Remembering that man does not live by fuel alone, we may find ample
reasons for spending some of our food money upon things which at first
thought seem to give an inadequate return. There is an old adage, "An
apple a day keeps the doctor away," which if true means that the apple is
a real economy, a kind of health insurance, for an apple costs seldom over
five cents--often only one--and a doctor's visit may easily cost a hundred
times as much. There is a certain amount of truth in the saying, though
the apple does not have a monopoly of the supposed virtue. It is more
accurate, if less poetic, to say that an _assortment_ of fruits and
vegetables helps to keep us in good health. Before the days of modern
"cold pack" canning, mothers used to assemble their little home groups in
the spring and, in spite of sundry hidings under tables on the part of
reluctant Johnnies and Susies, dutifully portion out herb tea or sulphur
in molasses. Spring cleaning could never stop short of "cleansing the
blood!" And after a monotonous winter of salt pork and fried potatoes no
doubt heroic measures were necessary to make up for an ill-chosen diet.
Nowadays we recognize no such seasonal need.
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