The U. S. Army Ration and 
Military Food. 
Read iu the Section of Physiology and Dietetics at the Forty-third 
Annual Meeting of the American Medical Association, held at 
Detroit, Mich., June, 1892. 
BY 
CAPT. CHARLES E. WOODRUFF, M.D., 
ASSISTANT SURGEON, U. S., ARMY. 
Reprinted from “The Journal of the American Medical Association,” 
December 3,1892. 
CHICAGO: 
PUBLISHED AT THE OFFICE OF THE ASSOCIATION 
1892. The U. 8. Army Ration and 
Military Food. 
Read in the Section of Physiology and Dietetics at the Forty-third 
Annual Meeting of the American Medical Association, held at 
Detroit, Mich., June, 1892. 
BY 
CAPT. CHARLES E. WOODRUFF, M.D., 
ASSISTANT SURGEON, U. S. ARMY. 
Reprinted from “The Journal of the American Medical Association,’’ 
December 3,1892. 
CHICAGO: 
PUBLISHED AT THE OFFICE OF THE ASSOCIATION. 
1892. THE U. S. ARMY RATION AND MILITARY 
FOOD. 
BY CAPT. CHARLES E. AVOODRUFF, M.D., 
ASSISTANT SURGEON U. S. ARMY. 
Col. Jos. R. Smith, Surgeon U. S. Army, read 
before the Ninth International Medical Congress, a 
paper on “The best Ration for the Soldier,” in which 
he very carefully analyzed the ration then existing, 
compared it with the rations of foreign armies and 
the dietaries of various laborers, and discussed var- 
ious other points. To go into this matter again 
would be threshing out old straw, and the present 
paper therefore is confined to a description and dis- 
cussion of the present ration which has been some- 
what modified in form and considerably modified as 
to its management since the time at which the for- 
mer paper was written. 
An army is a collection of disciplined, active, 
healthy men in the prime of life, to be used as a 
fighting force in the service of the nation, and it is 
the object of military administration to so govern 
and train these men that they shall not fail when 
fighters are needed. Everything is to be done which 
can reasonably be expected to increase their efficiency, 
and it is an actual fact that nearly every military 
law and regulation has for its ultimate effect the 
increased efficiency of the individual soldier as a 
fighter. Unless the man is kept in health, he is use- 
less, and for this reason all subjects which relate to 4 
his health are given much thought. Clothing, food, 
shelter and exercise are the principal subjects for 
consideration for if any of them are improper, there 
is sure to be a loss of efficiency, but it is probable 
that deficiencies of food or improper food will cause 
damage or disaster more quickly than anything else. 
For instance, most of the diseases of the war of 1812 
were due to defective food, and in ninety per cent, of 
the cases the flour was at fault. In the war of the 
rebellion similar reports were often received, and the 
tales of actual hunger that all veterans recount, are 
too numerous by far. It is evident, therefore, that 
the ration should be the subject of most careful 
thought, and all reasonable means be tried to adjust 
it to the exigencies of military life. 
A “ration” is the technical term for the sum total 
of the daily allowances of food issued to the soldier 
in accordance with law. Its present constituents 
are given in full in tabular form below. 
The candles and soap are considered a part of a 
ration, though not food. 
MANAGEMENT OF RATION. 
It must not be thought that the soldier is restricted 
to the actual articles that are mentioned in the table, 
for by a fairly efficient system, the company com- 
mander is permitted to make outside purchases of 
food. If there is any excess of food uncooked which 
will not be used by the company, he sells back to 
the commissary the excess, technically called the 
“savings,” and with the proceeds buys what he thinks 
proper. These savings are a very important matter, 
and amount in the aggregate to a fair sum per com- 
pany, although per man they may average but from 
1 to 4 cents per day. This fund is still further aug- 
mented by the receipts from the Post Exchange ; this 
institution is a general store for the sale to soldiers 
of small articles he may need, such as stationery, 5 
TABLE I.—U. 8. ARMY RATION. 
Component. 
One Article of Each List. 
Meat .... 
12 oz. pork ~| 
12 oz. bacon 
22 oz. salt beef 
20 oz. fresh beef 
20 oz. mutton | 
14 oz. dried fish 
18 oz. pickled fish 
.18 oz. fresh fish 
In 10 days it is us- 
ual to give 7 days’ of 
fresh beef ,2 of bacon 
and 1 of salt pork. 
The other articles 
are very seldom is- 
sued. 
Bread . . . 
) 18 oz. soft bread [ 
| 10 oz. hard bread ( 
120 oz. corn meal J 
Soft bread is the 
invariable issue in 
garrison. 
Dried Vege- 
tables .. . 
j 2 2-5 oz. beans or peas. 
( 1 3-5 oz. rice or hominy. 
Fresh Vege- 
tables . . . 
1 lb. potatoes or 
9-10 potatoes and 1-10 onions or 
8-10 potatoes and 2-10 onions or 
< 7-10 potatoes and 3-10 canned tomatoes 
7-10 potatoes and 3-10 vegetables, such 
as cabbage, beets, carrots, turnips, 
. squash, etc. 
Coffee . . . 
( 1 3-5 oz. green coffee. 
< 1 7-25 oz. roasted coffeo. 
(8-25 oz. tea. 
Sugar.... 
j 2 2-5 oz. sugar. 
(16-25 gill molasses or syrup. 
Condiments 
and addi- 
tional arti- 
cles .... 
(8-25 gill vinegar. 
16-25 oz. salt. 
< 1-25 oz. pepper. 
6-25 oz. candles. [In the field.] 
[ 16-25 oz. soap. 
tobacco, lunches, beer, etc., the prices being a slight 
increase over the cost, and the net profits being turned 
into the company funds—in other words, a coop- 
erative retail store which makes each soldier a silent 
partner, though not subject to any losses. 
During the first three months of 1892, the average 
daily receipts and expenditures per man at Fort 
Assinniboino, Montana, were as follows: 
From ration 2.72 cents. 
From exchange 2.58 cents. 
From other sources .34 cents. 
Total receipts 5.64 cents. 
Expenditures for extra food .... 4.11 cents. 6 
It will be noticed that the profits from the Post 
Exchange enabled the daily average expenditures for 
food to exceed the savings from the ration by 1.39 
cents per man. These figures are the averages of 
nine companies and troops, each having about fifty 
men. 
It is forbidden company commanders to use the 
savings from the ration except for the benefit of the 
soldier’s table fare, so that there shall be no cheese- 
paring of the ration in order to save money for other 
purposes. Very recently part of the savings of the 
ration was turned into post, band, regimental funds, 
and what not, and the money used for objects from 
which the soldier derived no food benefit whatever. 
It is a curious thing that when in 1864 it was dis- 
covered that the soldier could not eat all of his ration, 
which had been increased in 1861, and that the savings 
went into post and regimental funds, it apparently did 
not occur to anyone to abolish these funds, but instead 
it was deemed wise to reduce the ration to what it 
had been previous to 1861, notwithstanding the fact 
that the soldier was often underfed. It was over 
25 years before this setback was remedied. At pres- 
ent then, if, owing to climate or other causes, the 
soldier does not want all of the food to which he is 
entitled, the money savings must either accumulate 
in large amounts or be used for the purchase of those 
little extras, which, added to the bare needs of exist- 
ence, make life much more worth living. In addi- 
tion it must be said that large company funds are, 
as a rule, frowned upon, and, other things being 
equal, the officer who allows the money to accumu- 
late instead of spending it judiciously for the benefit 
of his men is not considered to be doing the best. As 
a general rule it may be safe to say that when a com- 
pany is so situated as to be liable to be called sud- 
denly into the field, its commander considers it wise 
to accumulate and keep on hand a certain fund of 7 
from $200 to $500 for the purchase of extras in the 
field whenever practicable, for to be compelled to 
subsist on the plain ration is looked upon as a mis- 
fortune. To keep on hand a fund of one to two 
thousand dollars is not considered wise management. 
In drawing beef at the larger posts, the contractor 
usually supplies a fore quarter and a hind quarter 
alternately. At those posts on the frontier where 
forage is very scarce, the beef is necessarily some- 
what tougher than it would be if the cattle conld be 
properly fed before killing. The allowance 
pounds) is gross weight, the actual amount of meat 
is much less. 
It rests with the Department Commander usually 
as to how much of each kind of article the soldier 
shall have when the law allows a choice. It is 
perhaps usual to order that in ten days there shall 
be seven issues of beef, two of bacon and one of pork, 
but if the soldier can with the help of outside pur- 
chases, manage to subsist for ten days on the beef 
allowed for seven days, he saves the money value of 
one day’s pork ration and two of bacon. It might 
be added that “savings” of fresh beef and fresh veg- 
etables are not permitted, the company being com- 
pelled to draw all their allowance, though this regu- 
lation does not forbid them to sell privately any 
they have drawn and which will not be used, but 
become spoiled by decay. 
The management of the flour is taken out of the 
hands of the company commanders entirely and all 
flour turned into the post bakery, where all the 
bread used by the men is baked. The ration of flour 
is 18 oz., and the soldier is entitled to either that or 
18 oz. soft bread, but as that amount of bread can be 
made from about 10 to 14 oz. flour, there is a large 
saving of flour, which is sold and after deducting 
expenses of the bakery, the surplus is returned to 
the company. Flour needed in the companies for 8 
puddings, griddle cakes, and the like, must be pur- 
chased from the company fund. There is usually a 
good baker among the soldiers at each post or sev- 
eral men who have air aptitude for that trade and 
who easily learn. These men are detailed for the bak- 
ery work and receive extra pay. With but rare ex- 
ceptions the bread supplied to the soldier is excellent. 
By means of the above system of management, a 
company fund is kept from which the extra diet on 
holidays can be purchased when there is a conveni- 
ent market, as for instance turkey on Thanksgiving 
and Christmas, eggs on Easter and so on. At all 
other times the fund is constantly drawn upon for 
the purchase of extras. This fund is considered of 
the highest importance, and new restrictions are 
being constantly thrown around it to prevent savings 
from the ration being diverted to other purposes 
than for the increased efficiency of the soldier’s 
table. The existence of a good fund for the purchase 
of extras, has always been taken for granted. An 
army cook book is issued to troops, and it is full of 
useful and excellent recipes, but 75 per cent, of them 
call for articles not supplied in the ration, such as 
butter, lard, eggs, flavoring and seasoning, and the 
unfortunate company that is minus a company fund 
can find no use whatever for over half of these 
recipes. 
