A Basket of Chips: An Autobiography

Basket of Chips, page 014

A Basket of Chips gave her food in very small quantities. But there was nothing she would touch, yet she was very hungry and only weighed a pound and three-quarters. I knew she must begin eating so I wired in a dry spot of ground that had a roof over it and gave her a dish of water and some cottage cheese. But she would not touch it. She looked and smelled of it but said, "You don't know anything about such cases as mine." The next day I saw her picking at some dry fragments of straw and leaves. "Yes," I said, "you have told me what you want. It is greens." So I cut her some young tender grass, and how she did thank me with her song of contentment after she had eaten a moderate amount. How very carefully she brought back the proper func- tions of her digestive apparatus, and when it was strong she ate all that she could. And then how rapidly she came back to normal weight and health, and was soon paying her board and a good margin of profit. I can assure you that a very large per- cent of success would follow the similar treatment of our do- mestic creatures. And what percent of the humans would re- cover if allowed to be their own physician? At the first stage of this disease the creature will be raven- ously hungry for the following reason: Nature is calling for a diet of greens and animal food, which means out of doors and plenty of good fresh air. The searching for insects and bugs tends to put the body in a healthy condition; if combined with the greens and water. Of course that is what the appetite craves - hence the over-eating which soon ends in the death of the creature if it is allowed to feed with those in proper health and is given food that is either for egg production or a fattening, growing ration. The moment the cow refuses her food don't think by a change, or something especially tempting, you can induce her to eat. She is not like your little boy, or yourself. When Nature has put up the flag he would slow up, but you bribe him by some delicacy all the worse for him, and soon it is a case for the doctor. The doctor applies his remedies and makes a few calls and you pay a big bill and grumble at it. His charges have been 14