The Virginia enterprise., 1908-12-18
And ever after he rolled helpless in
the ditch.

the ditch.
TIE man who eats because he likes
to eat has much in his favor If there
is only one reason for eating he is
fortunate in having chosen it; despite
the adage, formulated in SOME hermi-
tage or monastry, centuries ago,
Live not to eat, but eat to live"
The latest word from the physiolog-
ical chemist is that "appetite juice"
is one of the chief requirements Of
good digestion.
But there is another side to the
question, Why do we eat? The ath-
lete who eats what he likes, as he
likes and when he likes, cannot win
the race. Paul advised taking a lit
tie wine for the stomach's sake, even.
presumably, though it might be dis
tasteful, and the highest medical au-
thorities are unanimous in prescribing
certain diet to be eaten under certain
| circumstances. Evidently it is not
always best to eat as one feels dis
posed.
The lower animals are able to Sc
lect their food by instinct, but man
has lost this power to a large extent,
and it must be supplemented by rea-
son, by science. BY living in unnat-
ural conditions imposed by civiliza-
ton, we have acquired unnatural ap-
petites that are destructive of health.
physical and moral. A man may
drink a pint of brandy because he
wants it, but who will say that that
is reason sufficient? We have an ap-
petite for flesh, but are we sure that
such appetite is normal, that we are
we feel disposed to eat it? Is it, as
vegetarians claim, an acquired appe-
tite, like that for tea and coffee,
which are said, by most authorities,
to be injurious?
1t would seem that the obvious an
swer to the question, Why do you
eat? is, because l am hungry" Yet
| one who habitually eats too much can
not be hungry. The desire for food
arises frequently from that gnawing
sensation resulting from the fer.
mentation of superfuous food, pro-
ducing a condition of auto-intoxica-
ton. In fasting there is an almost
irresistible desire for food the first
two or three days; then the appetite
leaves one for several days: there is a
gain in strength with loss in weight;
and when a distinct desire for food
ic q ~
| satisfied; but this natural appetite in
| many cases does not come for 80 days
| or more, showing that the former ap-
petite was unnatural.
We do not feed a horse on the the
| ory that he should be guided solely
| by his inclinations in eating and drink
ing, but largely by our knowledge Of
what is best for him under the arti.
fcial conditions under which he lives
and that he may be able to do his
| best work And why should not a
| human being have the benefit of such
knowledge? Should not the child, es-
| pecially, have the benefit of right feed
| ing?
With all due allowance for the fact
that one mans meat may be another
| mans poison. that authorities are not
unanimous on foods and feeding yet.
| it is true that there is a science of
| human feeding, that we have lost our
! instinct for determining what the sys-
| tenn needs for nutrition and therefore
appetite should be to some extent
| guided by reason. Certainly one
should eat because he enjoys it, but
also, whether he be an athlete, la
| borer or a professional man, because,
| eating largely determines efficiency,
| and because health depends upon food
| more than upon anything else except
pure air, pure water and right think.
| ing which is fundamental.