The ration is designed for healthy men, and admits 
of no flexibility to suit the sick. For the latter who 
might die if forced to subsist on the harsh compo- 
nents of the ration, another arrangement is made. 
The ration of the sick, or its money value, is given to 
the surgeon who buys the extra diet that is needed, 
which purchases are further increased by such arti- 
cles as beef extracts, condensed milk, etc., supplied 
by the Medical Department for the use of the sick 
only. 9 
SELECTION OF RATION. 
An army must often be fed at a great distance 
from the market, and it is therefore evident that the 
chief objects in view in the selection of the soldier’s 
food must be facility of transportation and ease of 
preservation in all climates. Articles that are bulky 
or easily damaged by rough handling, and those that 
are not easily preserved from decay are at once ruled 
out. It need scarcely be mentioned that the articles 
must be produced in abundance throughout the 
country, neither imported nor the particular prepa- 
tions of a few manufacturers. Couple with this, the 
fact that the articles must be so inexpensive as to 
refute any charges of extravagance and it will be 
readily understood that with a few exceptions, the 
the ration contains about all the articles that it is 
possible to put in it at present without calling on 
foods that are preserved, canned or otherwise speci- 
ally prepared. In regard to charges of extravagance 
it may be remarked in passing, that as the present 
ration usually costs less than 15 cents it is rather 
far fetched to talk of extravagance. There are few 
healthy laborers in respectable standing in civil life 
who subsist on less than one dollar a week. 
For these reasons, the soldier’s ration has always 
been simple and dry. Indeed, until quite recently, 
there has been but little change in the ration for 75 
years. For instance, omitting details, during the 
revolution, the soldier’s food was essentially: 1 
pound beef, 1 pound bread, 1 pint milk, 1 quart beer, 
and a taste of molasses and dried vegetables, though 
practically he received but a small fraction of his 
allowance. In 1785, after the war, it was even sim- 
pler, 1 pound beef, 1 pound bread, and 1 gill of rum. 
The beef was increased to 1£ pound in 1798, and the 
bread or flour to 18 oz. at the same time, at which 
they have since remained except for three years dur- 10 
ing the rebellion when the bread or flour was in- 
creased by four ounces. At this time also (1861— 
1864) 1 pound potatoes was issued three times a 
week. From time to time other changes and slight 
additions were made; in 1818 some dried vegetables 
(peas, etc.,) were added ; in 1832 a small amount of 
coffee and sugar was issued in lieu of spirits, and 
there have been numerous changes in salt, pepper 
and vinegar. The coffee and sugar have remained 
unaltered for 32 years. At the present time the 
ration is more liberal than it has ever been before. 
Human beings can by degrees become accustomed 
to any diet,even though it be outrageous ; they can sub- 
sist chiefly on fruits in the tropics or chiefly on fats 
in the arctic regions, but any rapid change of diet is 
disastrous. Now, as the militia when mustered into 
the service of the United States must subsist on the 
army ration, it is a cardinal principle that the food 
supplied must closely approximate that to which 
they are accustomed. As regards the present ration 
this is approximately so, but it has not always been 
the case. The Secretary of War (Mr. Calhoun) in 
1818 reported to Congress that the mortality during 
the wars of the revolution and 1812 from the change 
of a plentiful mode of living to that of the camp, “was 
probably greater than from the sword.” As Amer- 
icans live more liberally than Europeans in similar 
walks of life, we have at once an incontrovertible 
reason why the U. S. ration should be more liberal 
than that of any European army. The American 
laborer has meat every day, while the European 
laborer may have it but once a week, and the Amer- 
ican soldier must and does have meat three times a 
day. 
There is another point to which a mere reference 
is necessary. In cold climates no article can be used 
in the field in winter, that would be spoiled by freez- 
ing, or by alternate freezing and thawing. This 11 
blocks out a few articles put up in cans in fluid pre- 
servative, potatoes and all fresh vegetables, and fruits 
and various other articles. 
Until quite recently (within 50 years), it was pre- 
sumed that if the ration kept the soldier alive it was 
sufficient. The idea that it should keep him in 
health is modern, and logically follows both from 
increased knowledge of the etiology of faulty food in 
the production of disease, and from a contemplation 
of disastrous epidemics on land and sea, following 
upon a long continued improper food. The smallest 
amount of food that will keep a man alive has been 
approximately known for centuries, and though 
modern experiments make our knowledge vastly 
more detailed, accurate, and scientific, they have 
added little to the knowledge that one pound of 
bread and meat daily will subsist a man for quite 
a long period. When we come to discuss the amount 
and kind of food necessary to keep him in health we 
are on debatable ground. Our knowledge on this 
subject is not yet complete enough, we have only the- 
ories and opinions. A man may appear to be healthy, 
but it is not quite certain that he may, on the one 
hand be taking too much of one variety of food, gener- 
ating a tendency to plethora or lithaemia, or on the 
other hand living in a constant tendency to anaemia 
or scrobutus, with all the liability to contract other 
diseases from lessened general vitality and resisting 
powers. We all know men whose usual daily food is 
even more simple than the ration, but we know also 
that there are times, as during occasional visits from 
home, when they eat other things that perhaps 
restore the balance. Patients have often been restored 
to health by a change of diet made necessary by a 
recommended change of scene. 
The soldier is occasionally so situated for pro- 
VARIETY. 12 
longed periods that he leads an essentially sedentary 
life, and the total amount of food energy needed is 
far less than what is supplied. It is in such circum- 
stances that there must be more variety than the 
ration affords. When he works hard he can subsist 
on an unvaried diet and feel well, but if he lives in 
enforced idleness, the poorer menu seen in table 12 
would soon cause satiety. Practically and usually, 
variety is secured by purchase or gardens, but occa- 
sionally it cannot be so secured. The gardens at 
military posts are considered of great value and fos- 
tered with as much care as possible. Seeds and im- 
plements are furnished to a certain extent, suitable 
ground reserved for the purpose, and men detailed 
for the work and excused from other duties. There 
is a feeling that the soldier should not be compelled 
to raise his own vegetables. The company is liable, 
in some places, to be called into the field and the 
garden neglected to its ruin, and the daily military 
routine with its exactions and privations is liable to 
discourage in the soldier such continuous labor as is 
the lot of farmers. Practically it is found that there 
are several men in each company who have been 
raised as farmers, and who are anxious to do the 
work. 
The diet can be greatly improved by the addition 
of soups, providing the cook is efficient. Bones are 
too often thrown away, and though they cannot sup- 
ply much nutriment, as explained on page 659, yet 
soups may be made the vehicle for the nutriment of 
rice, beans, tomatoes and other vegetables. Those 
companies blessed with good, economical, and ener- 
getic cooks usually have soups quite' frequently, and 
the extra comfort thereby gained more than compen- 
sates for the trouble. 
In regard to the variety of the ration, the thought 
is now being evolved that it is no more necessary to 
have a ration that will keep in all climates, than it 13 
is to have a uniform that can be worn in all climates, 
whether 50 below zero, or 130 above. As the food 
can be purchased within the climatic district in 
which it is used, the ration in the extreme north can 
be of such a nature that it might spoil in the extreme 
south or vice versa. If such a radical idea ever 
becomes practicable it will greatly facilitate the pro- 
cess of making the ration flexible. A few years ago 
it was thought that the soldier of the southern sum- 
mer must eat the same kind of fat pork, etc., that 
was used in the northern winter, but at present it is 
recognized that there must be a distinction, and as 
time goes on there is a greater and greater tendency 
shown to adapt the food to the place and circum- 
stances. The addition to the ration of fresh vegeta- 
bles in 1890, has been one of the greatest advances 
made since 1818, when dried vegetables were added 
in lieu of some of the old issues, and various other 
substitutions permitted. The occasional issue of 
dried or fresh fruits of the cheaper and more easily 
preserved varieties would be a boon highly appreci- 
ated by the troops in the hot districts of the south. 
If two ships were to start from New York, each to 
be absent several years, one in the Arctic regions 
and the other in the tropics, no one would even 
dream of provisioning them alike. Yet if two armies 
were similarly to start from New York for long 
periods, one to the extreme north, and the other to 
the hottest parts of the south, the law presumes that 
both shall carry essentially the same rations. We 
have not yet reached the point where it is decidedly 
recognized that the variety in the ration must be 
great enough to permit of sufficient flexibility to suit 
extremes of climate. 
As all armies in the world have been fed on the 
same general principles, there is scarcely any doubt 
that the dryness and the sameness of the food is a 
great factor in the production of the tendency to 14 
drunkenness, proverbial among soldiers and sailors 
Drunkenness can never be eradicated from an army. 
The class of men from whom the soldiers are re- 
cruited are not tee-totalers, but it is safe to say that 
there has been a phenomenal decrease in the amount of 
drunkenness in recent years, and it may be justifia- 
ble to predict a still further decrease as the food 
becomes more varied. The writer once canvassed 
the men at a small post, Fort Gaston, California, 
and found that there was a large per cent, of total 
abstainers, and at that time, he was certain that 
it was a larger percentage than among mechanics 
and laborers in civil life; but the post was most 
favorably situated, was blessed with an enormous 
garden for vegetables, there was a profusion of fruit 
in season, and game could be obtained throughout 
the year. As elsewhere mentioned, the sameness of 
diet of German soldiers during the Franco-Prussian 
war when Ebswurst was used, was compensated for 
by the large stores of wine found in the vicinity of 
Paris, and by the occasional issue of brandy, a still 
further proof of the tendency to drink alcoholic bev- 
erages when food is scanty and unvaried. 
It is probably true that at posts in cold climates 
in winter when there is much idleness, and the diet 
is not varied, the soldiers suffer more from chronic 
constipation than an equal number of healthy civil- 
ians. It would be impossible to substantiate such a 
statement because reference is made to those slight 
cases which never appear on the sick report, but who 
try to treat themselves with patent medicines. If it 
is true generally, it is due in part at least to the 
sameness of diet and the absence of fresh fruits and 
vegetables. Since the addition of potatoes all the 
year, and of fresh vegetables in summer, there may 
have been an improvement, but how much, if any, is 
not known. 
The enormous number of cases of rheumatism 15 
occurring during the rebellion and since the rebel- 
lion in veterans may not be entirely due to the ex- 
posures, as popularly supposed. These men were 
hardened to exposure and should not have had more 
rheumatism than hunters, trappers, and the aborig- 
inal Indians. The limited, often insufficient, ration 
and the absence of fresh articles may have been one 
of the factors at work. Indeed, new facts are being 
continually brought forward, showing new relations 
between a disease and the habitual diet of a patient. 
