Evening star., 1914-10-04

~uPPOSING Berlin, Vienna and Paris
should have to Withstand long
- sieges, such as the French capital
did during the winter months of 1870.
would the sufferings and hardships
which thousands of the French remem-
ber of that period be possible again. is
a thought which has occurred to many
who have relatives and friends in for
eign lands.
AS a rule. the people then had as
short notice of the siege as their chill
dren and grandchildren probably had
last July and August, when overnight
the current of their whole lives was
changed. But national preparedness,
both for the armies in the field and the
armies of defense. is not any greater
now than the arrangements made for
the support Of the stay-at-homes in
any of the big cities of Europe. It is
considered incredible as far as Paris or
Berlin is concerned. that a siege could
be intained for the length Of time
which would bring about the misery
that the people of Paris underwent in
10. Government rations kept starva-
tion off then If it did not do any more.
but the awful danger and nearness of
it were never lifted a minute. 1t came
so perilously close to many that 1t Ia
quite truthful to say that no other
country could have survived the ordeal
as well, because the resourcefulness of
the French in the matter of making
palatable and nourishing foods OF
humble materials fs a national charac-
teristic, and, when it comes to the real
necessity, what others would call mira
cles they regard as just a bit Of their
everyday living.
1870, in his Paris home. indicates how
he and all the old men Of his family
circle managed to keep the women and
children, as well as themselves. in food.
and also to realize a good profit On all
fact. they did regular delicatessen
business, though when they began it no
such idea entered their heads. But the
same heads had a little more than the
ordinarily thinking processes working
over the project of how to keep going
without taking the government ration,
or what to do when the latter failed.
They had grown quite accustomed to
horseflesh. They had all the horror of
1t that every one else had in the be-
ginning of the knowledge of its USE
They had to face the situation like
thousands of others. that they could
not soon be able to buy even that
x*
A bright idea came to one in this par
ticular circle. He was the smallest Of the
small boys of the family. In the begin
ming he knew all the things that hap
pened around the abattoirs where the
horses were slaughtered. There was abb
solutely nothing to be found there
which, as food value, even Of the tiniest,
was not already utilized. One day the
boy followed a cart of hides to the tan
merry, and the very same day he founded
a new Industry. For 10 cents he bought
a horses mouth which was left hanging
to the skin. He brought 1t home. and
then his elders got busy.
A chef who had little to do in his ordi-
nary calling was called in. He advised
a series of scaldings until the mouth
was perfectly clean. Then he put it on
to boil The boiling was continued un-
til the substance became of iellylike
consistency. It looked like head cheese
or bologna sausage when it was en-
veloped in a similar way.
The humble start Of the first day