532 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



upon lobsters and lobster-salad, while a shudder of horrible disgust 

 runs through our frames at the idea of eating a buzzard or a hyena. 

 Yet the lobster is the scavenger of the sea as truly as the others per- 

 form the same functions upon the land. 



We love the speckled beauties that haunt the mountain-streams, 

 feeding upon insects and worms, while the Apache Mojave Indian 

 turn in scorn from such a dish. The same Indians will regale them- 

 selves with the blood that flows from the death-wound they have just 

 inflicted upon a deer, and will eat with relish the liver, smaller intes- 

 tines, etc., while yet warm, and with little or no preparation ; but 

 we could hardly be induced to imitate their example. 



Nothing can be more omnivorous and filthy in their feeding hab- 

 its than chickens and swine ; yet we relish the flesh of both with zest. 

 Tripe, liver, and kidneys are esteemed by us, though a knowledge of 

 their functions might cause a tremor of squeamishness to thrill through 

 our bodies. As epicures we eat the diseased livers of geese, insect- 

 eating frogs, small birds and game in an advanced stage of decompo- 

 sition, and call them delicious as we discourse upon their "gamy" 

 flavor, and at the same time we would not entertain for a moment the 

 idea of eating a dish of freshly-roasted locusts which have fed upon 

 the clean, juicy herbage of our fields. The Hebrews of North Africa 

 eat boiled and fried locusts with avidity, while their co-religionists in 

 this country turn from lobsters with scornful loathing. 



The Arab relishes the savory dishes made from locusts, while he 

 expresses his abhorrence of our habit of eating raw oysters. Our soci- 

 ety belles shriek with horror and fright at the appearance of a cock- 

 roach, yet they sip with pleasure the sherry and madeira wines that 

 are aged, mellowed, and flavored Avith these pests. 



Professor Charles V. Riley, for a long time State Entomologist of 

 Missouri, and now Entomologist at the United States Agricultural 

 Department at Washington, undertook in 1875 a series of experi- 

 ments " to demonstrate the availability of locusts as food for man, and 

 their value as such whenever, as not infrequently happens, they de- 

 prive him of all other sources of nourishment." Professor Riley 

 took a lot of locusts to an hotel to be cooked, but he endeavored in 

 vain to obtain assistance from the monarchs of the gridiron. The 

 cooks and servants retired in disgust, and left the naturalists to do 

 their own cooking. The savory messes that the latter concocted con- 

 verted the kitchen ; cooks and guests alike agreeing that the soups, 

 fricassees, and fritters, composed materially of locusts, were excellent. 

 In regard to these experiments Professor Riley says : 



"It had long been a desire with me to test the value of this spe- 

 cies (spretus) as food, and I did not lose the opportunity to gratify 

 that desire which the recent locust invasions into some of the Mis- 

 sissippi Valley States afforded. I knew well enough that the attempt 

 would provoke to ridicule and mirth, or even disgust, the vast ma- 