Diet also in its relation to diseased states, is becom- 
ing an all important item of therapeutics. It may 
be justifiable therefore to express a doubt as to 
whether in the long run, the bare, unadorned unvar- 
ied ration as issued, will tend towards the production 
of perfect health and the greatest efficiency, if eaten 
to the exclusion of everything else. 
Every soldier is supposed to be able to cook his 
own ration. He can no more do it than can every 
mechanic go into his own kitchen and prepare his 
own meals. Cooking is a fine art and cannot be 
learned, though some of its technique can be taught. 
There must be aptitude. Officers of experience state 
that unless the soldier shows much aptitude as a cook 
it is useless to try to teach him. In every company 
there is usually one man who is fairly expert, and he 
is detailed as company cook and excused from other 
duties. It is almost needless to remark that he is a 
most important adjunct of the military organization. 
It h as been said that the cook is the real manager of 
a company, and as he is good or bad, so is the com- 
pany good or bad. The writer once served at a post 
where one company, blessed with a born cook among 
its soldiers, lived in a state as nearly approaching 
luxury as could be desired, while another organiza- 
tion with exactly the same ration, but having a 
COOKING. 16 
thorough-bred idiot for a cook, lived on miserable 
fare and were discontented and thoroughly unhappy. 
Indeed, if the soldier’s ration were as good and varied 
as the country affords, it could be ruined by some of 
the men who preside over the army cooking. This 
matter has become so important, that it is now rec- 
ommended on all sides that a special cook be enlisted 
for each organization as is the case in the navy. It 
may be said that the soldier is occasionally absent 
from his company and in that case should be able to 
cook his own ration, but in that case, he cannot carry 
utensils, and he is furnished with a special cooked 
ration to be described, and in addition the uncooked 
ration is supplied to the company only when cooking 
is practicable. 
Though the frying pan is a recognized evil in civil 
life, wastes food by making much of it indigestible, 
causes dyspepsia and untold evils, and is a general 
all around nuisance to physicians, yet it is well nigh 
impossible to do without it in the army, particularly 
in the field. A trapper or frontiersman will cling to 
his frying pan as his dearest friend, and the soldier’s 
fire indeed admits of only the simplest kind of cook- 
ing—frying and boiling. The evil in the field is not 
so great as would be supposed, for it is well known 
that outdoor life certainly increases the digestive 
powers to a most wonderful extent. The writer once 
knew an officer who was a confirmed, pessimistic dys- 
peptic, whose diet had to be almost as carefully 
selected as a child’s, and whose illness was probably 
due to lack of exercise, for when he took the field 
and was compelled to do fatiguing work, he ate large 
quantities of fried food, dripping in grease, and not 
only was he comfortable, but he grew fat and was 
actually cheerful. In the garrison diet lists of tables 
12 and 13 it will be noticed that there are very few 
fried articles. 
At certain large posts an innovation in the way of 17 
a general mess is now in practical operation, the 
cooking is all done in a central kitchen and the men 
all partake of the same fare. This change is being 
tried in the interest of economy and efficiency, it 
being supposed that there is less waste and better 
cooking. It is possibly too soon to give a definite 
opinion as to the value of the general mess in the 
army. For field service, particularly in the western 
country, where a company is so often on duty de- 
tached from its regiment, the* company mess will 
probably prevail, because the utensils must be kept 
on hand, and the system must be constantly prac- 
tised in order to be efficient, and in addition it is not 
practicable with camp fires, and portable ovens to 
cook for very large numbers in temporary camps or 
on the march. 
Very closely connected with cooking is the proper 
serving of food. When soldiers are in the field, each 
one must look after his own affairs and take care of 
his own tin plate and cup, iron knife, fork and spoon, 
and nothing breakable is carried. Everyone who 
has been camping knows how difficult it is to take 
along many appliances, and how makeshifts must be 
used when serving food. In garrison there has been 
a decided change in recent years. Each company 
formerly bought its own dining outfit which was very 
elaborate in some cases, but quite poor in others; at 
present all are supplied by the Quartermaster’s De- 
partment with very fair utensils, plain white dishes, 
silverplated knives, forks, and spoons, etc. These 
utensils make the table look very well, and as scrup- 
ulous cleanliness is invariably the rule, the appear- 
ance of the soldier’s dining room in general is con- 
ducive to good appetites. This great attention given 
to the dining room and serving of food has a very 
decided elevating effect upon men. In civil life unus- 
ual brutality in men is not infrequently accompanied 
by the grossest table manners, and each is cause and 18 
each is effect, reacting upon one another. Compel a 
man to observe decency at table, supplying him with a 
neat, clean and orderly outfit, and the elevating effect 
is sure to come. Military men of the last century 
believed that to keep a soldier up to a proper disci- 
pline he should be clothed roughly, given the sim- 
plest kind of overcrowded barracks, and fed like a 
hog, every modern improvement being considered 
enervating. Could any of these dead officers see the 
dining rooms of some of our soldier barracks, they 
would surely think that the service was going to the 
dogs. It has been elsewhere remarked that when 
hardships slowly reduce vitality, the man is made 
less able to exist under more privation in the field. 
When there are no luxuries and everything has to be 
plain in order to be durable and serviceable, it is utter 
nonsense to talk of the enervating effects of luxuries. 
The present policy of improving the soldier’s table 
service certainly improves the ration on principals 
known to every physiologist. The companies where 
the table is still bad are becoming the exceptions to 
the rule. 
GARRISON RATION. 
In calculating the food value of the soldier’s garri- 
son ration it has usually been the custom to take the 
articles mentioned in the regulations. This ignores 
the food from outside purchases, often considerable, 
and does not show what the soldier actually eats. 
The writer has been at considerable pains to find out 
exactly how much the soldiers ate at Fort Assinni- 
boine, Montana, during the ten days from March 11 
to 20, 1892. There were supplied to each company, 
blank forms on which were entered the itemized 
amounts of food on hand at the beginning, received 
during the ten days, and on hand at the end, from 
which was calculated the amount eaten, due allow- 
ance having been made for waste which was also 19 
carefully measured. The results of these experi- 
ments are detailed in tabular form below. These 
figures are accurate within moderately small limits 
TABLE II.—PERCENTAGE COMPOSITION OF EDIBLE PORTIONS 
GARRISON RATION. 
Water. 
Protein. 
"S 
Carbo- 
Hydrates. 
Salts. 
Energy, cal- 
orics per lb. 
Authority. 
Bacon, fat .... 
20.0 
8.00 
69.5 
2.5 
3080 
Estimated f r. L. tables 
Beans 
12.6 
23.10 
2.0 
59.2 
3.1 
1615 
Atwater. 
Pork, salt and fat. 
12.1 
.90 
82.8 
4.2 
3510 
“ 
Sugar, gr 
2.0 
97.8 
.2 
1820 
“ 
Sugar,brown issue 
3.0 
96.5 
.5 
1795 
Estimated fr’m L. & A. 
Flour 
12.5 
11.00 
1.0 
74.9 
.5 
1644 
Atwater. 
Beef 
55.0 
17.10 
27.0 
.9 
1460 
“ 
Potatoes 
78.9 
2.10 
.1 
17.9 
1.0 
375 
“ 
Onions 
87.6 
1.4 
.3 
10.1 
.6 
225 
Oatmeal 
7.6 
15.10 
7.1 
68.2 
2.0 
1850 
“ 
Cornmeal .... 
15.0 
9.20 
3.8 
70.6 
1.4 
1645 
“ 
Canned apples . . 
83.2 
.20 
.4 
15.9 
.3 
315 
“ (fresh apples) 
Dried apples . . . 
Tapioca or corn 
25.0 
.90 
1.8 
71.5 
1.4 
1418 
Estimated from A. 
starch 
2.0 
97.8 
.2 
1820 
Atwater. 
Butter 
10.5 
1.00 
85.0 
.5 
3.0 
3615 
Syrup 
43.7 
2.3 
1023 
Estimated from A. 
Lard 
12.0 
.60 
83.4 
4.0 
3570 
“ “ “ 
Rice 
12.4 
7.4 
.4 
79.4 
.4 
1630 
Atwater. 
Canned corn. . . 
81.3 
2.80 
1.1 
13.2 
.6 
345 
“ (green corn). 
“ tomatoes. 
Macaroni and 
96.0 
.80 
.4 
2.5 
.3 
80 
“ (fresh toma- 
toes). 
vermicelli 
13.1 
9.00 
.3 
76.8 
.8 
1406 
Koenig. 
Milk,fresh. . . . 
14.1 
.843 
.802 
1.069 
.164 
418 
Letheby — ounces per 
pint of milk. 
“ condensed. 
25.0 
17.00 
11.0 
44.00 
3.0 
1595|Pavy. 
1565'Atwater. 
Peas 
12.3 
26.70 
1.7 
56.40 
2.9 
Raisins 
40.0 
.40 
24.00 
.6 
440 Estimated from L. 
Cheese 
35.0 
33.00 
22.0 
5.00 
5.0 
1600 Atwater (average). 
Prunes 
2.50 
12.0 
.6 
140 Approx, estimate 
from Fresenius. 
Cabbage 
92.0 
2.10 
.6 
5.5 
1.1 
155 Atwater. 
Ham 
41.5 
16.7 
39.1 
2.7 
1960! 
Apricots, canned . 
50.0 
2.00 
30.0 
.6 
460 Estimated from 
Fresenius. 
Bariev 
13.00 
2.7 
76.0 
3.0 
1800 Letheby. 
Chocolate .... 
12.0 
20.00 
50.0 
10.0 
4.0 
2650 Paven. 
Sausage 
41.2 
13.80 
42.8 
2.2 
2065 
Atwater. 
Ovsters . . • ... 
87.1 
6.00 
1.2 
3.7 
2.0 
230 
Salmon, canned . 
63.6 
21.60 
13.4 
1.4 
965 
“ (fresh salmon) 
Crabs 
1.0 
526 Paw. 
Crackers 
9.4 
70.5 
1900 Estimated from A. 
I 
L.—Letheby. 
