The peasants use very little pastry or cake except on feast days; then they are elaborate — such as Gateau Margherita, made with ten eggs and the whites of five more, butter, flour, and almond flavoring. In the frost- ing of cakes the Italians exercise all their artistic ability^ beautifying and ornamenting them. It is because of the expense and the unusual amount of time and work re- quired to make them that pastries are not used oftener. Fruit takes their place in the everyday diet of the people. Goats furnish milk for the family. The children drink it, and the surplus is used for cheeses of various kinds. Thus we sec that the people of Northern and Centrj^ Italy have a very well-balanced diet in their own country, with protein from milk, cheese, ^gs, and meat; carbo- hydrates from macaroni in various forms and from bread; mineral matter from fruits and v^etables; and fat from olive oil, lard, and pork. From the milk, vegetables, and egg yolks they derive vitamines to pro- mote growth and repair tissue. It is difficult to measure their daily food in calories, as they generally have a one-dish meal, prepared in a large ITALIANS 21 kettle from which each one helps himself, eanng until he is satisfied. The occupation of the southern Italians outside the cities is fishing. Some are engaged in the sponge fisheries, others in coral fishing, while the largest proportion are fishing for food. As a result, the seacoast people have a more varied diet than the other two groups. Fish of many kinds, including shellfish, are added to their daily menus ; these rangii^r from snails — the smallest variety — to ink fish, one of the largest. Snails are sometimes combined with rice or macaroni. They are put into cold water and left to soak out of their shells, then the shells are taken out and the water turned off, leaving the snail meats in the bottom of the dish. These are scooped out and mixed with the macaroni to which may have been added garlic, green or red peppers or tomatoes, for the southern Italians are fond of more highly seasoned food than the other two groups. All small fish are boiled, baked or fried in olive oil, and served with a tomato sauce to which garlic and green peppers have been added. Generally one can tell from what part of Italy a family have come if one knows the foods they are using. The diet of the Italians in the cities is more expensive and varied than that of the people in the rural districts. Incomes are larger and transportation brings food materials from all parts of Italy, from Northern Africa, and even from America. These people use more pastry and cake. Afternoon tea is always accompanied by cakes, and light wine is served with small cakes. Throughout Italy the variety of foods is more limited in the winter than in the summer, as the people have little knowledge of preserving fruits and vegetables, except the 22 FOODS OF THE F08EIGN-B0RN making of tomato paste, the pickling of peppers, cucum- bers and olives, and the drying of peppers and garlic On the arrival of the Italians in the United States, they readily find friends and neighbors from their own section of the home country. They establish their homes near; and from the different foods carried in the markets, it may be determined from what locality the people came. Macaroni is not only imported, but is also manufactured in this country. There are Indian meal for their polenta, meat and fish in abundance, and plenty of v^etables and fruits of various kinds, but everything is much more ex-' pensive than at home. The Italian laborer here is paid larger wages ; he handles more money than in Italy, but with the joy of this comes the realization that it costs more to live. At home he had a garden and never had to count the cost of vegetables or fruit; here he has no garden and is amazed at market prices.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

The peasants use very little pastry or cake except on feast days; then they are elaborate — such as Gateau Margherita, made with ten eggs and the whites of five more, butter, flour, and almond flavoring. In the frosting of cakes the Italians exercise all their artistic ability, beautifying and ornamenting them. It is because of the expense and the unusual amount of time and work required to make them that pastries are not used oftener. Fruit takes their place in the everyday diet of the people. Goats furnish milk for the family. The children drink it, and the surplus is used for cheeses of various kinds. Thus we sec that the people of Northern and Central Italy have a very well-balanced diet in their own country, with protein from milk, cheese, eggs, and meat; carbohydrates from macaroni in various forms and from bread; mineral matter from fruits and vegetables; and fat from olive oil, lard, and pork. From the milk, vegetables, and egg yolks they derive vitamines to promote growth and repair tissue. It is difficult to measure their daily food in calories, as they generally have a one-dish meal, prepared in a large kettle from which each one helps himself, eating until he is satisfied. The occupation of the southern Italians outside the cities is fishing. Some are engaged in the sponge fisheries, others in coral fishing, while the largest proportion are fishing for food. As a result, the seacoast people have a more varied diet than the other two groups. Fish of many kinds, including shellfish, are added to their daily menus ; these ranging from snails — the smallest variety — to ink fish, one of the largest. Snails are sometimes combined with rice or macaroni. They are put into cold water and left to soak out of their shells, then the shells are taken out and the water turned off, leaving the snail meats in the bottom of the dish. These are scooped out and mixed with the macaroni to which may have been added garlic, green or red peppers or tomatoes, for the southern Italians are fond of more highly seasoned food than the other two groups. All small fish are boiled, baked or fried in olive oil, and served with a tomato sauce to which garlic and green peppers have been added. Generally one can tell from what part of Italy a family have come if one knows the foods they are using. The diet of the Italians in the cities is more expensive and varied than that of the people in the rural districts. Incomes are larger and transportation brings food materials from all parts of Italy, from Northern Africa, and even from America. These people use more pastry and cake. Afternoon tea is always accompanied by cakes, and light wine is served with small cakes. Throughout Italy the variety of foods is more limited in the winter than in the summer, as the people have little knowledge of preserving fruits and vegetables, except the making of tomato paste, the pickling of peppers, cucumbers and olives, and the drying of peppers and garlic On the arrival of the Italians in the United States, they readily find friends and neighbors from their own section of the home country. They establish their homes near; and from the different foods carried in the markets, it may be determined from what locality the people came. Macaroni is not only imported, but is also manufactured in this country. There are Indian meal for their polenta, meat and fish in abundance, and plenty of vegetables and fruits of various kinds, but everything is much more ex-' pensive than at home. The Italian laborer here is paid larger wages ; he handles more money than in Italy, but with the joy of this comes the realization that it costs more to live. At home he had a garden and never had to count the cost of vegetables or fruit; here he has no garden and is amazed at market prices.

Foods of the foreign-born in relation to health