PURE AND IMPURE FOODS. 
fully ripe. Grapes are generally very 
good, but should always be on the bunch 
and not split open, for they quickly absorb 
the poisonous life in the atmosphere. 
Raisins, if large and not decayed, and if 
they contain no worms, are a more pow- 
erful stimulant to the body than wine. and 
exhilarate the nervous system without 
any fear of intoxication. All pears are ex- 
ceedingly beneficial, if not decayed or 
specked with decay. Nuts are so rich in 
phosphorus that a few should be eaten 
after each dinner, and almonds are espe- 
cially recommended. Every kin< of vege- 
table has its value and is more to be pre- 
ferred than meat. Animals like the horse, 
ox and mule, which perform such won- 
derful feats of strength, get their great 
power from the common grains, vege- 
tables and grasses. Persons who live 
mostly on vegetables have the _ best 
health, the best nerves, and the best com- 
plexion. The value of red pepper on the 
liver cannot be fully understood until one 
has used it. The pure red pepper ground 
into powder has its proper place on the 
table. 
Ill health is caused by improper food, 
and by improper disposal of it after reach- 
ing the stomach, or by food which is in 
a bad condition when eaten. No foods 
should be put into the stomach in a con- 
dition of decay or adulteration, so as to 
clog the system and hold the process of 
disintegration there. 

BARBECUED “SHOTE”. 
We should never “makefun” of any one’s 
learning, be he, seemingly, ever so ig- 
_norant. For many years the writer could 
never see any good in hog-meat, unless it 
was the sugar-cured breakfast bacon that 
is to be obtained in any meat shop. Yet, 
an ignorant negro field hand, a man 
whose ignorance, illiteracy, greenness, and 
general absence of mental quickness 
would place him, in the opinions of the 
majority of his judges, among the in- 
capables, the imbeciles, recently cooked a 
'Sshote” in sich a. way as. to «clear- 
ly demonstrate’ that hog meat is 
one of the most delicious viands ever 
set before a hungry man. Down in Ken- 
tucky, as well as in many other Southern 
states, the barbecue is a favorite social 
institution, and the man who visits the 
South and does not attend at least one 
barbecue has made his trip in vain. It 
is not my purpose to describe all of the 
delights of a barbecue; I merely wish 
to call attention to one dish—fit for the 
gods, aye! any and all of the gods—name- 
ly, “barbecued shote.”  ‘“Shote” is negro 
for any kind of hog, yet, in the case of the 
barbecued individual, the negro chef who 
serves him means a yearling ‘‘barrow.”’ 
This hog must be fat—this is a sine qua 
317 
non—and he must be butchered, cleaned 
and prepared for the fire secundem artem. 
When every hair has been removed from 
his body, and after he has been thorough- 
ly washed in cold spring water, a stake 
is driven through his body from neck to 
tail. He is then suspended above a bed of 
red-hot hickory coals (the ends of the 
aforesaid stake resting on the edges of the 
trench-oven, which has been dug to hold 
the coals) and ceaselessly turned over and 
over by the vigilant ‘and skilful cook. His 
rapidly browning and crisping body is 
drenched every now and then with “drip” 
a most delicious and appetizing gravy. 
The whole secret of this culinary stc- 
cess lies in the fact that the meat is cooked 
so rapidly that it loses none of its sweet- 
ness; or, in other words, nork and mut- 
ton (and mutton is cooked in the same 
manner and is likewise a most delightful 
dish) being deficient in nitrogenous ex- 
tractives, what flavor they possess is due 
largely to their fats. When these fats 
are quickly cooked and are not allowed 
to drain away in the cooking, these flavor- 
ing extractives are retained. Try a bar- 
becued shote some day, and you will never 
again deride the “ignorant nigger’ who 
cooked it. Or, what is equally to the pur- 
pose, do not allow your cook to cook 
the ‘‘life’” out of your pork and mutton! 


EAT SLOWLY. 
The Americans have been called by 
some writers ‘“ a nation of dyspeptics.” 
This lamentable state has been brought 
about mainly through our habit of “bolt- 
ing’ our food. We sit down to our meals” 
and the quicker we get through with them 
the better we are pleased. Dr. J. H. 
Hanaford, writing in Popular Science, 
says: . 
“T would suggest that an hour be given 
.to each meal, half of the time to eating, 
thoroughly chewing every morsel, com- 
bining it with the saliva—as tle ox does— 
never swallowing it till it is thoroughly 
moistened—not washed down with hot 
drinks, none of which should be taken 
while eating—really preparing the food 
for the stomach, insuring good digestion. 
During the rest from eating, cheerfulness 
will be safe and profitable, aiding in the 
subsequent digestion. When the 2 pro- 
cesses are closely connected, there will 
be danger of choking, of hurrying the 
food into the stomach but partially 
chewed and unsalivated. I suppose the 
Swine eats in great haste, with no regard 
to salivation, while he is too often imi- 
tated by a creature with fewer feet.” 
I advise, where possible, a still longer 
seance at the table—say an hour and a 
half. Many of us cannot spare this amount 
of time, but, when we can, we should do 
it. 
