of the art of cooking ia
closely connected with the onward
progress Of the human race As
the prehistoric cave dwcllers knew
nothing of tho use to which fire
might be put, their gastrononiio
abilities were probably on u par
with those Of the beast Of prey with with
which they competed for their daily
supply of food. Tho earliest nn-
tions of whom we possess historic
records recognized the value of
i""s properly prepared, and We
lind that the science of cooking
gradually attained the height of its
development during the reign Of the
great Roman cmpcrors of the Au-
gustimar period. We are apt to
looE: upon the banqucts Of the old
Romans us orgies, and in some de-
gree they undoubtedly were, and yet
we have abundant evidence that the
Romans were cognizant Of the fact
that the proper preparation and sea-
soning of the food contributed in a
large measure to an improved appe-.
titc and better digestion. We
must, therefore, credit thctn with a
knowledge Of these physiological nc
cessities even while condemning
them for their luxurious repasts.
They also realized that a pleasant
frame of mind had q great and i'm
portant influence Oh the digestive
processes and therefore provided
amusements of various kinds dur
ing tho meal. The inroads of the
northern barbarians caused the
highly developed arts and sciences
OF the Romans-nnd culinary per-
fection must be included among
thcm-to be plunged into the long
period of darkness which marked
the middle ages.
Whatever knowledge we possess
OF their civilization we owe to the
many monastic orders Of Europe,
whose members preserved and cult
waited, among other things, the ira
ditions Of the culinary art until the
renaissance, in the reign of Louis
XIV. Of France and his successors.
The influence Of France on he me-
nus of the world has conti ued un-
interruptedly down to tho present
day. The principles Of cooking,
speaking Of the latter in general
sense, were developed by the early
Romans in purely empirical fash
ion. Now they have been made the
subject of scientific investigation
and ;found to rest on a firm and
sound basis. The Russian physiol-
ogist, Pavlov, has clearly demon
strated in his researches on diges-
ton that the ingestion of substances
with q purely nutrient value does
not sufficiently satisfy the demands
Of tho body. Taste and appetite
must also be taken into considera-
tion. These are satisfied only by
the addition to the food Of spices
and salt, and it is largely due to the
influence Of these condiments that
tho proper amount Of gastric juice
is liberated by the mucous MEM
brane OF the stomach. The action
upon the stomach of reflex stimuli
is shownIby the favorable effect on
the flow Of the gastric secretions
made by mentsl Impressions in
duced by the mere sight and color
of we'll prepared dish. In this
manner Eppien (Reichs Medicinal
Anzeiger) leads up to the broad
claim that the proper preparation
of all food, as demanded by the, os-
sential requirements of the culinary
art, il not q luxury, but q physiolog-
zeal necesaity, ssn:.Sa. **oo develop develop aIli
disseminate this knowledge is an act
beneficial to the public welfare.
There is happily an increasing inter-
est taken by physicians to dietetics
and cooking, for those two subjects
go hand in hand, and this interest
it should be- the aim Of the medical
man to transmit to his patients or
to those who have care Of them
Medical Record.
A Psrtinen. Question.
-