WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! THE FOLLOWING FILE IS NOT TERMINATED BUT SOON WILL BE DONE ASAP IN HYPERTEXT AND WITH PIX WHEN NEED BE SO PLEASE BARE WITH ME TILL THEN, MUCH INFORMATION CAN BE USED MEANWHILE FOR YOUR ENJOYEMENT OR PLEASURE. MEANWHILE IF YOU HAVE ANY TIPS FOR ME SEND THEM UP BY E-MAIL TO: richard@io.org HOW TO TEST FOR EDIBILITY: INNUMERABLE EDIBLE wild fruits, barks, roots seeds flowers, pods, saps, gums, herbs, nuts, leaves, greens, tubers ARE EDIBLE, NOURISHING & SATISFYING. The need for extreme discretion unless one is sure of what he is eating can not be Overemphasized, yet we all realize the possible gain in emergency to ratio the risk. The process of trying a small sample then go on a large one MUST be stretched over as long a period as reasonable, but NO LESS THEN 24 HOURS, because of the slowness that some poison act. (OOPS's!) Then check as much as you can for any ill effects on the small quantity, if safe then you can assume it to be safe, at least in small portion. REMEMBER that your body normally provides you with safeguards. First is the sight of your food, if it looks healthy and clean it may be all right. The sense of smell is 2nd if the food smells all right you apply the next safeguard and taste it. If it tastes all right the food is probably safe. The principle of EDIBLE food is as simple as that. THE MERE FACT OF TASTING IT WILL NOT HARM YOU IF YOU DON'T SWALLOW. REMEMBER TO BE CAREFUL WITH NUTS & SEEDS, TO REGARD RED AS A DANGER SIGNAL, AND TO AVOID ALL FUNGI. If you REMEMBER these rules you will no doubt be safe in testing & eating most plants which are COMESTIBLE. TASTING TEST: (Testing 1-2?) If it is tender and pleasant to the palate and the danger taste of Almond, bitter or extreme acid is not present, then you can eat a small quantity and if no ill effect then the leaves of that particular tree are safe to eat and good for you. The leaves of most plants contain oil cells which give the leaf its taste of flavour. This is generally more marked in the young leaves at the end of branches. SURVIVAL RATION BOX: * Sufficient ration of #hydrates de carbon# under all latitudes assuring to the survivor about 500 calories/day. THIS RATION BOX HAS BEEN TESTED BY & FOR THE ARMY THUS GOOD FOR CIVILIANS CONTAINING THE MAXIMUM OF UNIVERSAL ELEMENTS FOR SURVIVAL. It is called: "BEST UNIVERSAL RATION" because it contains the best nutritive elements that CAN BE EATEN with or without water and yet giving enough energy to keep the body alive without complications. IF one doesn't use too much energy. 1 gram of protein (with water) gives about: 400 calories / 1 gram of fat = 800 calories / 1 gram #hydrate de carbon# with water = 400 calories. This ration MUST be eaten as instructed for best result. For the first day, if the survivor does not eat, he will draw his energy in his own fat reserves coming from the food he ate the day before. WORK SPECIAL NOTE: Thus it is recommended to do the most physical work such as shelter construction, find and gathering fuel for fire, the placing of signalization devices etc. as much as possible on the first day when the survivor still has the maximum energy. This survival ration is mainly composed of #hydrate de carbon# but contains enough fat to gear the production of #sucs gastriques# which will neutralise the stomach contraction which gives hunger feelings. It is next to impossible to starve in a wilderness if one knows how to look for, if no game, look for fish, mollusc, birds, plants, roots etc. FOOD TO BRING: One MUST consider the weight and its nutritive and energetic value in calories. The energy is measure in calories. A person in good health spends easily 4,000 calories per day. So 1 kilo of food MUST supply 400 calories per 100 grams of food in order to make up for the lost. Only oils & dry food contains as much. The food MUST also contain 10% of protein (P) to help maintain the skin tissues and at least 20% lipids (L) to increase the resistance of the organism and as for the #Glucides# (G). See** end of this chapter. They give energy which if not used right away will be transformed in fat which is not a problem for the men in the wild since fat is beautiful even Vital. (Calories = Cal) In the following list** those who have less than 25 % are in brackets. Spices are not included since their food value is low but they have their value as to the taste buds and the moral. Dry food sold in store is excellent, light, nourishing but costly. So dry it yourself with the new invention from USA a drying machine more on this to get information **** RATIONS WISDOM: ONE COULD LIVE MANY MONTHS WITH ONLY 4 ELEMENTS. Powder milk, oil, enriched cereal and poly-vitamins capsules. I would personally add: Spirolina, peanuts, barley, salt, sugar. As well as fat, Pemmican and Pinhole, Gorp, Rockomini. ** See #? *** for recipe. FOOD PACK SURVIVAL 4lbs: * 1 lb. of Pemmican, 1 lb. of Pinhole, 1lb. salted peanuts, 1lb. of Pinhole or Gorp. SURVIVAL RATIONS: * Fat which in calories is the most concentrated food is the sustenance most difficult to come by when living off the land. Butter, lard, bacon dripping, tallow, oleomargarine has more than twice as many calories pound for pound than sugar & nearly 3 times as much as honey. Therefore in survival conditions include a preponderance or priorities of EDIBLE fats with the idea of completing the diet from natural sources. Since bears eat insects such as larva, grubs; it maybe that the best way to get your fat would be to do the same, meaning use the insects to get your fat of the land if no other means available. ALL SEEDS IN CONES RICH IN FAT, AND PROTEIN: *** (Find all seeds and roots which are rich in fat and protein and have them first in the list of survival plants..) BODY COOKING! REMEMBER: ONCE YOUR FEET ARE WARMED UP WE FEEL WARMER ALL OVER & NOTHING IS WARMER THAN 2 PAIRS OF SOCKS. (Wool is best of all.) REMEMBER again, in order not to freeze body hands & feet one MUST cover his head, even cover your forehead. YOU LOOSE 1/3 HEAT BY HEAD UNCOVERED. SO COVER YOUR ASS AND HEAD EVEN YOUR NOSE! SMALL ANIMALS & GAMES: Eat All that can be cut off, skinned & in the absence of cooking utensils extended over hot coals on a green stick for broiling. If rations were scant, you would use the entire animal or frog after removing or at least emptying & cleaning the entrails, perhaps boiling the meat briefly with some wild greens. LETTING PREDATORS HUNT FOR US: Owls can be scared from their kills thus securing yourselves a good supper. Same applies to eagles or hawks that will let their fresh prey to you in exchange for their freedom. The same applies to foxes, wolves & coyotes. CAN LIVE MEAT BE OVERHEATED: If an animal has run a lot before being killed, it increases the rate of spoilage, but it is VERY GOOD TO EAT anyway, because fatigue & fright makes the meat more tender because of lactic acid being pumped into the system when animals are on the run. BEARS & THEIR PREY: A wild bear may or may not dispute your presence, chances are slim that he will argue; but one NEVER gets too cautious. If you are unarmed & really need the bear's meal, use all reasonable caution. At first, spot with the smallest detail at least 2 paths of escape, one NEVER knows, you may need the 2nd. & FAST!! This should not be too difficult where there are small trees to climb. Then watch your best opportunity. REMEMBER that bears after having gorged themselves; have the nasty habit of dropping down to sleep near their food. If you have a gun, judge yourself if the best procedure is not to bag the bear along. FAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT SINGLE ITEM IN MOST SURVIVAL DIETS & the bear has lots of it most time of the year, if at other time then bear meat is even more nourishing. One may think bear meat as Beurkk meat, but they are dead wrong. One's excuse if the bear eating habits, yet he is more finicky then any lobsters or chicken or sharks, pigs. (All scavengers.) A RULE FOR SURVIVAL: It is true that under ideal conditions the human body can fight off starvation upward of 2 months by living on its own tissues. It is equally certain that such auto-cannibalism is seldom necessary anywhere in North America. A good rule is not to pass up any reasonable food sources if you are ever in need. Many dead men just did that through ignorance or too fancy! NEARLY EVERY PARTS OF NORTH AMERICA ANIMALS IS EDIBLE. Natives who don't want to waste nothing, don't bother to open the smaller birds or animals they secure, they pound them to a pulp which they toss in its entirety into the pot, just like packers can whole sardines. 2 EXCEPTIONS HOWEVER: Polar Bear & Ringed and Bearded Seal liver which are excessively rich in vitamin A thus Poisonous to some degree. ALL FRESH WATER FISH ARE GOOD! TO EAT, YET CHECK POLLUTION. However due to increase of pollution one MUST fish out of city lakes or downstream rivers because of toxic. One will get surprised but Rats CAN BE EATEN except for the tail and the head which as the entrails MUST be removed. REMEMBER in survival it is no picnic nor caviar every day. Cats or Dogs are GOOD TO EAT, as wolves etc. When natives refuse to partake any or all of such fauns the reason is rather tribal superstition rather then edibility. Just to REMEMBER the classical pig of Jews & Arabs. WHY BLOOD SHOULD BE SAVED: Animals should not be bled more than can be helped if food is scarce. Blood which is not far removed from milk is unusually rich in easily absorbed minerals & vitamins. We need iron and you would need to eat 10 eggs to supply one man's normal daily requirements. 