THE SUM)AT OEEGOMAX. PORTLAND. 31 AY ' 1, 1910.
8
ANUT AS AUNAL TO
THC
COW AS A SQUECL OF BUTTER,
( ( 0
New Vegetable
and Said to Be Wholesome, Be
mnnln? to Be Used Here As in
o - -
Europe.' .
SINCE the days of our cave-dwelling
ancestors the people of the North
lands have been eating, for the
most part, the flesh and fats of animals,
while In sun-kissed tropics the naive
,iave been thriving and finding life one
lazy, yawning dream, ordering from
a table d'hote menu of fruit and nuts.
For a loner time scientists and
tthlnkers have been pondering; over this
'truth and recently, with prices of the
'.necessaries of life climbing: higher and.
rhlgher daily, there has been an effort
to modify the present scheme of things
by substituting for' a meat diet prod
ucts equally sustaining that are right
at hand, supplied by Mother Nature.
In ' this search for cheaper living,
America is learning much from Europe,
where overcrowded cities have, made
the high cost of living an old,' old story:
There has Just come another help that
promises to be received here with great
enthusiasm.
The innovation will mean a merry
war between the docile cow and the
humble cocoanut for supremacy for it
Is nothing less than a substitute for
high-priced butter and lard in the
shape of an edible fat made from the
natural oil of nuts.
If the hopes of a company which
has started the exploiting of the new
butter substitute In America are re
alized, the stranglehold which the beef
trust now has on the people of this
ountry will be, speedily loosened. The
new butter may prove to be one of
the most successful answers to luxur
ious living at a low cost.
Nut butter, which is made princi
pally from oocoanuts. has the appear
ance of lard and is tasteless and odor
less. Some of the virtues claimed for
It are that it is absolutely pure, where
butter Is adulterated with 15 per cent
of water and salt. Cocoanut butter Is
said to be easily assimilated by the
weakest stomach and can be sold at a'
profit for less than 15 cents a pound.
The men who are trying to educate
the American public t.nd i pread broad
cast the value of the new product have
all kinds of arguments to offer. They
point to the fact that today 5.000.000
more persons are subsisting on nuts,
seeds and fruit in India. China and the
islands of the sea than in the meat
eating zones. This1 argument is used
to prove the wholesomeness of the nut
butter.
The new rival of the cow has already
made its?1f thoroughly at home in
America. Much more so than the aver
age American realizes. It is not gen
erally known that a factory with a pro
ducing capacity of 24.000 pounds of the
new nutter' every day in the - year is
running at full time in Hackensack. N. J.
Very little of the nut butter reaches
the American markets. The American
SOME IRISH COUSINS OF OUR FAMOUS WESTERN BIRDS
Annie Laura Miller Writes of Feathered Singing Friends in Belfast Who Live in Her Garden.
BT ANNIE LAURA MILLER. ,
QUITE rightly the birds ignore the
little garden at the back' of the i
house. There is a neat cinder
walk, a fine square of turf with daffo
dils, crocuses and wall flowers coming
into bloom this first of April; but it's
the fruit trees that are distressln'. I
can't look at them without pity, and
surely no free self-respecting bird
would make a home in them. They have
teen pruned and their branches bound
tight to the high brick wall, making
them, as producers of fruit" in this
moist climate, a great success; but as
trees, poor things indeed, able to 'move
only their tiniest twigs.
But in the front garden with its five
beach trees. Its high hedge and ever
green Bhrubs, Its graveled walk and bit
of lawn It needed merely a breadcrumb
breakfast daily spread to establish an
intimacy between us and the Irish
' birds.
As we were leaving home we were
amazed at the number of our human
friends who developed hitherto unheard
of Irish ancestors and when we reached
here it was equally surprising to find
out that all the people we've met in
Belfast have relatives in America. The
ties are not In all cases so close 'as one
might wish; several people have asked
with the greatest enthusiasm: "And you
have great numbers of Indians roaming
about in the wild state? I understand
they are increasing." These blood
thirsty questioners- are so disappointed
when I tell them how the Indians live
on reservations and rally forth In the
Autumn to pick hops in the Willamette
Valley that I'm firmly resolved to adopt
the Irish fashion of saying what Is
pleasing regardless of the truth. "Yes
indeed..' I shall say. "people who live
outside of New York and Chicago and
Nlaftars. Falls are in constant terror of
their lives. We live in ports, you know,
and even then massacres are frequent
It's a painful subject, of course, and
one hates at my age to wear a wig. but
I've been scalped several times myself
and would have been killed if the cow
boys and cavalry hadn't rescued me.'