A.—Atwater. 20 
for the weighings were carefully done under the direc- 
tion of the company commanders, and wherever it 
has been possible to verify the results by other de- 
terminations they agree. The results are of consid- 
erable interest because it is the first time this work 
has been done since the ration was increased by the 
addition of vegetables, since it has been forbidden 
company commanders to use the saving of the ration 
for other purposes than for the table, and since the 
fund for extras has been so largely increased by the 
profits of the Post Exchange. When it is considered 
that at this isolated post, outside purchases are lim- 
ited, that the Exchange is scarcely yet in full swing 
and that the garden-truck had been already con- 
sumed, it can be readily imagined that under more 
favorable conditions the variety of food might be far 
better and that the amounts of alimentary principles 
somewhat different, perhaps larger. 
In table 2 there is stated merely for reference the 
percentage composition of the various articles con- 
sumed. Some of these values assumed for the arti- 
cles are probably different from those used in mak- 
ing the experiments whose results are taken as a 
guide. In all cases there was an authoritative esti' 
mate on which to base the assumed values. As the 
percentages are averages, the results obtained by 
using them cannot be considered as precise or accu- 
rate but were approximations whose probable errors 
may be large. 
REMARKS ON TABLE III. 
The amounts of beef were calculated as follows,— 
After deducting 993| pounds bone, and 37f pounds 
other wastes, the rest was considered as edible, and 
its composition calculated according to Atwater’s 
percentages, but there was a further waste of about 
100 pounds fats, and that amount was subsequently TABLE III—UNCOOKED FOOD OF GARRISON RATION FOR 10 DAYS. WEIGHTS IN POUNDS. 
„ DAILY AVERAGE, 440.4 MEN. 
Gross 
Weight. 
Waste. 
Net Weight. 
Water. 
Protein. 
Fats. 
Carbo- 
hydrates. 
Salts. 
Calorics. 
Bacon 
27394 
3% 
270 
54.00 
21.60 
187.65 
6.75 
831,600 
Beans 
428k 
t 
42814 
54.05 
99.10 
8.57 
253.80 
13.29 
691,228 
I’ork • ••• 
343% 
31 
312% 
37.85 
2.82 
259.00 
13.14 
1,097,753 
Sugar, brown 
731 
731 
21.93 
705.42 
3.66 
1,312,081 
Flour 
4379 
126% 
4252% 
531.56 
467.78 
46.78 
3185.12 
21.26 
6,991,110 
Beef 
5025 
1131 
3894 
2196.70 
682.97 
978.38 
35.95 
5,409.392 
Potatoes 
5116 
1386 
3730 
2943.00 
78.33 
3.73 
667.67 
37.30 
1,398,750 
Onions 
700 
150 
550 
481.80 
7.70 
1.65 
55.55 
3.30 
123,750 
Oatmeal 
44 
44 
3.34 
6.65 
3.13 
30.01 
.88 
. 81,400 
Cornmeal 
85 
85 
12.75 
7.82 
3.23 
60.01 
1.19 
139,825 
Apples, canned 
10 
10 
8.32 
.02 
.04 
1.59 
.03 
3,150 
Apples, dried . 
183 
183 
46.85 
1.65 
3.30 
130.85 
2.57 
259,494 
Tapioca [26] and Corn Starch [13] .... 
39 
39 
.78 
38.14 
.08 
70,980 
Butter 
58 
58 
6.09 
.58 
49.30 
.29 
1.74 
209,670 
Syrup 
165 
165 
70.60 
90.60 
3.80 
168,795 
Lard 
107% 
107% 
12.90 
.65 
89.66 
4.30 
383,775 
Rice 
26 
26 
3.22 
1.92 
.14 
20.65 
.14 
42,380 
Corn, canned 
63 
63 
51.22 
1.77 
.70 
8.32 
.38 
21,735 
Tomatoes, canned , . . • 
332 
332 
318.72 
2.66 
1.33 
8.30 
1.00 
26,560 
Maccaroni [51] and Vermicelli [1%] . . . 
52% 
52% 
6.88 
4.73 
.15 
40.32 
.42 
73,815 
Milk, fresh, pounds 
31 
31 
25.61 
1.58 
1.50 
2.00 
.31 
12,552 
Milk, condensed, pounds 
31 
31 
7.75 
5.27 
3.41 
13.64 
.93 
49,442 
Cheese 
10% 
% 
10 
3.50 
3.30 
2.20 
.50 
.50 
16,000 
Prunes 
35 
20 
15 
10.00 
.75 
4.00 
.25 
3,500 
Cabbage and Sauerkraut 
250 
50 
200 
182.00 
4.20 
.60 
11.00 
2.20 
31,000 
Ham 
32 
4 
28 
11.63 
4.68 
11.00 
.76 
54,880 
Apricots 
20 
20 
13.50 
.40 
6.00 
.12 
9,200 
Barley 
5 
5 
.65 
.14 
3.80 
.15 
9,000 
Peas 
4% 
4% 
.55 
1.20 
.08 
2.54 
.12 
7,043 
Raisins 
14 
4 
10 
6.45 
.05 
3.50 
.08 
6,153 
Chocolate 
3 
3 
.48 
.60 
1.50 
.30 
.12 
7,950 
Totals 
18598 
2908% 
15689% 
7120.50 
1413.21 
1657.17 
5343.66 
154.82 
19,446,960 
Pounds. 
Grams. 
Daily average per man 
4.22 
.66 
3.56 
733 
145 
171 
550 
16 
4,416 
15 %X 
85%* 
Counting flour as bread, amount eaten is 
4 lbs. per man. Per cent, of amount 
eaten 
45 
9 
11 
34 
1. 
Including Table V (salts only), grammes . 
733 
145 
171 
550 
34 
Including estimated amounts in Tables 
V and VII 
5 
% 
4% 
about 
2.8 lbs. 
water 
free. 21 
deducted from the amount of fats and its heat energy 
taken from the number of calorics. 
There were 4,546 rations of bread used, amounting 
to 5,1 pounds of bread, a ration of bread being 18 
ounces. From this is deducted 167f pounds of bread 
wasted, leaving the amount eaten, pounds of 
bread. During the month of March, 10,300 pounds 
of flour were used in the Post Bakery to make 13,669 
pounds of bread, so that the pounds of bread 
eaten represents 3,7274- pounds of flour. The bread 
wasted (167f pounds) contains pounds of flour, 
so that the flour used was 3,854 pounds. To this is 
added 525 pounds flour purchased for other purposes, 
making the total flour used 4,379 pounds, and eaten 
4,252£ pounds. 
The bacon is estimated from the tables of Letheby, 
neither of the estimates there given can refer to the 
fat and smoked variety supplied to the soldier. 
Everything below onions was purchased from the 
company funds and some of those above onions, that 
is, some beef, flour, potatoes, onions and sugar. 
Table 4 needs scarcely any explanation, but atten- 
tion might be called to a few facts. The bones of 
Bacon.... 
1.40 
Pork .... 
8.00 
Only 9 lbs. were reported, but this was increased 
to 31 lbs., to include bones, etc. 
Bread . . . 
3.30 
Crusts and small unavoidable wastes. 
Beef .... 
22.00 
19% bone, 2% fat and other wastes. 
Potatoes . . 
27.09 
Parings and defective ones. 
Onions . . . 
21.04 
Prunes. . . 
33.00 
Stones and other wastes. 
Cabbage . . 
45.00 
Ham .... 
12.00 
Estimated. 
TABLE IV— PERCENTAGE OF WASTES. 
beef were weighed with great care, and the result 
19f per cent, agrees almost exactly with Atwater’s 
tables. The percentage of bone usually given (17) 
is too small. The law that states that the soldier is 
to get a ration of 20 ounces of beef has always been 22 
interpreted to mean gross weight, so that he gets but 
15£ ounces edible meat, and as physiologists in re- 
ferring to the army ration, imply that the food is 
essentially 1 pound bread and bone free meat, there 
has always been a misapprehension. In Dr. Dalton’s 
minimum diet of 19 ounces of bread, 16 ounces of 
beef, and 3£ ounces of fat, the meat is all edible. It 
is an open question whether there is any justification 
for considering the law as referring to bone-free beef; 
an overpowering spirit of generosity would suggest 
the latter. 
In the case of potatoes there is a large waste, 
27.09 per cent, which is what might be expected, so 
that there is really served to the soldier only 11 
ounces instead of 16. 
Onions have a waste of 21.04 per cent, which is 
apparently correct. 
Bread, beef, potatoes and onions were very carefully 
determined. There were wastes in the following 
articles, but so small in amount that they have been 
ignored: beans, rice, macaroni, hash, dried apples. 
Where there are efficient cooks, the kitchen waste 
contains nothing of any food value to the soldiers, 
and is thrown away as in civil life. Though it may 
have a value for fertilizer or for live stock, there is 
usually no market. It is often the custom for each 
company to keep hogs, but the surroundings are apt 
to get in such an unsanitary condition that the prac- 
tice is usually abandoned on the score of health. The 
bones might be of value, particularly in this State, 
for the market value of bone dust is said to be sixty 
dollars a ton, and taking the local value ot bones at 
thirty dollars, there is a loss of one thousand dollars 
a year at this post from the bones thrown away. 
Table 5 contains a list of articles which were sup- 
plied and consumed, but as they contain practically 
no nutriment, they have been omitted from table 3. 
Table 6, giving the amounts used per man with 23 
Daily 
Allow- 
per 
man. 
ance. 
338 lbs. green coffee 
1.23 oz. 
1.60 oz. or 
8 lbs. tea 
.03 oz. 
.32 oz. 
f Allowance is large, to allow of 
20 gall, vinegar. . ) 
.14 gill 
.32 gill 
1 making a saving to be used in 
128 lbs. salt. . . . j 
.46 oz. 
.64 oz. 
1 making sauerkraut and pickles 
l in the fall. 
10 lbs. pepper . . . 
11 bottles flavoring 
.036 oz. 
.04 oz. 
extracts. 
3 lbs. mustard. 
24 lbs.baking powd’r 
6 lbs. currants. 
5 gall, pickles. 
4 kegs pickled pigs’ 
feet 
( Though containing much energy, it is omitted be- 
< cause composition is unknown, and the actual 
( amount per man is very small. 
TABLE V.—ADDITIONAL ARTICLES CONSUMED. 
Daily 
per man. 
Allow- 
ance. 
4,379 lbs. flour 
4,946% lbs. bread 
343% lbs. pork 
273% lbs. bacon 
5,025 lbs. beef 
15.91 oz. 
17.97 oz. 
1.34 oz. 
1.00 oz. 
