OLEOMAKGAKINE. 319 



found that out I told them that they were worrying themselves about 

 something which I did not consider of any consequence at all. I said: 

 "Go ahead and put the cotton sheets on; I would just as lief sleep on 

 them as sleep on linen sheets 7 ' like the fellow in a storm, who, when 

 the ship ran on a mud bank, told the captain to put him out, that he 

 was brought up in a muddy country. I told them that I was brought 

 up in a country where cotton grew that I had no prejudice against it 

 at all, and that it was all right. 



But in that country they had identically the same prejudice against 

 the use of cotton cotton clothes and cotton sheets as we find exists 

 in this country with reference to a food product made by another proc- 

 ess than in a churn. Now, I knew that that was a prejudice, and noth- 

 ing but a prejudice. I knew that it was a prejudice which would 

 break down with absolute certainty. And yet all over Germany, 

 because the habit had existed for century after century for a girl who 

 was going to get married to get a whole lot of linen sheets and linen 

 tablecloths and linen napkins, it was not thought respectable to have a 

 house with cotton sheets in it. Yet cotton was a good clothing prod- 

 uct. I told them that they would get over that prejudice. And since 

 that time it has been twelve or fourteen years ago I have heard that 

 a tremendous increase in the use of cotton cloth has taken place, 

 because it is cheaper, because it is just as good as linen. And it is 

 simply a question of time when the whole prejudice will be totally 

 broken down, and cotton goods will go in Germany just as they go here. 

 Some will use linen where linen is better, and sqrne will use cotton 

 where cotton is better ; but the great bulk of the plain people will use 

 cotton, and it will fall to a condition where linen is only used, not 

 because cotton is not just as good and just as agreeable, but because 

 people are rich and want to pay more for something in order to make 

 a little distinction about it. Now, I predict that this product of cotton- 

 seed oil and other ingredients which go to make a good, wholesome, 

 ordinary butter will come to be used all over this country; that the 

 United States Senators and the other aristocracy [laughter] will not 

 question whether it is that or anything else; that only a few people 

 who want to be finicky about having something a little different from 

 anybody else will pay a bigger price for the dairy butter, the supply of 

 which will always be inadequate to meet the demand, and is inadequate 

 now. But the great mass of the consumption will be of a butter made 

 of wholesome products from the cow, in the way of beef, stearin, and 

 tallow, and other things, and of cotton- seed oil, and whatever other 

 ingredients are necessary to make a butter just as satisfactory, when 

 compared with the dairy butter, as cotton is satisfactory when com- 

 pared with linen. 



Senator DOLLIVER. Do you think the curiosity on the part of the 

 average citizen to know what is in it will disappear in the course of 

 time? 



Mr. TOMPKINS. Except on the part of the dairymen. I think their 

 curiosity will continue throughout the investigation. 



Senator MONEY. Like hash; they do not care what is in it. 

 [Laughter.] 



Mr. TOMPKINS. Take the case of the poor workingman. You know 

 perfectly well that they can not afford to pay 35 cents a pound for dairy 

 butter. They do not question whether the butter sold to them at 15 or 

 20 cents a pound was made by this process or that process. They 

 simply question whether it is wholesome and whether it tastes all 

 right; and I will tell you that there are no more particular people in 



