MILK FROM GRASS

Hokitika Guardian, 26 May 1928, Page 1

MILK FROM GRASS

METHOD KNOAVN TO ‘MAORIS. AVANGANUI, Alay 23. In a London cable reference was made to the making of milk from grass. This secret was known to the Alaoris hundreds of years ago. AVhen the necessity of providing milk for a baby arose, which was not an infrequent occurrence, and the mother had to provide a substitute, she used a product of grasses, finely pounded nns liquefied. The idea would probably not find favour to-day as a substitute for humanised milk, but the splendid type of manhood which greeted the pakeha on his arrival was a tribute to the simplicity of the diet of the Alaoris.

Tho subject was referred to an Auckland authority on ancient Ahioii habits, lie said that in the old days Maori women knew of a preparation of herbs which had the tendency to increase the flow of mother’s milk, and a concoction was made and given infants to drink. A separate whare was set aside for the- birth ceremonials, special foods were prepared for the mothers, and finally a ceremony to free tho mother from tapu was carried out. It was a subject that had been dealt with fairly extensively by at least two Afaori scholars of note. To say that milk could bo made from grass was merely a literal way of expressing it. The modern Afaori mother probably found that a bottle of stout was just as efficacious as the okl-timo herbs.