But our feathered friends? They. too.
re really all Irish cousins of familiar
Western birds'. Thers are two exceptions
so far as our garden goes, the English
sparrows and the starlings. The English
sparrows can claim closer ralatlonshlp;
they are. brothers and sisters of the mil
lions in the United States. They have
none of the shyness of other birds, so no
sooner was the breakfast spread on the
gnass than they pounced uninvited upon
it. Every succeeding morning has shown
them first at the meal, and If it is a lit
tle later than usual they stt on the hedge
svnd chirrup for it in no gentle tones.
The starlings have no relations at all
In America. Occasionally they come In
Product, Cheap,
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people are hard to make swerve from
their allegiance to the old-fashioned cow
brand and have been very slow in using
the new sort. The enormous output of
the factory is exported to the Philip
pines, to England and to France.
The field of supply from tne cocoanut
trees is unlimited. It could go on for
ever meeting increased demands. There
are now 20.000,000 cocoanut trees planted
every year, and. if the demand for new
'butter warranted it, that number could
be readily Increased. As the cow reigns
supreme in the domestic kingdom, so
does the cocoanut in the vegetable king
dom. No matter to what extent the cocoanut
butter is used, there will never be any
danger of the cow losing her popularity.
9he will always be appreciated for her
milk and it is safe to predict that she
will always be kept busy supplying it.
The process of separating the fat from
the milk and meat of the cocoanut was
discovered several years ago by a French
chemist. His success was the result of
years of patient effort and achieved only
after repeated failures. Until his inven
tion it seemed impossible to manufac
ture a preparation that would not be
come rancid when exposed to the air.
His discovery was received with tre
mendous popularity in France at once.
Twenty million pounds of the product are
now being used by the French ' people.
In France nut butter is not offered as
a substitute for the real thing, but is sold
on its merits.
Robert Skinner, American Consul at
Hamburg, recently reported to this Gov
ernment that Germany is i.slng daily
200.000 pounds of nut butter. '
In foreign countries the people have
so accustomed themselves to the -product
that it is eaten us it is manufac
flocks, stalk about the garden and gob
ble the bread crumbs up greedily in the
twinkling of an eye. At the first glance
one thinks them shiny-coated blackbirds.
then one sees the long legs, the awkward
stride, the very short tail, and one has a
good laugh; they are so like gawKy
country boys, bursting out of clothes too
email: but a nearer view shows lovely
mothlike edges of brown on their glossy
feathers, and one comes to admire their
whistling and singing, and' strong, swift
flight. Lately they have been going about
by twos, investigating the chimney pots
with an eye to housekeeping. In our
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tured, 'used for cooking and at
the table. The promoters of the indus
try here, .however, have hit upon a dif
ferent plan for increasing its popular
ity. Butter made from milk will absorb
almost any odor which comes its way.
Nut butter Is said to be even more deli
cate. For this reason it has been sug
gested that persons using the nut but
ter mix with it 30 per cent of real but
ter. The nut butter absorbs quickly
the flavor of the butter made from
milk, and a palatable mixture is the re
sult. Where butter and lard are used
in cooking, the nut butter may be used
straight" with the best of success.
A slight percentage less is required be
cause of it requiring no water.
Franklin G. Colby is at the head of
the new enterprise which has been
launched at Hackensack. He is jen-
thusiastic over the future of nut but
ter, and predicts a complete revolution
of the use of nutritious fats in America.
"We are far behind Europe in this
respect," said Mr. Colby, recently.
"Nothing in the food V. -e ever success
fully attacked such important staples as
lard and butter as this nut butter.
We are up against the -beef trust and
I suppose it will fight us. We are
ready let them come on.
'The situation in this country is known
to be critical. With an ever-increasing
population we have a decreasing desire
on the part of the people to take up
farming. The supply of lard and butter
is being reduced every year and the de
mand is steadily increasing. This is the
real reason for the constant increase in
the prices of these products."