18.30 oz. 
18 oz. 
18 oz. 
1.2 oz. 
2.4 oz. 
18.0 oz. 
Includes purchases. 
5,116 lbs. potatoes 
18.5 oz. 
12.8 oz. 
80# of vegetables. 
20# of 
700 lbs. onions 
428% lbs. beans 
763 lbs. sugar 
64 lbs. butter 
137 lbs. lard 
15 gall, syrup 
2.5 oz. 
1.5 oz. 
2.7 oz. 
.2 oz. 
.5 oz. 
.4 gill 
3.2 oz. 
2.4 oz. 
2.4 oz. 
TABLE VI.—CONSUMPTION AND ALLOWANCE PER MAN. 
the allowance of a few articles in table 3 is given 
merely to supplement the latter table and contains 
only the items used in the greater amounts. 
The following articles were in greater quantities 
than the ration, the excess being purchase: Beef, 
potatoes, flour, and sugar. The savings were chiefly 
on flour (from bakery) and bacon. Almost all of 
the companies bought beef, potatoes, lard, syrup, and 
baking powder, and a few bought flour, butter and 24 
bread. The use of butter, lard or syrup bears out 
the ideas of certain officers that one of these articles 
should be an article of issue and not of purchase, on 
the supposition that the company fund should be 
used to purchase articles of occasional use and not 
articles of constant use. The expenditures for extra 
food during these ten days were larger than the 
average expenditures for the three months of Janu- 
ary, February, and March. With rare exceptions 
the soldier uses more than his allowance of potatoes. 
FOOD EATEN AT POST EXCHANGE. 
Table 7 gives the itemized amounts of food eaten 
at the Post Exchange lunch counter during the ten 
TABLE VII.—AMOUNTS OF FOOD EATEN AT POST EXCHANGE. 
33 
g 
0> 
o 
32 
o 
6 u 
A 
o 
o 
o 
p >» 
o 
£ 
o* 
< 
o 
161 
lbs. flour 
17.71 
1.77 
121.00 
264,684 
6 
“ butter 
.06 
5.10 
.03 
21,690 
55 
“ ham 
9.19 
21.51 
107,8(X) 
6 
“ sugar, brown 
“ “ granulated 
5.80 
10,770 
16 
15.65 
29,120 
60 
“ cheese 
9.90 
6.60 
1.50 
48,000 
67 
“ sausage 
28.70 
138,355 
20 
“ lard 
1.20 
16.68 
71,400 
100 
“ canned fruit 
.20 
.40 
16.00 
13,.500 
80 
“ oysters 
4.80 
1.00 
2.96 
18,400 
14 
“ salmon, canned 
3.02 
1.88 
13,510 
14 
“ shrimps, “ 
2.10 
.15 
7,365 
10 
“ prunes 
4.50 
4,500 
36 
“ crackers 
3.71 
3.39 
25.38 
68,400 
10 
“ eggs 
1.50 
1.05 
7,210 
11 
“ milk 
1.87 
1.21 
4.84 
17,182 
10 
“ mincemeat 
.80 
1.00 
.20 
60,782 
Total, 646 lbs 
65.46 
90.44 
197.86 
902,668 
Per man, dally, .15 lbs. Grams 
7 
9 
20 
205 
Beer, percentage composition by weight. 
.54 
4.8 
4.15 
20 oz. daily per man j g££«8; ; ; ; ; ; ; 
.11 
3. 
.960 
27 
.as 
24 
286 
286 
days. The men who ate this food were, according to 
the officer in charge, wholly among the 440 men of 25 
the companies, the other soldiers at the Post who 
board themselves do not patronize this lunch coun- 
ter. Some of the results are necessarily assumed for 
no authentic percentage tables of values are proba- 
bly in existence, but each value was calculated from 
the tables of value of similar articles in Pavy’s work 
on Foods. It is probable that the aggregate error is 
not large, as the articles referred to, canned oysters, 
shrimps, canned fruit, mince meat, etc., are in small 
amounts' and besides do not contain much energy 
per pound. 
In the Post Exchange there were sold during the 
ten days, 3,744 bottles (quarts) of beer. The officer 
in charge reports that the 440 men of the companies 
whose food is being calculated, drank their propor- 
tional share, and as there was a daily average of 473 
men present, it would give an average of 24 ounces 
per man. As some men drank while others did not, 
it is probable that a few of the former occasionally 
took more than they could assimilate and counting 
the undigested as waste, 20 ounces per man are there- 
fore assumed as the daily average consumption, and 
this corresponds with the minimum allowed to a 
healthy man by Parkes, one to two pints of 20 ounces 
each. The percentage composition of this beer was 
furnished by the analyst of the brewing company 
and the calculated values are stated separately in 
order that he who does not believe that the small 
amount of alcohol and carbo-hydrates of beer can 
serve any useful purpose in the economy towards the 
production of energy, can omit the beer if he chooses. 
Alcohol being between fats and carbo-hydrates in 
heat production, is assumed to have heat value of 1£ 
times its weight of carbo-hydrates. 
All other alcoholic beverages consumed during the 
same time are unknown, they cannot even be assumed, 
and as they add some energy to the sum total, the 
results given without them can be therefore very 26 
safely taken as below the actual alcohol used per 
man, rather than above it. 
Thus the amount of food eaten in ten days 
by 440 healthy, active men in the prime of life, 
is known within a very few pounds. All sources of 
outside supply are absent, they can get food at no 
other places. There is a trader’s store, but on in- 
quiry it is stated that the amount of food purchased 
(crackers, cakes, candy, etc.) is so small that the 
daily average amount per man is probably less than 
a gram of each of the alimentary principles. For 
these reasons much care has been taken to calculate 
the proper values, in order to give as great an accu- 
racy to the results obtained as is possible, while at 
the same time illustrating the actual food of the sol- 
dier. A word might be said as to the other condi- 
tions. The men during this time were fairly active, 
having daily drills, and fatigue duty, once a week 
gymastics, and large numbers patronizing the gym- 
nasium and other sports during leisure hours. The 
weather was cold, averaging 24° F., ranging from 64° 
above zero to 1° below. It must be remembered that 
the results represent nothing more than stated, and 
as elsewhere explained there should be no attempt 
made to give these figures as the proper food values 
necessary to keep in health an active man in the 
prime of life and performing moderate labor. That 
this food appears to keep the men in health, cannot 
be denied for an instant. 
When troops are in a permanent camp close to 
markets, and cooking facilities are improvised, the 
ration may be essentially the same as that already 
described in garrison. When at a distance from 
markets and from the base of supplies, it is not so 
varied, for purchases are impossible and the food is 
absolutely limited to that which they have been able 
THE RATION IN THE FIELD. 27 
to carry with them in supply wagons. The ideas of 
different officers vary somewhat as to what are the 
best and most palatable articles for camping, but the 
following is the list from which choice is to be made. 
TABLE VIII.—RATION IN THE FIELD. 
Meat 
12 oz. fat pork or 
12 oz. fat bacon. 
Bread 
18 oz. flour or 
16 oz. hard bread. 
Vegetables 
2 2-5 oz. beans or 
2 2-5 oz. peas or 
1 3-5 oz. rice or 
1 3-5 oz. hominy. 
Fresh vegetables 
Coffee 
16 oz. potatoes (if they can be carried). 
1 3-5 oz. green coffee or 
1 5-25 oz. roasted coffee or 
8-25 oz. tea. 
Sugar 
2 2-5 oz. brown sugar. 
If dried vegetables cannot be cooked, the money 
value thereof may be issued in meat or bread. 
This amounts in alimentary principles to the fol- 
lowing : 
Protein. 
Fats. 
Carbo- 
hydrates. 
Calorics. 
Grarnci S Maximum 
trains, j Minlmum 
106 
64 
320 
240 
540 
460 
5,166 
4,722 
Average 
85 
280 
500 
4,944 
The detailed figures are not given, as the averages 
thus shown are sufficient for practical purposes of 
comparison. The most striking fact about this 
ration is the deficiency of protein. The fats are not 
in excess, considering the conditions of service, and 
the high rate of heat energy is due in great part to 
the fats of the pork or bacon. These facts are en- 
larged upon below. 
RATION ON THE MARCH. 
When on the march where good camps can be 28 
made every night and transportation facilities are 
abundant, the ration is the same as for the camp 
already described, but when the troops are compelled 
to march every day, certain changes may become 
necessary. The dried vegetables are in such small 
amounts that they do not alter the relative propor- 
tion of the various constituents, and they are omitted 
in the following discussion. If the country is well 
settled, fresh meat and vegetables may be procured 
by purchases from the company fund, but in the 
wilderness it is a choice between pork and bacon. 
For its convenience in frying, bacon is usually car- 
ried. Pork is not so convenient but by the following 
method is said to be preferable. Capt. W. F. Spur- 
gin, 21st Infantry, a recognized authority on the 
ration, writes that during the Nez Perces campaign 
in 1877, when the troops were following the Indians 
hundreds of miles, he would on making camp, start 
a fire and have the pork thoroughly boiled; this was 
put away to cool and be used during the next day. 
At the same time some soup stock, which was carried 
along, was quickly made into a good soup for dinner. 
Whenever it was convenient and bones could be 
secured, enough soup stock was made by prolonged 
boiling to last several days. Beans were also pre- 
pared by cooking them over night. 
The hard bread (16 ounces) and flour (18 ounces) 
do not differ much in their ultimate composition 
and it is immaterial which shall be carried. When 
the camps are convenient enough, some form of bis- 
cuits can be made with the yeast powder supplied, 
and in such circumstances flour is taken. 
In regard to the nutriment contained, it is material 
whether pork or bacon be used. The fat salt pork 
contains but a small amount of protein (.9 per 
cent.) and a large proportion of fat, probably 85 per 
cent.; the bacon contains far more protein and less 
fat, but the actual percentage composition has not 29 
been experimentally determined. The analysis of 
bacon by Letheby (8.8 protein and 73.3 fat) refers 
evidently to dried breakfast bacon ; the soldier’s bacon 
contains less meat and more water and is therefore 
estimated to contain 8 per cent, protein and 69.5 per 
cent. fat. If fat pork is taken there is a great defic- 
iency of protein and an apparent excess of fats (320 
grain.), but the fats are not excessive when it is con- 
sidered that the active out door life of the camp with 
its exposures, makes necessary an increased supply 
of the fats. Indeed, 320 grammes are even below 
the amounts given by Atwater as consumed by var- 
ious Massachusetts mechanics. As the bacon con- 
tains nearly as much fat as the pork and much more 
protein it would appear to be a better material for 
continued use, when fresh meat is not procurable, 
and it is probably preferred by a majority of officers. 
