I e-mailed David about
this...
n 1899 the Omaha World-
Herald floated the idea of
setting aside a special day to
honor corn bread, which it called
"the Yellow King in food form."
After all, corn bread had been a staple
for many of the early pioneers, who ate
it for breakfast, dinner and supper, and
in many instances it probably staved off
starvation.
The idea fell flat with Editor A. H. Holmes
of the Wilcox Herald, who had grown up in the
corn bread era. He thought the idea might be all right
for those who were unacquainted with corn bread, "but for
us old timers who in bygone years had our intestines rifled out
with the rasping roughness because we couldn't get anything
else, it is entirely unnecessary. We know all about it ... we are
acquainted with it in all its forms: baked, boiled, fried and
fricasseed we have eaten it until for years afterwards the sight
of a corn field would give us the diarrhea. Yes, it is all right to
bring the smooth bore bowels of anterior easterlings in touch
with the rough edges of
the rasping corn dodger
but us old fellows have
been there, thank you."
Holmes's views
resonated with Cash
Martin, editor of the
Alma Journal: "Colonel
Holmes ... kicks on
having to put any more
baked, boiled, fried, or
fricasseed cracked corn
into the interior of his
corporeal system and we
see where the colonel is
right. We remember in
the days of our childhood
we had fried mush for
breakfast, boiled mush for
dinner, milk and mush for
supper, and for dessert,
it was milk de mush,
mush on de milk, and on
rare occasions, corn pone on the side. Oh, it was tough on
the intestinal part of our anatomy and we think it would be
detrimental to the best interests of Nebraskans to have a Corn
Bread Day, except perhaps, for the few citizens of our fair
state who fail to swallow their per capita of Early Risers." ■
Visit the Nebraska State Historical Society's website at
history.nebraska.gov.
I
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calle le le le l d d d
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and nd nd nd
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olme me me mes s
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all rig ig ig ig ig ig ig ig ig ight ht ht ht ht ht ht h
d, "bu bu bu but t fo fo fo fo fo fo fo for r r r
ifled ou ou out t
t
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Andy Howland, south West Union,
Custer County, 1886. NSHS
RG2608-1093
By James E. Potter, Nebraska
State Historical Society
These cowboys are better fed at their chuck wagon in 1898 than
were many newly arrived homesteaders. NSHS RG2575-48
10 NEBRASKAland • MARCH 2018
A Brief History
Country Editors Can't
Stomach Corn Bread Day