4 tablespoons of blood are capable of doing the same job. This is just one example. Fresh blood can be secured & carried in the absence of handier means, in a bag improvised from one or another parts of the entrails. 1 way to use it is in broth & soups enlivened perhaps by wild vegetable or two. BLOOD: Leave in the container in which it is collected but keep it covered. A clear liquid comes to the top. When separation seems complete drain it off. Dry the residue by the fire to form a firm cake. Use it to enrich soups and stews. LEATHER / RAWHIDE BOTH EDIBLE: The skin of the animals is as nourishing as a similar quantity of lean meat. Baking a catch in its hide although both a handy and tasty method of occasionally preparing camp meat is therefore a practice NEVER to do in survival or food scarce. Rawhide is also high in protein. Boiled it has even less flavour than roasted antlers. When it is raw, a usual procedure in survival is to chew on a small bit until mastication becomes tiresome & then to swallow the slippery shred. However we talk here of natural hide because commercially tanned leather has no food value even poisonous at time. BONES MAY MEAN SALVATION: The mineral-rich marrow found in the bones of animals that were in good physical condition is not surpassed by any other natural food in caloric strength. Don't roast the bones, rather crack them at the onset with 2 stones if nothing else is available. The less the marrow is then cooked the better is nutritive value. Small bones can go into the pot to thicken the stews or soup, larger bones are open for extraction to eat. So even if the bear has left only the skeleton, well even that skeleton of a super is still temporary salvation. We talk here of fresh skeleton, not those in your family closet. Beurkkk! BONES #2: All bones should be boiled for soup. They are rich in bone marrow with valuable vitamins. They can also be made into tools. RARE OR WELL DONE: ??? When food is limited, nothing should be cooked longer than is considered necessary for your taste. Except for pig meat of course, because of the inside worm, or when you know there are germs & parasites to destroyed. WARNING!: THE MORE A FOOD IS COOKED THE GREATER ARE THE LOSS OF NUTRITIVE VALUES. Even the practice of making toast diminishes both bread's proteins & digestibility. The greatest single universal error made in preparing venison & similar game meat for the table is overcooking which in addition to drying it out, makes it tough & stringy. SCURVY EASILY PREVENTED & CURE: A very definite danger risked when fresh food is habitually overcooked, especially under survival conditions arises from the fact that oxidation destroys the inherent Vitamin C, lack of which in the diet causes Scurvy. Scurvy has killed more men then it is known because it was often not reported nor understood at the time. Now we know better, it is due to a deficiency of vitamin C. If you have scurvy then taking Vitamin C will cure you. Eating a little vitamin C regularly will indeed prevent you from getting scurvy. FREE VITAMINS: Spruce tea can be made by steeping fresh evergreen needles in water, that will be as potent with the both preventive & curative ascorbic acids as the ordinary orange juice. You can get it even more directly by chewing the tender new Spruce needles, whose starchy green tips are particularly pleasant to eat in the spring. Fresh meat will prevent & cure scurvy, so will fresh fish, fresh vegetables & fruits wild or otherwise. So will Lime juice & lemon juice no matter how sour. Beurkkk. Incidentally salt kills the vitamin C. So salted meat or fish has NO vitamin C. RABBIT STARVATION REALLY EXIST: Well known in the Far North, an exclusive diet of ANY lean meat ex. the rabbit will cause digestive upset & diarrhoea. Eating more & more rabbits will only worsen the condition. The diarrhoea and general discomfort will ONLY BE RELIEVED WHEN FAT IS ADDED TO THE DIET. Death will follow otherwise within a few days. THE TREMENDOUS IMPORTANCE OF FAT: Why is FAT so important? One reason: eating lean flesh WITHOUT a sufficient amount of FAT will KILL us. This seems astonishing for in civilization, we