If ham or salt beef were used to supply protein, they 
would not contain enough fat nor relieve the desire 
for fresh meat. Both of these articles are taken into 
the field, and the salt beef, though derided during 
the war as “salt-horse,” is even yet considered a 
desirable article by officers who used it for years. 
Difficulty of transporting it on rapid marches weighs 
against it for field use; but for garrison use, an offi- 
cer of large experience has lately spoken of it in very 
high terms, as an occasional issue optional with the 
company commander. In the future it may be en- 
tirely supplanted by canned meats, fresh or corned. 
If the camp is a permanent or large one, the matter 
of pork and bacon may not arise, for either a beef 
contractor will be on hand with cattle, or cattle will 
be purchased by the commissary officers, in accord- 
ance with regulations, and driven along with the 
troops when forage or grazing is procurable. There 
is an actual craving for fresh meat, and whenever it 
is possible, it is supplied by purchase; hunting is 
encouraged whenever practicable, but often fresh 30 
meat is entirely barred out by the barrenness of the 
country particularly in Indian campaigns. It is this 
need of fresh meat which induces the foraging expe- 
ditions of soldiers in camp—expeditions which often 
are disastrous to the occupied territory. 
LIMITATION OF VARIETY OF DIET IN THE FIELD. 
In the above field rations, the limitation of variety 
is due to either difficulty of supply or inefficiency of 
portable cooking utensils. The nearer the camp is 
to the markets of civilization, or the more permanent 
it is, the more nearly will the food approximate 
to what is used in garrison. There is no theoretical 
reason why the food in camp should be a particle 
different from what is used at home, provided there 
is more of it and there are more fats to supply the 
extra energy needed for warmth and work. The 
writer once asked an old packer and teamster accus- 
tomed for many years to the life of the wilderness, 
what kind of foods were best for camp ; after consid- 
erable thought he answered, “anything good to eat,” 
there -was no theory in that answer—it was purely 
practical experience. 
When soldiers are in the field and are limited to 
the bare ration, and more particularly when lack of 
transportation limits the ration to bacon, hard tack 
and coffee, they suffer very badly from constipation. 
Company commanders who understand this matter, 
have a simple remedy for their men, in dessicated 
fruits. These are purchased and carried along, and 
being light and uninjured by freezing they are 
always available. There is- so much water in fresh 
fruit, that when dried out, 1 pound of evaporated or 
dessicated apples at 4 cents will make enough apple 
sauce for many men, and the expense to the company 
is trifling. The Canadian mounted police are said 
to have dried fruit as part of their ration. The com- 
missary officer at Fort Assinniboine, Mont., Lt. J. F. 31 
Morrison, who used dried fruit in the field for his 
men, is very enthusiastic as to their great excellence 
in combating constipation. Besides all this, as 
antiscorbutics, they are of great value should the 
field service last any length of time, for though 
scurvy could never occur in garrison, there would 
be a tendency to it, with the above limited diet. 
After hard work when one is depressed and worn 
out, there is nothing that relieves all ill feelings so 
soon as a hot drink that is at the same time stimu- 
lating. Spirits have been totally discarded with sol- 
diers for this purpose as thoroughly vicious in 
results. Wines and beer are used in foreign services, 
but public sentiment will never allow them in the 
United States. It has been proposed to issue to sol- 
diers in the field, extract of beef, whose stimulating 
qualities in the form of beef tea are too well known 
to be enlarged upon here. Now if the extract of beef 
can be combined with nourishment in the form of 
soups, a vast deal is to be gained. There can be no 
doubt that strong soups are highly appreciated in 
camp, and so experienced an officer as Capt. Spurgin 
states that it was his custom to make soup for his 
men, and that he found nothing like it as a hunger 
killer. Now, if the hunger-killer in the form of soup 
contains sufficient nutriment for part of a meal, it is 
a most desirable thing for hungry men who may 
have to sleep with the heavens for a tent. There is 
a popular delusion which ascribes to clear soups a 
much higher nutritive value than they possess. Raw 
bones contain considerable nutriment, not only fats 
but protein, and are capable of sustaining life. 
Though some animals can easily digest raw bones, 
man cannot; perhaps he could very readily if they 
were ground to powder. Pavy states that one pound 
of bones, contains as much carbon as there is in 
pound of meat, and as much nitrogen as there is in 
l pound of meat. All this refers to raw bones, and 32 
in dilating upon the value of bones as a food, writers 
usually overlook a most important matter. The 
Paris Gelatine Commission, after ten years of uninter- 
rupted experiments reported that “it is not possible 
by any known process to extract from bones an ali- 
ment which, either alone or mixed with other sub- 
stances, can take the place of meat,” and further- 
more they reported that “every kind of preparation, 
such as decoction with water, the action of hydro- 
chloric acid, and particularly the transformation into 
gelatine diminishes, and seems even, in certain cases, 
almost completely to destroy the nutritive quality of 
bones.” After fifty years these conclusions, as far as 
known, are still accepted. By prolonged boiling of 
bones, the nitrogenous substances are converted into 
gelatine, which is dissolved in the water. Gelatine 
has been denounced as a totally useless agent, but it 
undoubtedly gives up some energy, though it is ex- 
tremely'doubtful if it is of any further use than as a 
fuel and a very poor fuel at that. It will not sup- 
port life. When, therefore, the raw bones of beef 
are thrown away, the soldier loses very little availa- 
ble nutriment except the marrow, but there is a loss 
of variety of diet, and it has already been shown that 
variety though often impossible to obtain should 
always be sought. Soups add so much to attractive- 
ness if nothing else, that they should be given at 
least four or five times a week in garrison, and in 
those companies where the bones are all carefully 
saved and boiled the men certainly do live better. 
Though all this is true of clear soups which may not 
contain much nutriment, it is entirely different with 
thick soups made from leguminous vegetables, or 
with other mixtures called soups. Pea and bean 
soup in particular contain quite a large percentage 
of the various alimentary principles. The difficulty 
of preparing the soups in the field is obviated by 
using one of the prepared articles mentioned more 33 
fully below. There is one in particular, consisting 
of a mixture of powdered peas, salts, extract of beef, 
herbs, etc., and sold in packages under the name of 
“pea-soup.” The powder added to a quart of hot 
water makes in a few minutes a tolerably fair soup, 
rich, savory and nutritious. The published analysis, 
the accuracy of which is presumably correct, gives to 
a 3£ ounce package the following ingredients: 
Protein, 21 grams; fats, 17| grams ; carbohydrates, 
46£ grams. 
Now in the field ration there is a deficiency of 
nitrogen which can be remedied either by using more 
bacon or by the use of one of these prepared soups. 
One of these packages would therefore give a ration 
with the following values : 
Maximum 
Protein. 
Fats. 
Carbo- 
hydrates. Calorics. 
127 
337 
586 
5,614 
Minimum 
85 
257 
506 
5,160 
Average 
106 
297 
546 
5,387 
A package of 2f ounces contains as much energy 
as the edible portion of the ration of potatoes (11 
ounces) and a proposed package of 4 ounces has the 
energy of 1.8 rations of potatoes, though it contains 
far more protein and fat though less carbohydrates 
than the potatoes of the same amount of energy. It 
is proposed to use this prepared soup in the field in 
lieu of fresh vegetables allowed by law. 
It may be added that in the field in war times, the 
transportation is usually insufficient. Officers of 
this military department know it and the subject 
receives constant attention throughout the world, for 
on it depends the success of the campaign. Notwith- 
standing all that is done, impediments will arise, 
break-downs occur, and roads become blocked. This 
always results in deficiency of food, for the rations 
in enormous quantities may be near by but unattain- 
able, and the troops may be actually incapacitated 
for good fighting. This state of affairs may occur at 34 
any time and it is usually unavoidable. Again, in 
forced marches troops may be able to outstrip the 
wagon trains and then they must carry their own 
food. Numerous field dietaries containing ordinary 
articles of diet have been suggested from time to 
time for those special conditions, but as they have 
had time to crystalize into some definite shape and 
have not done so, it is presumed that they are mostly 
impracticable. 
PREPARED FOODS. 
For the same reasons already mentioned above, 
condensed and prepared foods have probably occu- 
pied the attention of military men from time im- 
memorial ; and Parke’s Hygiene in speaking of these 
foods spys: “For the military surgeon this subject is 
so important that it is desirable to put the chief facts 
under a separate Section.” He then gives a list of 
many preparations of powdered meats, etc., but 
unfortunately states that many of these were unsat- 
isfactory. 
The difficulty in preparing and preserving foods is 
yearly becoming less and less. It is only within 
recent years that much attention has been paid to 
the proper preservation of fresh foods, and we can 
confidently expect in the future to see much further 
advance. Specially prepared foods have also attained 
a high degree of excellence; those intended for in- 
fants and invalids receive most attention because 
most demanded. Of the foods for adults probably 
the most successful so far are the prepared soups. The 
German army has had for a long time its Erbswurst, 
a mixture of pea-meal, fat, bacon, herbs, onions, etc., 
put up in little sausage-like rolls to be carried by the 
soldiers. Its present percentage composition is not 
at hand, but it is said to contain protein, fats, car- 
bohydrates and salts in about the proportions needed 
in a food. The latest preparations are the pea and 35 
bean soups, made by an English, and several Ameri- 
can firms. In each case the material is a powder 
more or less dry, and in some cases compressed, and 
when added to hot water makes a good soup, which 
is quite palatable to the majority of people. Lieut. 
W. C. Brown, 1st U. S. Cavalry, to whom the writer 
is indebted for all of the facts relative to the pre- 
pared soups, has Used them in the field when the 
weather was very hot, and when a blizzard buried his 
camp under 12 inches of snow, and he speaks in no 
uncertain terms of their great value and excellence, 
and of the ease with which they can be preserved, 
transported and made ready for use. 
There are very numerous prepared foods, either 
cooked, condensed, or compressed, which are being 
brought forward for use in such circumstances as sur- 
round people in camp. Dessicated vegetables have 
been given a trial in the U. S. Navy, and as far as 
known have not proved objectionable. Almost every 
variety of food is now being put up in the fresh state 
and preserved indefinitely, but most of them, partic- 
ularly the fruits and vegetables are not suitable for 
military use in the field on account of their bulk, and 
their inability to stand rough handling, and the ex- 
tremes of temperature. For garrison use at isolated 
posts where there is no market there is no reasonable 
objection to them. The great value of evaporated 
fruits for field use has already been mentioned, and 
tliey can be so compressed by machinery as to obvi- 
ate objections as to bulk. 
