Littell's Living Age/Volume 144/Issue 1861/Chinese Prohibition of the Consumption of Cow's Milk

T following translation of a Chinese placard regarding the highly immoral practice of consuming cow’s milk is sent to the Foochow Herald for publication: "Strictly refrain from eating cow’s milk! Man should not rob the beasts of their food. Moreover of all beasts the cow is the most useful and meritorious. Men who do not discriminate between mankind and beasts are worse than senseless. Those who sell milk darken their consciences for gain, and those who eat cow’s milk foolishly think they are benefiting their bodies. Men who take medicine should first carefully investigate and find out its nature. Why do not those who eat cow’s milk consider and inquire into its origin? For instance, men beget children, and while the children are small they depend upon milk for their nourishment; so it is also with beasts. But when men buy milk to eat, do they not do injury to the life of the calf? And is there not bitter hatred and distress in the minds of both cow and calf? Beasts cannot speak: how then are they able to tell the man that, in eating the milk of beasts, his body becomes like that of birds and beasts? But if men wish to take strengthening medicine, there are numberless other articles in the world that are beneficial; and what necessity then is there for taking cow’s milk? Besides this, the death and life of men have their fixed number and limit, and this cow’s milk cannot lengthen out and continue the life of man. Since, then, all know the truth—that it cannot do this, all ought to act with loving and benevolent spirit. Especially all who receive this exhortation should keep from eating milk. The children of those who cause their families to refrain from eating milk will be preserved to grow up; they also will thus lengthen out their own lives, and will escape from evil in time of fatal epidemics. If such persons be able also to exhort others, who are ignorant of first principles, to leave off the eating of milk, their descendants shall surely prosper. Published by the Hall of Good Exhortations. The xylographic blocks are deposited in the Ung Ling Kóh."