Ellsworth American., 1919-07-09
One Meal, on 0ne-Man Basis for
War Period, Cost $727,-
O0G,0O0.
100000 POUNDS DAILY
ooughboys Ate eoo,oooooo Pounds
OF Roast Beef, Smoked 5,ooo,.
ooo Cigarettes and Ate 100000
Pounds of Candy a Month.

'H : toii.- SOfulerS VINO fought
against Spain in 1898 lost In weight
on an average of % pounds each; the
average American soldier at the end of
the hghting in 1918 weighed II pounds
more than he did when the selectIye
service act or his own volitlon brought
him into the army
Thus the success won by the armv,s
subsistence branch in the great war
Is epitomized In chapters Of the Off
clal war material history made pub
lie by the war department.
The food problem of an army of
3,foO,oGJ Americans is visuallzed in the
history by considering the force as a
single man and the entire war period
as one dinner hour. Articles compris-
ed in the army ration assumed these
tremendous totals:
Roast beef, S0OO00O00 pounds: ba-
con, 150,000,OO0 pounds; flour (bread)
lDo,ooo,000 pounds; butter, 17,5OO,-
700; oleomargarine, 100000. baked
beans. 150,000,00O pounds; potatoes,
4S''ooo,o0o pounds; onions, 100000
pounds; corn, beans and peas, 100000
oOo cans; tomatoes, 190000,OOO cans ::
prunes peaches and apples (for des-
serD, l07,000,O00 cans; sugar, 35O,OOO,-
900 pounds; coffee 75,0O0,OOO pounds
eVaporated milk, 200,000,0OO cans.
The, bill for this meal" amounted 70
sI21 100000 to December /, 1918, the
per capita cost having risen from 4
cents in 1897 to 4S in 1918.
100000 Pounds Daily.
AT the time of the armistice, Ameri-
can soldiers In France were consum-
ing 100000 pounds of food daily.
Moving this stupendous quantity over
the 3,OO0-mile communication was the
principal obstacle to be overcome.
This and the necessity for conserving
cargo space led directly in the later
months to the shipment of dehydrated
vegetables to the American expedition
airy force.
The problems were solved only by
the assistance of the American food
industry" the report says, and while
Instances We're found of food specifi-
'''''''A'' D'iiiS Ni'lANtus tiltSt are ut-
clared to have been very few and in
most instances not intentional.
The emergency ration of the Ameri-
can soldier, designed to be used only
in cases of extremity, was perfected
during the war to consist of three
cakes of beef, prepared with a bread
compound of ground cooked wheat,
each cake weighing three ounces
three one-OUnce cakes of chocolate,
three-fourths ounce fine salt, and one
dram black pepper.
A special ration was designed for
the use of invalid soldiers, including
potted chicken, dried eggs, puddings,
etc.
Importance attached to the supply
Of fresh coffee for the men Is evil
denced by the decision to ship the
bean in the green form and have IL
roasted near the front This led to
the invention of portable roasters,
capable of handling several tons day.
Noting that tobacco has established
its claim to a recognized place In the
soldiers life" the report says proHa-
bly, 50 per cent of the American expe-
dictionary force used the weed in one
form or another. Monthly shipments
averaged 20,000000 cigars and 425, ,0OO,-
600 cigarettes.
The soldiers sweet tooth was salts
fed by a monthly shipment of 100000
pounds of candy during the early part
nf thn ht1f thiS ippran cod in
November, 1918, to 1,3730O0 pounds,
and the following month the war de-
partment made candy a part of the
regulation issue, one and One-half
pounds being issued to each man every
month. A close companion in pOpu-
larity was chewing gum, more than
100000 packages a month being con-
sumed.
Economies Effected.