The universal experience of military men testifies 
to the absolute necessity of tea or coffee. The 
latter is generally preferred, but the writer’s experi- 
ence points to tea as preferable in the long run. Now 
each is difficult to carry and protect from damage, 
and the experience of foreign services is to the effect 
that if they are compressed into small bulk a vast 
improvement is made as to facility of transpor- 36 
tation and preservation. In our own service during 
the civil war, extract of coffee combined with milk 
and sugar was issued in lieu of coffee and sugar, but 
with what degree of satisfaction the writer is igno- 
rant. At the present time these compressed teas and 
coffees are quite satisfactory in other services. 
A discussion of condensed food among military 
men brings forcibly to light a false conception which 
all non-medical men are apt to foster. It is believed 
that foods can be so extracted and condensed that a 
teaspoonful will be of the same value as a pound of 
the crude food. Beef extract is often held up as the 
ideal concentrated food. It is forgotten that what a 
man wants is so many ounces of combustible mate- 
rial for its heat energy, and that beyond the concen- 
tration due to exclusion of water and indigestible 
portions nothing further is practicable. Indeed, it 
is not improbable that a few officers believe that it 
ought to be practicable to so condense foods that a 
soldier can carry in his watch fob enough for a week. 
When a ton of anthracite coal can be compressed into 
a water bucket, then and then only can foods be con- 
densed to suit such beliefs. 
It is well known that on rare occasions the soldier 
is called upon to perform the most laborious duties, 
under almost inconceivable exposures and hardships, 
and it can well be assumed that at such times his 
food should be liberal to the point of extravagance. 
But unfortunately it is in just such circumstances that 
it is impossible to carry along the necessary appliances. 
It is purely then a matter of transportation, and the 
most concentrated foods are the only ones carried— 
bacon, hardtack and coffee—a scorbutic diet. Omit- 
ting thoughts of plum pudding and pound cake, he 
must even be deprived of things that in civili- 
zation are considered necessary—a baked potato 
would be a luxury. These are the circumstances 
in which the Erbswurst of the Germans and the 37 
dried pea soup of the English have found their 
greatest efficieney. It is understood that in the 
wilds of Africa and Asia, the English troops found 
the latter food of the greatest utility, on account of 
the impossibility of transporting anything bulky. 
As lack of transportation bars out potatoes first, it 
has been suggested by Lieut. W. C. Brown to issue 
the above pea soup or similar preparation, in lieu of 
potatoes. This will be done as there is probably 
ample authority by law, and it can be done without 
increasing the ration. It is believed that the matter 
is being giving very earnest consideration in our own 
army. 
The one great objection to prepared foods is the 
ease with which adulterations and other frauds can 
be perpetrated. Quality of foods can be easily de- 
termined if seen in the natural state, but let them 
be ground up and mixed with other things, and fraud 
may be difficult or impossible to detect. Good house- 
keepers will not buy with their eyes shut. The 
above objection applies far more forcibly to military 
foods where the consumer is never the purchaser, the 
cupidity and avariciousness of contractors is greatly 
stimulated. It is a strange fact that though con- 
tractors know that at times the lives of the soldiers 
and the safety of the nation may depend on the char- 
acter of the army supplies, they will yet jeopardize 
the lives of thousands of men by fraudulently sup- 
plying inferior articles. The disasters and sufferings 
during the Crimean war were increased to a great 
extent by the poor grade of supplies. The military 
history of the United States furnishes a host of illus- 
trations of operations and even campaigns being 
hampered or even made disastrous by faulty food. 
The German government escaped this dilemma by 
making its own Erbswurst, and if any government 
OBJECTIONS TO PREPARED FOODS. 38 
makes its soldiers’ arms, ammunition, clothing and 
shelter, it can surely make his food. The objection 
is lessened when it is remembered that prepared foods 
are not intended as a sole diet, but merely to piece 
out the notoriously rough field diet, and the objec- 
tion may entirely disappear by an efficient system of 
analysis and inspection. Above all this it may be 
argued that if easily transported prepared, cooked 
foods are to be a valuable innovation, it might be 
justifiable to run the risk of being occasionally fur- 
nished with inferior grades, a risk that we run in the 
majority of mercantile transactions. 
During the civil war, it is stated that roasted and 
ground coffee was greatly objected to on account of 
adulteration, but it has also been stated that the 
adulteration was done openly, ground and roasted 
rye being purchased for the purpose. In regard to 
adulterated coffee the writer has seen somewhere a 
statement that the average soldier prefers coffee that 
is adulterated with chiccory. 
Another objection to concentrated foods as a sole 
and continuous diet is the fact that they do not fur- 
nish enough bulk of food. Though they may con- 
tain the proper amounts of energy and alimentary 
principles they can never be used exclusively. But 
they are not intended to be so used except in emer- 
gencies and for short periods. 
When cooking is impracticable on account of 
traveling by cars, or rapid marches or for other rea- 
sons, a special cooked ration is issued. The items 
of this ration are stated in table 9. 
This ration is insufficient for active men, being 
equivalent to the food of men of sedentary habits. 
The protein is the only ingredient in nearly the 
proper amount, and this arises from the meats and 
beans. As this ration is intended for short periods 
TRAVEL RATION. 39 
TABLE IX.—TRAVEL RATION. 
Meat .... 
12 oz. canned beef, fresh or corned. 
18 oz. soft bread or 1 Total weight, 2 to 2J4 
Bread .. . j 
16 oz. hard bread [ lbs. 
Vegetables . 
Yz to % lb. baked beans. J 
Coffee . . . 
21 cents a day for the purchase of liquid coffee en route. 
The above has the following composition (approx- 
imately) : 
Protein. 
Fats. 
Carbo- 
hydrates. Calorics. 
(Maximum 
Grams . j >iinimum 
150 
120 
170 
94 
417 3,900 
380 j 2,900 
Mean 
135 
132 
400 
3,400 
of inactivity (on cars, etc.) it might be said that the 
insufficiency is more apparent than real, but as men 
traveling usually develop enormous appetites they 
may need more than when in garrison. Nevertheless; 
it might be improved by the addition of prepared 
soups as in the case of the field ration. 
A further defect of this ration is the inability of a 
man to carry enough for several days should mili- 
tary necessity compel him to be detached from the 
main command, carrying dispatches, scouting, etc. 
On such occasions he must learn to do as the Indian 
does,—twice a day take a drink of water and tighten 
his belt. 
COMMUTATION OF RATION. 
When small parties of soldiers are detached and 
it is impracticable to furnish them either cooked or 
uncooked rations and they are so situated that they 
can buy their meals, they are paid a certain sum in 
lieu of food. The ration cost about 14 or 15 cents 
(approximately) but when the soldier is on leave he 
is allowed 25 cents a day, when on detached duty 30 
cents (non-commissioned officer 40 cents) and when 
traveling $1.50 a day. 40 
TABLE X.—COMPARISON OF FOODS OF SOLDIER WITH VARIOUS 
OTHER DIETARIES. 
Grams. 
Grains. 
Protein. 
| Fats. 
Carbo- 
hydrates. 
Calorics. 
Nitrogen. 
O 
% 
a 
O 
German soldier (peace footing) 
Fullv fed tailors, England 
Travel ration, U. S 
Machinist (Connecticut) 
Factory operatives (Massachusetts) 
Factory operatives (French Canadians) Mass . 
German ration, war (extraordinary) 
U. S. garrison ration (including canteen) . . . 
Same (including beer) 
U. S. field ration (average) 
Machinist (Massachusetts) 
Teamsters, hard work, Massachusetts 
114 
131 
135 
105 
114 
118 
157 
152 
155 
85 
182 
254 
39 480 2800 
39 525 3055 
132 400 3400 
147 399 3435 
150 522 4000 
204 549,4630 
285 3314650 
180 5701621 
180 633 4907 
280 500 5000 
254 617 5640 
363 826 7805 
1 1 
27714443 
3184862 
328 5194 
255 [5145 
277 6048 
287 6901 
382,6750 
370'6805 
37717446 
206 7247 
442 8423 
617 9950 
The U. S. rations would be slightly increased by 
including the amounts of nutriment in the articles 
of table 5. 
Table 10 is prepared to show at a glance how the 
various rations discussed compare with the food of 
civilians. They are tabulated with various dietaries 
that have been published by Atwater. It is thus 
shown, that as far as the total energy is concerned the 
various rations compare rather favorably with the 
dietaries of various laborers in the United States. 
Only one dietary of foreign laborers is given for they 
are all less than those of American laborers of the 
same grade—the foreign workman, according to 
Atwater, being as much underfed as some American 
workmen are overfed. The field ration would be 
reduced in carbohydrates if potatoes could not be 
carried. Taking the largest dietary on the list as 
unity,—that is, the food of teamsters in Massa- 
chusetts doing hard work,—the energy of the various 
rations would be as follows: Field ration-ff; garri- 
son ration, travel ration -fe. 41 
The rations of foreign armies approximate to the 
usual food of the people, which as we have just seen 
is less than that of Americans; for this reason it is 
unfair to compare the U. S. ration with that of for- 
eign armies, unfair to the former, which by the con- 
trast appears more liberal than it is, unfair to the 
latter which similarly is apparently illiberal or actu- 
ally deficient. 
TABLE XI—ESTIMATED PROPORTIONS OF ORDINARY DIETA 
RIES. 
Protein. 
1 
Carbo- 
hydrates. 
CD 
"3 
CZ2 
Playfair (moderate exercise and soldiers in peace) . . 
100 
33 
443 
17 
Moleschott 
100 
65 
315 
23 
Pettenkofer & Voit 
100 
87 
258 
22 
U. S. travel ration 
100 
98 
296 
24 
Ranke 
100 
100 
240 
25 
U. S. garrison ration 
100 
117 
400 
24 
U. S. field ration 
100 
329 
588 
24 
The larger percentage of fats over protein in the 
U. S. rations in table 11 corresponds to the increased 
proportion of fats over protein found in all Ameri- 
can dietaries according to Atwater, a still further 
evidence of the unfairness of comparing the U. S. 
ration with that of foreign soldiers. 
