The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1914-09-26
DINING IN LIBERIA.
Dumboy, Their National Dish, Is
a GaStronomic Wonder.
TO CHEW 1T MEANS LoCKJAW.
The Sticky, cement-iiko Mesa Has 20
Be Bottled In Lumps, Washed Down
With soup-When Allowed to Stand
and Harden II 10 Used For Bullets.


and Harden II IL Used For Bullets.
Dumboy, the national dish OF Il
IBERIA, is one OF the worlds CASTRO
nomic wonders. II allowed to stand
long after being prepared for the table
it becomes very hard. broken pieces Of
1t being a favorite kind Of shot for use
In the long muzzle loading guns Of the
natives. A casing OF dumboy Is also
used to stiffen the leather sheaths of
the native swords and knives. accord
ing to G.. N. Collins In a communica-
ton TO the National Geographic society
at Washington.
ITO attempt the description of some
novel food is like attempting to de
scribe a landscape" writes Mr.. Col
Inns.
"The constituent parts may be de
scribed and the manner In which they
are combined, but 1t requires some
thing more than accurate description
to reproduce the sensation OF the origi-
nal. The principal ingredient of DUN
boy is cassava, or 'cassada,' as 1t is
called in Liberia. The edible roots of
this plant are the source OF tapioca
and some forms OF sago.
ITO prepare the roots for dumboy
they are peeled, boiled and all fibers
from the center removed. The cooked
roots are then placed In a large wood.
en- mortar and beaten with a heavy
pestle. This beating requires consid-
cradle skill and experience. In the
hands OF a novice the result Is lumpy
and inedible.
THE beating requires about three
quarters OF an hour and Is hard work.
AS the beaten mass becomes homo
geneous the pestle produces a loud
crack each time IL is drawn from the
mortar. These sharp reports a be
heard long distances through the for
est and are very welcome sounds at
the end OF a days journey.
"when the dumboy reaches this
stage the operator may rest without
injury TO the product, but once the
beating Is carried past this point II
must be rapidly completed and the
dumboy eaten at once. The natives say
it is actually dangerous TO eat dunn
boy that has stood for more than a
few minutes after II IS beaten.
"As soon as the beating is finished
the dumboy is taken from the mortar
and placed I'm the shallow wooden
bowls. The native method is TO place
the entire quantity In one large bowl,
from which all the %partakers eat II
divided the customary portion for each
person Is a piece about the size of an
ordinary loaf OF bread.
"a sour which has been prepared
while the dumboy was being beaten Is
now poured into each bowl There is
great variety In the soup, which i'm
parts most OF the taste 20 the dish.
There is always a stock OF some form
OF meat. This may be either chicken.
deer. fish. monkey or even came
beef. To this are added as many vege-
tables as can be obtained.
"As soon as the soup is added the
dumboy is ready 10 be eaten. and.
while the ingredients are somewhat
bizarre, the method OF eating strikes
the traveller as even more startling
The mass OF dumboy. which can best
be described as a sticky dough, will
adhere instantly TO anything dry, but
is readily cut with n wooden spoon II
the spoon Is kept moist with soup.
IAN incredibly large piece is cut on
with the moistened spoon. taken up
with a quantity Of soup and swallowed
whole. No n thinks OF chewing it,
and II is customary to caution the nov.
ice by tales of the frightful operation
necessary TO separate the Jaws once
the teeth are buried In the sticky mass
AS might be expected, few Euro
peans like dumboy on irst acquain
lance. and with some the initial dis.
taste prevents further experiments. II
n second or third attempt is made.
however. and the dish has been PROF.
erly prepared, the habit is usual;
formed. and before long every night
! spent I'm the bush without n meal OF
dumboy Is counted a privatlon. Among
the white residents OF Liberia fond.
ness for the dish mounts almost TO n
cult IL is regarded as a sort of guar
anty that ones tenderfoot days are
over"