I
have read a lot about the American Civil War over the years. That
reading has included every thing from scholarly works written by
trained historians to the diaries and letters of the common soldier.
I would venture to say that 90 per cent of the literature about the
war touches, to some degree, the subject of foraging. All manner of
edibles are mentioned including meat on the hoof, meat smoked, and
meat salted. Fish and sundry other aquatic foods such as crab and
oysters are much in evidence especially if an army is camped for an
extended period near a river or along the coast. Of course vegetables
are always mentioned, as are the fruits and nuts that grew in
abundance in all parts of the divided nation. Even on rare occasion
okra can be found as part of a foraging soldiers bill of fare along
with the tubers Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes and yams. In all my
recollection however, I do not recall ever seeing tomatoes mentioned.
I wonder why?
That
may be partially answered by the fact that the tomato is not one of
the best traveling fruits to ever be harvested. It would be difficult
for a forager to return with this item in good order to his mess. In
the case of the long range foragers of William T. Sherman, it would
be next to impossible. Those guys went for miles and other more
sturdy items probably took first place.
Another
answer may be that the plant was grown more as a decorative vine than
as a food source so finding a plant laden with fruit may have been
difficult and dependent on what time of the year the soldiers passed
by. The vine may not have been in blossom yet or the fruit still
green or even after the time of harvest.
Once
upon a time, too, the tomato was thought to be poisonous, and if you
ate one and survived you must be a witch! So superstition might have
played a big part in the soldiers reasoning to pass this vegetable
by. (The tomato was not declared to be a vegetable until 1893, by the
US Supreme Court no less, although botanically it is a fruit. [1]
This disagreement in itself may be why it is never mentioned. What
hungry soldier would want to argue the point?)
It
is just one of those questions that enter my mind from time to time
as I research things relating to the war. It is inconsequential of
course but haven't you ever been reading and have an “I wonder...”
question enter your mind? Actually this question was one of those,
popping into my head while enjoying a vine ripened tomato, the real
deal not the hot house kind that are next door to eating wax.
It
just seems to me that a big old tomato would sure perk up a chunk of
salt pork and hardtack like it does the BLT sandwich or hamburger we
all enjoy and it would have been worth jotting down in a diary or letter just to let the folks at home know the soldier was eating well enough. But then again if superstition was a factor, eating them may be cause for alarm to the homefolk.
Who
knows?
Source
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