Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 106, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 May 1920 — PRAISED FOOD OF AMERICA [ARTICLE]

PRAISED FOOD OF AMERICA

Robert Louis Stevenson Went So Far as to Pronounce It "Heavenly" —His Favorite Songs. Nellie Yandegrlft Sanchez, In her book on her sister, the wife of Robert Louis Stevenson, has thrown new light on the author of “Treasure Island.” In August, 1879. Stevenson sailed from England, as a steerage passenger. for this country. From New York he proceeded at once across the continent to Monterey to marry Fanny Vandegrlft Osbourne. In August, 1880. he returned to England to present his wife to his people. Though a willing and brilliant conversationalist —he had been described as “deuced explanatory”—he expressed very few opinions concerning his first Impressions of the United States. Now we have them. Stevenson liked our food. In a letter to Sidney Colvin he said: “You eat better here than anywhere else; fact. The food is heavenly." He had hardly reached Monterey before he told his friends of the wondeful “little cakes’ he had bought at the restaurants along the way. He meant baking powder biscuits. Later he fell In love with hot tamales and meat stew and red peppers.

He found the names of our western states —Arizona. Colorado —most poetic. The perfume of the pine forest the Spanish missions on the Pacific coast, the blue of the California sky and our 20-dollar gold pieces he found beautiful beyond comparison. He was Impressed by the way the Indians pronounced Latin at a church service and the mechanical cleverness of our women. He regarded Frauds Parkman as our best historian, "Marching Through Georgia” and “Dixie” as our best songs. For “Home, Sweet Home” he had but little use.