A School Essay

Mr. Editor: - Now that vacation time has come, and there is less local news, perhaps it might be of interest to parents and others interested in the education of the young, to get glimpses of the work that has been done in some of the departments of the public schools.

The superintendent, some of the teachers and those interested in education, have thought that it might serve as a stimulant to the pupils if their work found its way into the local papers and have desired your correspondent to make short abstracts of the essays written, and to submit them to you for publication.

In compliance with this wish, and by vote of the W. C. T. U. I submit the following, taken at random from the essays placed in my hands.

FOOD. Our bodies may be compared to a steam engine. An engine must have water and fuel to give it power, and so with our bodies. They have to get nutritious substances to obtain from them energy necessary for our actions.

A steam engine, it is said, from the first stroke of the piston-rod, is all the time wearing out, just so with our bodies, therefore we need enough food to repair them.

Foods are classed as nitrogenous and non-nitrogenous. The nitrogenous are such as contain albumen, cased in fibrin and gluten. At the head of the class is albumen, white of egg. The curd of milk consists mainly of casein. Fibrin exists in blood fresh foods. Gluten in wheat, rye, oats and barley. Fats, oils, sugars, starch, etc., come under his head of non nitrogenous foods. Inorganic foods are salts, water, sulphur, iron, etc.

If these minerals were taken from our food we would become weak and die. We obtain lime from the water we drink, and sulphur from the yolks of eggs.

Green vegetables form a very essential part of our diet. They are especially nutritious for the salts they contain.

No exact rule can be given as to the kind of food to be selected or the exact quantity to be taken, but each may learn by a little care what is best suited to his needs.

God has kindly given us the sense of taste and many delicious foods to gratify it. Let us then use these gifts, not abusing them by taking alcohol or anything else that will injure us so that to the end of life we may be able to enjoy ourselves and be a blessing to others.