THE IMPORTANCE OF VEGETABLES IN THE 

 DIETARY 



Ida S. Harrington 



Bureau of Farmers' Institutes. Department of Agriculture, Albany, X. Y. 



" Come, ye thankful people, come, 

 Raise the song of Harvest-Home: 

 All is safely gathered in, 

 Ere the winter storms begin; 

 God, our Maker, doth provide 

 For our wants to be supplied ; 

 Come to God's own temple, come, 

 liaise the song of Harvest-Home." 



— Henry Alford. 



In words like these we give thanks at harvest time for the 

 products of the good brown earth, of summer sun and rain. Too 

 often we fail in the thanks that consist in " safely gathering in " 

 and using the bounty of orchard, garden and field. We are told 

 that over one-half of this is wasted by us every year, while over 

 one-half of the world goes hungry. 



Our canning club specialist at Washington, Air. O. H. Benson, 

 is right in saying that the diet of American people consists too 

 largely of meat, coffee, bread, butter, eggs, and patent medicines. 

 Improper feeding is responsible for over 80 per cent, of human 

 ailments. This is not so much a question of over-or under-feeding 

 as of wrong feeding. Good feeding consists of two things: the 

 right food, and the ability of the body to use it. We may starve 

 in the midst of plenty if our digestion is poor. Inefficient powers 

 of digestion may be due to a poor inheritance, to lack, of fresh air, 

 or to a lack of sufficient water; but the chief cause is found in a 

 poorly balanced dietary. Toor feeding in childhood is sure to 

 result in poor adult health. 



The body's needs have not been met when we have s'upplied 

 protein foods for the building and repairing of tissue, and starches, 

 sugars, and fats to furnish energy. Such foods as meats, cereals, 



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