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Acorns were not the food of the Britons 

 only. The inhabitants of Chios (in ancient 

 times) held out a long siege, having no other 

 food but acorns. 



Acorns are eaten to this day in Spain, 

 where they long remained a delicacy at 

 the desserts. Cervantes often mentions them 

 in his Don Quixote ; but the Spanish acorns 

 are certainly of a sweeter nature than those 

 of England. 



In times of scarcity and dearth of corn, 

 they have been ground and baked into bread, 

 both in this country and in France ; but the 

 taste of it is rough and disagreeable, and 

 indeed acorns are said to be hard of diges- 

 tion, and to cause head-aches and flatulence. 

 The study of botany, and the encourage- 

 ment given to agricultural and horticultural 

 pursuits, have so wonderfully improved the 

 state of this country, that what in early ages 

 a king would have feasted on, the beggar 

 now refuses; and the acorn is scarcely 

 known as affording nourishment to the hu- 

 man species, even among the wandering 

 vagrants who pitch their tattered tents, and 

 cook their scanty fare beneath the branches 

 of the trees that produce them. 



Should there remain any persons so igno- 

 rantly obstinate, as to exclaim against the 