The farmers of the country have been
predicting from time to time that more
than half the people of America will have
to do without butter in a very few years.
neighbor's garden. Just over the hedge, a
red currant bush is blooming, and from
force of Pacific Coast habit I look for
the ruby throat to be humming there, but
he never conies, for our humming birds
have no cousins at all in the British
Isles.
Friendliest of all is ft certain robin red
breast. He is a very distant cousin of
our big Western robin, a little olive
brown bird with a rusty red throat and
breast. During the cold, dark Winter
flpv. he ?.it on the hedse. singing his
With such an outlook it will not be at
all surprising if the nut butter substitute
is received with as much favor here as
it has been abroad. If, as its advocates
assert, it is healthful, adequate and
cheaper, there is no reason why its in
troduction should not be welcomed.
The introduction of nut butter into
America can not help but be of great
value in reducing the present high prices
of butter and lard. With the popularity
sweet, canary-like song, "brave wid his
heart forlorn," as If there were leaves on
all the trees and the Sun shining. He
used always to come to breakfast, but
the past two weeks, if he comes at all it
is only for a bite; he is too busy now to
eat or even to sing, and is getting rather
thin and bedraggled, all because he has
taken unto himself a mate she looks ex
actly like -Mm and Is building a home in
the honeysuckle vine on the dining-room
wall.
His work must beein. I think, -as P3on
as the birds have finished that exquisite
A-
'1 i.
f the new product must naturally come
. decrease in the demand for the butter
chorus wa hear when we happen to awake
just at dawn, for when we come down to
breakfast he looks as if he had done a
day's work, although he keeps steadily
on hopping about in the shrubbery, choos
ing dried leaves and bits of fiber to use
as building material. His load gathered,
he files to the hedge, where he rest a
minute, looking in at us; then, taking us
Into his confidence, flies straight to the
nest. It is marvelous the amount of ma
terial that has gone into the nest, and it
isn't .finished yet. One almost expects
him to sit on the hedge and sing a song
of trivmph when his home is completed.
The Irish blackbird has none of the
ways of his American cousin. No water
side home for him nor noisy assemblies
in the treetops. He is a shy bird of
lawns and gardens, a plump bird with a
dull black coat and a bright yellow bill.
He has an impulsive way of rushing
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1 Ills .-.xXk ' o'-, ,. T-.-yr? m
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made from cow's milk. WIOi this de
crease will naturally follow a glutting of
forward looking as if he would fall
until he tips his broad tail and so bal
ances himself. One has been with us
all Winter, appreciating the breakfast
we provide, helping himself bountifully
and often robbing the smaller Diras.
Two lay blackbirds used to come, -dull
brown birds, with lighter throats very
like the song thrush, but one morning
they ha'd a fearful fight and only the
conqueror comes now. She is Mrs.
Blackbird, with a home in our neigh
bor's garden, not" far from the tree
where Mr. Blackbird perches to flute
and sing with much sweetness and
vim. The blackbird sings only a short
time during the year, defects somewhat
trying to his admirers. Even Tenny
son wrote - some stanzas to him in a
vein perhaps more scolding than poetic,
enumerating benefits such as sparing
his life and letting him eat cherries
conferred by the poet, and asking for
songs in return, telling the bird that if
he failed to sing in the Summer he
would find nothing to eat in the Spring.
The song thrush that spent the Win
ter In our garden has left us, and we
sorely miss his evening song. At dusk
he mounted to the top of a beech and
sang such a quaint song, a whistle
and chuckle and cluck, then a long note
of piercing sweetness, not so free nor
certain a melody as the one our russet
back thrush sings, although the two
birds are almost identical in appear
ance. Most domestic of all the birds
is the little hedge sparrow. He took
a mate before the Winter was over, a
mate dressed like himself in stripes of
black and golden brown, a quiet tarb
for birds of such sprightly manner.
Every day they come together rather
late to eat the tiny crumbs the other
birds have overlooked. There is a
chaffinch, too, with a gay and varie
gated coat; he Is apparently mad on
the smbject of color, for his call note
is "pink, pink," and one is surprised to
see coming in answer to it a demure
little grayish bird.
