RABBITS, BIRDS, AND THE FOOD RATIONS.
(To THE EDITOR OT THE " SPECTATOR.") 8m—I find in conversation with friends that it is generally believed that a scrupulous interpretation of Lord Devonport's instructions requires the weekly allowance of two and a half pounds of " meat " to include bone. If this is not so, surely it ought to be made clear. It is easy to imagine the waste that would result if every one avoided forms of food in which the proportion of bone to meat is high. Take rabbits for example. A rabbit has about seventeen ounces of bone to ten ounces of meat! Therefore every one who felt that the Food Con- troller's allowance was too small would naturally avoid rabbits. Yet that is precisely the reverse of what people should be en- couraged to do. They ought to eat rabbits freely, not only to savo other forms of meat, but to reduce the number of rabbits—far rabbits are all the time devouring food on the land. Perhaps you will enlighten me on this point, which I may say is only one of a great many difficulties raised by Lord Devonport's orders. Let me gri on to small birds. These are not worth using if the scrupu- lous householder weighs them with everything on. What, after all, is there in, or on, even a woodcock, when you leave the question of quality and come to quantity? But I want to ask why if the Food Controller's regulations are more reasonable than some people assume them to be the very small birds of England should not be more generally eaten. I believe that in recent years these have multiplied exceedingly. Blackbirds, sparrows, and many other small birds—I leave out larks—are all good to eat and they are all consumers of human food. Many people would not believe how much mischief may be done by sparrows in a cornfield. Blackbirds and thrushes are tremendous fruit-eaters. So are starlings, but they are not, I fancy, pleasant to eat. I remember that when I was a child our cook used to put parts of small birds, not despising sparrows, into meat puddings. I know good cookery from bad and I speak accurately when I say that the puddings were quite excellent. Why not have such things now? It would be making a virtue of a delicacy. But the feathers and the unusable portions—a high percentage of the very little birds—
must not be weighed !—I am, Sir, &c., Hostoess.
[It has been officially announced that the two and a half pounds include bone. As to the rabbits, the case is governed by Captain Bathurst's declaration that people who carry out the Food Controller's injunctions in a proper spirit may use their reason in hard cases. Rabbits should certainly not be handicapped as food because of their boniness. Only the meat on them should be included in the rationing calculation. "Honoria " should regard herself as buying rabbits and birds from her keeper without bone.
Spectator.]
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