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Tapioca

Tapioca is procured from a plant which grows in British Guiana, and is known to botanists by the name of Jatropha, or Manihot Janipha. The tapioca is procured from the root of the plant, which, oddly enough, contains hydrocyanic acid; and it is said that the native Indians poison their arrows from the juice of the root before they begin preparing the tapioca. The native cassava is also prepared from the same plant. Tapioca is a wholesome and nutritious farinaceous food, very easy of digestion. It is used for puddings, for thickening soups and sauces, and it is also simply boiled in milk or water as a food for invalids. When mixed with other flour it will make very good bread. It should be bought of a respectable dealer, as a spurious kind is sometimes offered for sale made of gum and potato-flour. The jar in the store-cupboard which contains tapioca should be kept closely covered, or insects will get into it.