El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-08-03
CHOCOLATE IS GOOD SOLDIER FOOD Frank zee 'ch
ONE POUND EQUALS FOUR OF MEAT esEsec . 4a g
They Enemy
Out of It and Can


DORCHESTER. Mass, Aug S--The
II luxuries Of peace are the neces-
stiles Of war. This is especially true
Of our boys in the trenches. Under
ether conditions many Of them could
get along without tobacco and sweets.
on the battlefields they are almost as
important as food and munitions I
write today OF enc kind Of sweets
which goes over the ocean by the mil
lions Of pieces 1t is the chocolate
made from caca0 beans, favored with
sugar
Brig. Gen. I. ". Waller. Of the
United states marine corps, says:
Men can fight like the devil on choeo-
late. and fighting men should take
10 on the march with them" In 1916
there was an examination Of certain
foods for army use, and George
Stubbs. the government chemist, then
estimated that one pound Of choco-
late is equal 10 four pounds Of lean
beef, as far as heat giving power is
concerned He said II IS twice as
valuable as so much white bread. and
Tilted for the provisioning OF large
bodies Of men,
Chocolate is well known among the
armies Of Europe. The Germans were
lSlUz * Is q EE5 AAnE 4dLAl4 a. me
time the war broke out. and the Aus
TRANS had served IL 20 their army for
five years before that Just now
neither country has enough TO con-
tinue the ration The chief chocolate
producing regions lie outside Europe.
and Germans former supply came
from tropical regions, which belonged
10 the allies She imported 96,000.000
pounds OF the beans OF which chOco-
late is made in 1912 She has been
second among the chocolate eating
nations, but her sweet tooth is starv-
ing today.
British Use II.
The British troops have long APP
preclated the value OF chocolate
Thousands Of cans Of IL were sent
from England 10 the troops during
the Crimean war, and when the Eng
iish soldiers were fighting the Beers
in South Africa queen Victoria sent
each OF them a gift box OF chocolate
SO that IL arrived about Jan /. The
wrapper Of the box bore a picture Of
the queen and her signature. above
which were the words i wish you a
happy new year
In normal times the French eat
about 60,00o,000 pounds Of chocolate
year They make an excellent az
ricle and mwh Of it is supplied 70
the soldiers. Napoleon bought II for
his army, and he and his officers are
said 10 have ridden for days on horse
back without any other food than
tablets OF chocolate. Fernando Cor
tcz the conquerer OF Mexico. who
brought some Of the first cacao beans
10 Europe, said that man who drank
a cup Of chocolate could march all
Gay without further nourishment. He
reported that the drink was made
from the ground up seeds Of a fruit
mat grew on a tree.
MonfeEuma Food.
AoureEum1a was So fond 0f nnnnof AZ r.
that he had about 1000 Jars made for
his household He took the drink
smoking hot from a golden goblet,
slipping it with a spoon of fine tor
loise she'll The seeds OF the cacao
tree were so valued By the Aztecs
that they used them as money. and in
some localities double handful was
the price OF q slave.
It's Food and Drink.
Chocolate is now used as food and
drink all over the world The cacao
trees which produce the chocolate
beans are cultivated throughout the
tropics Something like 500,000,0 900
pounds Of them are shipped to the
markets and consumed in one year.
We rank first among the consumers.
taking almost one-fourth Of the
product our importation amounts TO
more than 100000 OF pounds. or more
than five pounds per annum for every
family in the United States.
The British use almost as much
per capita as we do, and until the
war broke cut the Germans were
using more than the British. Their
total imports amounted to more than
100 100000 pounds. one-teuth Of which
came from the German colonies OF
Samoa, Toga and the Kamerun- The
balance was from regions now at war
with the Germans, ard their whole
supply has been cut off with the ex-
ception Of that which they are able TO
get in through Holland. They have
lost their African plantations and
AFTER the war is over they will have
70 rely upon the mercy OF the allies
as 70 whether they drink chocolate or
not.
Plantation Of 100000 Acres.
have seen the caeao tree growing in
many parts Of the world. Il thrives in
most countries within 20 degrees Of the
equator. and there are large orchards OF
j In South America. in the West Indian
Islands, and in Ceylou, lava Sumatra and
parts Of Africa One o. the largest plan
tations that sends cacao 10 Europe has
100000 acres. in which several million
what It Looks Like.
Ihe cacao tree is an evergreen. which
seldom grows more than Is or 20 feet
high. and which IS kept lower by trim
ming The tree has large glossy leaves.
which grow chiefly on the ends Of the
branches but sometimes on the trunk It
has pinlzish white blossoms on the trunk
and on the main branches The t-uit
grows on both the trunk and the branches.
being fastened by short stems 10 the bark
when ripe It IS the shape OF a sqursh.
SIX or eight or even mere inches long and
Z inches thick. It & yellow or reddish
On color Il has a thick hard. warty
skin. inside " hich are the seeds or beans
which form the cacao Of commerce The
leans are about as big as almonds and a
little thicker They are o. a light brown
or tan color Each bean has thin shell,
t1zide which Is a dark brown kernel. which
is more than half fat. II Is from the
kernel that cur chocolate IS made. There
are 90 or 80 End sometimes 80 seeds in one
fruit
Bear 30 Years.
In raising cacaO the seeds are planted
in nurseries. and after tbs trees are a
foot or more high they are transplanted.
being SCI out at about go per acre At
first they are shaded with bananas TO
ierD or the hot rays ~ the sun They
are cultivated and Woeded Until about