There are given in tables 12 and 13, a week’s bill 
of fare taken at random and furnished by two com- 
pany commanders, one at Fort Assinniboine, Mon- 
tana, and the other at a hot southern post. These 
two are in the strongest contrast, the first so liberal, 
and the latter so bare, that they exemplify in the 
most fortunate way some of the remarks previously 
made as to the conditions of service varying the bill 
of fare. The company at Fort Assiniboine possessed 
SPECIMEN DIETARIES. 42 
an excellent cook and a large company fund, received 
nearly $50 a month from the Post Exchange, at the 
time chosen had vegetables from a fairly good garden, 
and could purchase extras fairly reasonably from 
neighboring towns and even St. Paul, but none of the 
conditions were as good as at other posts with excel- 
lent gardens, large receipts from the Exchange and 
convenient to good markets. The other company 
had no fund, no receipts from Post Exchange, no 
garden, no markets even if they had money to buy, 
and the result shows what the ration itself can do, 
supplemented as it was by § to 1 pound potatoes 
daily per man purchased from meagre savings. Its 
commander also states as one reason for small “sav- 
ings” that many of the soldiers are not much more 
than boys, and that they discover eating abilities 
surpassed by none except Indians. He is thoroughly 
alive to the interests of his men and gives much 
thought to the ration, and when favorably situated 
the company fared excellently. The bill of fare can 
therefore be correctly assumed to be the best that 
could have been done. 
TABLE XII. 
A company’s dietary at Fort Assinniboine, Montana (Capt. 
Alfred Reynolds’ Company). 
(Gravy always served with meats, and sauce with pud- 
dings.) 
Breakfast: Beef stew, fried potatoes, corn bread, syrup, 
bread, butter, coffee. 
Dinner: Meat pie, mash potatoes, turnips, cabbage, pick- 
led pork, bread, coffee. 
Supper: Beefsteak with onions, squash pie, bread and 
coffee. 
December 2, 1891. 
Breakfast: Roast beef,fried potatoes,bread,butter,coffee. 
Dinner: Pea soup, roast beef, baked potatoes, stewed 
onions, cauliflower, tapioca pudding, bread and coffee. 
Supper : Meat stew, fried carrots, apple pie, bread, coffee. 
December 1,1891. 43 
Deceviber 3,1891. 
Breakfast: Oatmeal, milk, meat hash, bread, coffee. 
Dinner : Sauerkraut, pickled pork, mashed potatoes, pick- 
beets, rice pudding, bread and coffee. 
Supper: Fried sausage meat, fried potatoes, green corn, 
blanc mange pudding, bread and coffee. 
December 4,1891. 
Breakfast: Beefsteak with onions, fried potatoes, bread, 
coffee. 
Dinner: Roast beef, mashed potatoes, stewed onions, 
pickled beets, plum pudding, bread, coffee. 
Supper: Fried liver and bacon, fried carrots, squash pie, 
bread, coffee. 
December 5, 1891. 
Breakfast: Beefsteak,fried potatoes,bread,butter,coffee. 
Dinner: Pork and beans, peach pie, bread, coffee. 
Supper: Cold beef, corn bread, syrup, apple sauce, bread, 
coffee. 
December 6,1891. 
Breakfast: Meat hash, oatmeal, milk, bread, butter, coffee. 
Dinner: Vegetable soup, mashed potatoes, roast beef, 
pickles, tapioca pudding, bread, coffee. 
Supper: Beef stew, green apple pie, bread, butter, coffee. 
December 7,1891. 
Breakfast: Roast beef, baked potatoes, hot rolls, syrup, 
bread, butter, coffee. 
Dinner: Sauerkraut, pickled pork, mashed potatoes, roast 
beef, bread, coffee. 
Supper: Meat pie, rice pudding, bread, butter, coffee. 
December 25,1891, Christmas. 
Breakfast: Meat hash, oatmeal, milk, hot rolls, bread, 
butter, coffee. 
Dinner: Roast turkey, roast beef, green corn, French 
peas, ham, mashed potatoes, pickles, cranberry sauce, mince 
pie, jelly cake, sponge cake, bread, butter, coffee, almonds 
and filberts. 
Supper: Oysters, cold ham, cold beef, apple sauce, assorted 
cakes, green apple pie, bread, butter, tea. 
A company dietary at a hot southern post. 
(Gravy always served with meats, and sauce with pud- 
dings.) 
TABLE XIII. 44 
April 1,1892. 
Breakfast: Beef hash, (with onions and potatoes) bread, 
coffee. 
Dinner: Rice and tomato soup, roasr beef, roasted pota- 
toes, bread. 
Supper: Beef, (same as dinner) bread, coffee. 
April 2, 1892. 
Breakfast: Irish stew, bread, coffee. 
Dinner: Pea soup (with toasted bread), roast beef, boiled 
potatoes, bread. 
Supper : Beef, pancakes, syrup, bread, coffee. 
April 3,1892. 
Breakfast: Meat hash (with potatoes and onions) bread 
and coffee. 
Dinner: Roast beef, mashed potatoes, plum pudding, 
bread and coffee. 
Supper: Fried liver and bacon, bread and coffee. 
April 4,1892. 
Breakfast: Beef hash, bread and coffee. 
Dinner: Baked fresh pork, baked beans,bread and coffee. 
Supper : Beefsteak, fried potatoes, bread and coffee. 
April 5, 1892. 
Breakfast: Irish stew, bread and coffee. 
Dinner: Rice and tomato soup, roast beef, boiled potatoes, 
bread. 
Supper: Beef, fried potatoes, bread and coffee. 
April 6, 1892. 
Breakfast: Beef hash, bread and coffee. 
Dinner : Rice and tomato soup, roast beef, boiled potatoes, 
spiced bread dressing, bread. 
Supper : Meat pot-pie, bread and coffee. 
April 7, 1892. 
Breakfast: Fried pork, fried potatoes, bread and coffee. 
Dinner: Pea soup, with toasted bread, roast beef, boiled 
potatoes, bread. 
Supper : Beef, fried potatoes, bread, coffee. 
In view of the above bills of fare, and of all that 
has been said about the ration, it must be stated that 
it is a notorious fact that when sensational com- 
plaints from soldiers are published in the newspa- 
pers, it too often happens that when sifted down, 45 
they are shown to come from men who are inclined 
to be vicious, and who before enlistment have been 
accustomed to far worse fare, but who think that to 
complain is sure evidence of personal superiority. 
These cases are apt to dampen the ardor of offi- 
cers, who with rare exceptions, are thoroughly inter- 
ested in the soldier’s welfare. 
For the major part of the data of this paper the 
writer is indebted to the courtesy of the officers serv- 
ing at Fort Assinniboine, Montana, who have with 
painstaking care weighed and determined the foods 
used in their respective companies and supplied all 
data at their command. 
Of the legion of prepared foods that have been 
used for military purposes the only ones that have 
given much satisfaction, and to which there are few 
objections, are those made with powdered peas as a 
basis. In some armies these are now always sent into 
the field with troops to be used when other foods can- 
not be supplied. As Erbswurst is the pioneer of this 
class, and has been frequently referred to, a few 
words as to what it is may not be out of place, though 
they may repeat former reports to this Section. Cap- 
tain Henry G. Sharpe, C. S., U. S. Army, who has 
devoted much time and study to this subject both at 
home and abroad, has very kindly furnished the fol- 
lowing information from his reports. 
“Erbswurst is a combination of pea meal and other 
articles, invented by a German cook named Griin- 
berg, whose secret consisted in his method of pre- 
serving the legumine from the decay to which it is 
so prone. The German Government purchased the 
secret for $25,000. It was first used on a large scale in 
the Franco-Prussian war by the II army commanded 
by Prince Frederic Charles, who reported its great 
value to the war ministry July 16, 1870. The food 
ERBSWURST. 46 
was composed of pea meal, fat and bacon, and an 
extensive factory for making it was established at 
Berlin, under the supervision of Army Intendant 
Englehard. The factory commenced work on August 
8 and in a few days furnished the first 100.000 pea 
sausages which under the name of “Erbswurst” be- 
came so widely known. This article of food met 
with such general approval that for a long time the 
factory had to supply the whole army with it. The 
factory ultimately extended its business to making 
other kinds of meat preserves and altogether sent some 
40,000,000 rations to the field army. Other factories 
were established at Frankfort-on-the-Main, and 
Mainz. 
This description of food had the advantage for the 
commissariat in being lighter for transport, and for 
the troops, especially for those on outpost duty, in 
being more easily prepared for consumption. The 
unavoidable sameness of the ration, was successfully 
compensated for by the large stores of wine found in 
the neighborhood of Paris, and by the occasional 
issue of an extra ration of brandy.” 
Parke’s Hygiene states that when it was used too 
constantly not only did the men dislike it but it was 
liable to produce flatulence and diarrhoea. A soldier 
who has lately returned from a visit to Germany 
informs the writer that the soldiers in private conver- 
sation still speak of it in the highest terms. On 
account of certain seasoning ingredients in Erbs- 
wurst the English soldiers do not like it, though 
they are very fond of their similar preparation of 
pea soup. 
In table 14 are arranged some analyses of these 
pea-meal mixed foods. The English pea-soup appears 
to be drier than the others, and as the actual analy- 
sis above shows it to be so, it will probably keep 
better than the others. The percentage of fat though 
not great enough for American stomachs is far more 47 
TABLE XIV.—COMPOSITION OF SOME PREPARED MILITARY 
FOODS. 
Water. 
Protein. 
cj 
5^ 
Carbo- 
hydrates. 
Wood- 
fiber. 
Ash. 
Authority. 
Erbswurst 
12.09 
31.18 
3.08 47.50 
6.15 
Blythe. 
“ as first used . . 
1C,.00 
35.00 
27.00 
Parkes. 
“ 1887 
15.70 
23.00 
“ 
Dried pea soup (1) 
7.58 
10.93 
8.98 
53.44 
1.34 
li.73 
Konig. 
“ “ “ (2) 
8.08 
15.81 
24.41 
36.78 
1.69 
13.53 
“ 
Kopf’s “ “ 
(used by the English army.) 
4.78 
21.09 
17.25 
46.45 
4.40 
6.03 
S. P. Sharpless 
(Boston). 
than the first specimen of Erbswurst. If it were 
more fatty it would not keep as well as it does. 
Several American firms make dried pea soups and it 
is regretted that analyses of their products are not 
available for comparison.