On snowy Winter mornings gulls and
terns came flying in over the garden,
circling restlessly until the storm
cleared, and on clear, frosty mornings
members of the crow family came flap
ping Into the garden, looking at us
with great distrust and scaring the
small birds all into the hedge. No
doubt they have reason to dread human
beings; certainly they are unattractive
to us, though the grey-necked Jack
daws have interesting ways. One is
building across the street popping in a
chimney-pot with stout twigs and pop
ping out again for more. For his sake
I. hope that he watched that particular
chimney-pot a long time before choos
ing it; a' sudden fire might upset his
household, and the sober Mrs. 'Jackdaw
looks as if she could scold on occasion.
But the best fun of all has been the
tits, cousins of our cheery chickadees.
We rave them a meal all their own.
half a cocoanut dangling by a string
from a tree: one meal. I said, but good
ness knows the many meals they've had
out of it. For three weeks they've been
there almost constantly, the tiny blue-
tits, all in yellow and blue, with
broad catch of white like mustaches
going back from their bills, giving
them a fierce, masculine appearance, in
spite of their dainty size and color. A
pair- of them often eat together, though
the gentleman has the more comfort-
hie nrrii. finite as the big chair at
table belongs to the master of the
household, while the mistress must al
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the market with the real butter and lard,
and a consequent lowering of prices.
most stand on her head to eat, the
cocoanut spinning ' all the time like a
merry-go-round. Like them, only big
Ker, with a blackcap, are the ox-eye
tits: but merriest or an are tne ainpy
little coaltits. They look as if they
lived in a coal bin, but the male has
airs of superiority, nevertheless, and
eats in solitary state, while the lady
sits nearby, waiting for his sooty lord
ship to finish; then "sweet, sweet," he
calls, and she comes to the second table.
Easter morning was very misty
molsty and no doubt that was the real
reason, for birds are much Influenced
by the weather, and often are slow to
stir about when it is damp; but not one
of our feathered friends appeared until
church-time, and then only the English
sparrows, least sensitive of all bird
kind; and one couldn't help fancying
that thev were boycotting us because
It was the special morning for human
beings to eat eggs.
American Consulate,. Belfast, Ireland,
' April e.
"SUPING" WITH - CARUSO
Curious
Scene
Tenor
"When the
Oils Up."
Great
"Ex-Super," in Harper's Weekly.
Back of the throne we waited with
palpitating hearts for our "debut" in
opera. Our attention was attracted by
the entrance of the great Caruso, accom
panied by his valet, carrying a towel, a
glass of water, and an atomizer. Then
he beEan to "oil up." He "honked" the
rubber bulb on the atomiser and sprayed
his throat and nose repeaieuiy.
E eh," he snorted. "Ay an. e ,
as he tried his voice. After this a gar
ble. .His attendant gave nun a imiu
... . ., I., hi- Wrtclm
vial, wnicn ne men awn..v
Surely, we thought, ne must w
now; but no one more gargle, and then
dipping his fingers into the glass of wa
ter, he moistened nis nosi.rii.
"Now, gentlemen, ready!" "One two
three," commanded the stage director;
and we boosted Radames- chair with its
precious load onto our snouiaers.
Jim looked at me and I looked at Jim.
It was appallingly heavy, and we two
were getting all the weight; some of
the other "supes" were either under
sized or were ducking under the bur
den; but we sallied forth, shaking and
trembling in our knees.
Caruso pounded on the floor of the
chair with his staff, and we halted. The
King then rose on his throne and sang
a few words of welcome. Another tap
of the staff and we brought the hero
down, slowly: one two three. Again
lifting the ponderous but now empty
chair to our shoulders, we marched off
stage. Then grabbing Amonasro
(Scotli) by the arms we re-entered,
restraining him in his rush onto the
stage.
As often as I have heard Caruso in
"Aida," I have never failed to see him
"oil up." Even while the act is in
progress, and he turns in despair after
having Anniers thrust upon him as a
wife, the tenor, in raising his hands to
his head, takes-from his bosom the lit
tle vial and swallows its contents sur
reptitiously so far as the audience Is
concerned, though -in full sight of the
ballet and the "supers." Then, turning
again, he is Radames, singing as fer
vently as ever. Sometimes, while stand
ing thus, he made us laugh with his
funny faces of mock despair.
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