obtain numerous fats from a very great number of often unrecognized sources: butter, lard, milk, oleomargarine, cheese, bacon, salad, candy, mayonnaise, nuts, bread. Etc. In emergency when you have to subsist entirely on meat, the fat of course will have to come from the meat itself. Your best day by day guide is your own appetite, once eaten enough fat you will know when to stop, for no more will taste good. So between flavour and fat; take fat. Many supposedly experienced men have died for making the wrong choice. Generally speaking, the older animals have more fat then younger. BEAVERS: (TITBIT OF OLD-TIME TRAPPERS!) Its meat is so sustaining that anyone lost or hungry is very fortunate to find it. They are easy to find because of the dams they build & teeth mark they leave upon trees, since they don't know how trees which they cut will fall they can on occasion be found trapped beneath trunk & branches. They are the biggest rodent on this continent up to 50 lbs. Its tail may be propped or hanged near a cooking fire whose heat will cause the rough black hide to puff up & to separate from the flesh. Whereupon it can be peeled off in large flakes. Its tail is so full of nourishing oil that if set too close to a blaze it will burn like a torch. FOOD IN THE FARTHER PLACES: Actually there are hundreds of wild food plants in fields woodlands, mountains, canyons, deserts, shores & swampland for our survival. So adding from season to season the recognition of a few more can be as you've perhaps already discovered, an engrossing & practical hobby, as well as a way both thrifty & healthful of pleasantly introducing new delicacies to the table. Such acquired knowledge can even mean in some unforeseen emergency the difference between eating bountifully & starving. So get ready to start a new hobby, new taste to discover. FUNGI: ALL FORMS OF FUNGUS GROWTH MUST BE AVOIDED! Beside being of Negligible food Value most are EXTREMELY dangerous & to date very little is known of them. One exception is the mushroom but as stated above unless you know them; LEAVE THEM ALONE! MUSHROOMS: After much research on it, the conclusion is that one should AVOID whenever possible turning to mushrooms for emergency food. MUSHROOMS HAVE VERY LITTLE GENERAL FOOD VALUE. So unless you are are an expert, the incurred risks will be far out of proportion to the possible gain, since no single practical test is recognized unfortunately by which all poisonous mushrooms can be detected. WE REPEAT! NO SINGLE TEST SHORT OF EATING IT CAN DISTINGUISH BETWEEN A SAFE & POISONOUS MUSHROOM. WATER IN TROPICS USEFUL TIPS: 1) Water is easy to find yet although it appears clear and often good for a swim, ALWAYS boil your water or treat it chemically. Pollution of all kind besides germs makes it a necessity today. 2) Good water from a small stream or muddy lake can be gathered if you dig a hole in the ground at least 2 meters from its shore, then wait for the water to sip through and that mud settles at the bottom, this way your water will be safe. (9 FEET = SAFE!) ICE KEPT LONGER: If you have ice and want to keep it as long as possible place it in your sleeping bag but leave the ice in its plastic bozo bag. It is a well known fact that a cube of ice keeps longer than the same quantity in small chunks. So if you have kept some plastic bottles and froze them before putting them in your small fridge it will keep 3 times longer than if you had it in small cubes. WATER STORAGE: Water in bottle keeps 1 year no problem we talk here of the bottle water found in store not the one home, because the bottle ones are sterilised. VITALIUM: A new vitamin has hit the market to treat those who are badly burned and help them not to have scars, it is called vitalium* Supposedly heals the burn in 3 weeks with no scars. STEVIA: A new kind of Sugar which would be 8 times more sweet than sugar is available called STEVIA. EGGS & VASELINE PRESERVING!: One way to make your eggs last longer a bit is to covered them with a good coat of Vaseline, which seals the air off. In the old days they kept the eggs by dipping them in liquid glass that you find at a good drugstore. VASELINE IS GOOD! TO EAT & TO COOK WITH. CANADA PRAIRIES WILD LIFE GOOD FOOD = BADGER. EGGS: Boiling is the best way of cooking, but if no container is available roast after first using a sharpened stick or the very sharp point of a knife to pierce a small hole in one end. Place on warm embers to cook slowly. Slow cooking reduces the risk of cracking. MORE INFO TO COME AS I CAN DO IT THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE!