Coming, as these do, from the animal world—more or less directly—they are eschewed by many strict vegetarians and hygienists, as being open to all those objections which might be urged against the use of flesh-meat, only in a lesser degree. There is no doubt that this is the only logical ground to assume, in this question, and the one which many of us occupy from choice. There can be no question, moreover, that man can persist, and maintain all his faculties—physical and mental—on a diet devoid of all these articles of food. They are not open to any such serious objections as are the flesh-meats, however; and are certainly to be preferred to them. As found upon the market, they are all more or less adulterated, unfortunately; and preservatives, in the shape of salt, etc., introduced, to prevent rapid decomposition. Eggs are also objectionable, on the ground that they have been kept on ice, as a rule, for long periods of time, before they are offered for sale. But, even granting that these articles of diet are fresh, and the best that can be procured, there are still weighty objections to their use, as I can readily show. Let us consider them a little more fully, in turn.

Milk.—Milk is, of course, the natural food of man for the first year or so of his life. This is no reason, however, for supposing that man can continue to eat, or rather drink, milk, for the rest of his life with impunity—especially when this milk comes from the cow. Milk as an article of diet has been highly praised by many authorities. For example, in the pamphlet issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, we read:

While this may be true, the differences that are noted between human milk and cow’s milk are highly important ones. It is to be remembered, in this connection, that the blood and chemical composition of the calf’s body are different from those of man; and its natural food—milk—must consequently be different, for that reason. The chemical composition of cow’s milk is therefore not suited exactly for the human being, and, in order to render it more nearly ideal in composition, various other ingredients have to be mixed with it, in order to make it more nearly resemble the milk of the human species.

Mr Otto CarquÉ, writing in his “Folly of Meat Eating,” said:

But there is a far greater danger in milk than any we have so far considered. I refer to the unhealthy condition of cows. Bovine tuberculosis and other diseases are very prevalent among cows of all sorts—far more so than is usually believed. E.F. Brush, M.D., in his book, “Human and Bovine Tuberculosis,” says:

And in his work on “Milk,” this author says:

These words were written some years ago, and it is probably true that conditions have somewhat improved since that time; but there can be no question that a large number of diseased cattle still exist and supply milk to the various cities—their standard being kept somewhat low by continued in-and-in breeding. And it must not be overlooked, in this connection, that no matter if the animal be perfectly healthy, the milk partakes of the nature and general character and composition of the animal’s body; and while this may not be actually diseased, it is doubtless in a more or less depraved condition—as are practically all domesticated animals, particularly the cow—during the confined period of winter. And the milk, being a secretion, naturally takes on the conditions of the body of the animal—as would any other secretion.

Indeed, Professor L.B. Arnold, an excellent authority on all dairy matters, says:

“Milk is the scavenger of the cow’s body.”

But now suppose we have the best of milk, from perfectly healthy cows, there would still remain several objections to its use. In all conditions of torpor of the liver, or in all dyspeptic conditions, or whenever there is a tendency towards biliousness, milk is sure to cause distress, being unsuited to the organism. Milk contains a large percentage of liquid (upwards of 90 per cent.) to a very small percentage of solid; and while this proportionate percentage is right for the body of the babe, it is not suited for that of the adult. He should eat more solid food, and, if necessary, drink water separately.

Milk contains a large percentage of fat, and but a small percentage of proteid and mineral salts, and the adult can usually balance his diet better by leaving out milk and by ingesting a smaller bulk of more nutritious food material, which he is able to assimilate, but which the babe cannot.

Cream, if used to the same extent as milk, would doubtless be far more injurious. Those who partake of large quantities of cream usually become bilious, as is evidenced by the colour of the complexion, the whites of the eyes, blotches and eruptions which appear upon the skin, etc. But, taken in the very limited quantity that it usually is, it is probably less harmful than milk, on that account. Both milk and cream, if taken at all, should be considered a food rather than a drink, and should be thoroughly masticated before being swallowed—since important chemical changes take place in the mouth, and the milk is also prevented from curdling in the excessively large clots that would form, were milk drunk in quantity, without being separated in the mouth.

Butter.—If we dispense with milk—that is, leave it to the calf, for whom nature intended it—there will, of necessity, be no butter; and, from a sanitary point of view, the absence of it would perhaps be no great loss, it being by no means as wholesome an article of diet as either milk or cream. Like other oils, it is, to a degree, indigestible; not that it gives “a pain in the stomach,” as a general thing, but it does not enter into those vital changes which are necessary to convert food into chyle proper. It mixes with the pancreatic juice in the form of an emulsion, simply, and goes into the blood in that crude condition; and being carried through the system by the capillaries, it is deposited as fat in the various tissues, and largely in the skin. From the very nature of its constituents, butter has but little nutritive value It usually contains 3 to 5 per cent. of casein (due to the presence of the milk) and about twice that amount of water; the other substances are oils, fixed and volatile. These readily decompose upon exposure to the atmosphere, and butyric and other fat acids are set free.

Persons who live largely upon butter emit a strong odour from the skin, very perceptible to those who do not use animal foods. The salt which has to be mixed with it to make it “keep” is not, to the hygienist, a desirable addition, for reasons which will be hereafter stated. Pereira says: “Fixed oil or fat is more difficult of digestion and more obnoxious to the stomach than any other alimentary principle.” Indeed, in some more or less obvious or concealed form, I believe it will be found the offending ingredient in nine-tenths of the dishes which disturb weak stomachs. Many dyspeptics, who have religiously avoided the use of fat in its obvious or ordinary state (as fat meat, marrow, butter, and oil) unwittingly employ it in some more concealed form, and, as I have frequently witnessed, have suffered therefrom. Such individuals should eschew the yolks of eggs, livers (of quadrupeds, poultry and fish) and brains, all of which abound in oily matter. Milk, and especially cream, disagree with many persons, or, as they term it, “lies heavy on the stomach,” in consequence of the butter it contains. Rich cheese, likewise, contains butter, and on that account is apt to disturb the stomach.

Schlickeysen, in speaking of the use of butter, eggs, and cheese, remarks:

Eggs.—Eggs are pretty generally conceded to be a “bilious diet”; and if eaten freely at each meal for a few weeks, the whites of the eyes usually show the presence of bile. They contain an excess of sulphur. The albumen (whites of the eggs) cooked soft, would be less objectionable than the yolks, which contain about 30 per cent. of oil. If eggs are eaten they should be fresh, their use not too frequent, and confined to cool weather. The fowls should be allowed plenty of clean territory to run over, and an abundance of fresh pure water, pure air, and good grains. Unfortunately, the habits of the bird are not the cleanest; it will pick up and eat almost anything that comes in its way. This is why country eggs and country fowl (provided there are good and healthful surroundings) are always to be preferred. In towns or cities the chickens are necessarily confined to the house and yard; whereas in the country they have access to the open fields, and feed largely on grains.

Persons who are subject to torpor of the liver would do well to refrain from the use of either eggs or butter; and those who have sound livers—and desire to keep them so—can take a hint!

A great many vegetarians are strong advocates of dairy products, and particularly eggs. They claim, rightly enough, that they contain a large amount of proteid, and hence are valuable meat substitutes. But this same proteid can be obtained from nuts and vegetables, as we have seen—without the necessity of resorting to eggs in order to secure it. From the ethical point of view, there is no excuse whatever for the eating of eggs; and there are many objections to their use on purely hygienic grounds. It is remarkable, in this connection, to find so strong a belief in egg-eating, when we take into account the fact that these eggs are all intended to be chickens by nature, and we are really eating chickens in embryo—a very disagreeable thought, when we come to consider it. All other eggs—swallow’s eggs, ostrich’s eggs, robin’s eggs, etc.—we think of as existing only for the purpose of bringing into the world little swallows or ostriches or robins: but the hen’s egg we consider, for some mysterious reason or other, laid for our especial benefit—as a suitable and even necessary food! It is really remarkable that such curious ideas should have originated in the human mind. Doubtless they originated in the days of savagery, when but little else could be obtained for food, but which culture and modern ideals should have outgrown long ago.

Although cheese is, in one sense, a valuable article of diet, in that it contains a large percentage of fat and proteid, it is nevertheless objectionable in many ways. The fact that it is derived from milk, and hence indirectly from the animal world, necessitates the same objections to its use as have been raised against all the other animal products. The same proteid may be obtained from nuts and purely vegetable substances, without the injurious admixture of possible toxic materials, impurities, and adulterants. In this connection it may be added that the common salt which is generally introduced into cheese in order to preserve it, renders it an unhygienic article of diet; and hence it is to be debarred, since other substances (containing the same amount of proteid, etc.) can be obtained, in which these mineral ingredients are lacking.