There lay the secret of life in a tiny kernel of wheat - wrapped as deep in mystery as an Egyptian mummy.

- Quaint Tales.

THE cereal grains - wheat, corn, rice, oats, rye, barley - furnish the principal part of the world's food supply, being cultivated practically everywhere except in the Arctic regions. They provide about one-quarter of the food consumed by the average American family. The word cereal is derived from the name of the Roman goddess of grain - Ceres.

In the grain or seed kernels of tall grasses lie the living germs of the plant, surrounded by the food necessary for their growth. It is this food which supplies the world's table with breakfast foods and cereal foods of all kinds. The cereal grains are rich in starch, and supply an abundance of carbohydrate, or fuel-and-energy food. They contain also much protein, or muscle-forming food, and several per cent of fat (oils), in addition to mineral salts and vitamins.

With whole milk, cereals supply the elements of nutrition in the most desirable proportions, and make excellent breakfast foods. As with all starchy foods, thoroughness of cooking is a factor which has an important bearing upon digestibility. It is unfortunate that cereals are so often served for breakfast hurriedly prepared. They should, whenever possible, be cooked over night: and for this reason the use of the fireless cooker is to be especially recommended. The ready-cooked breakfast-foods are not more digestible than any thoroughly cooked cereal, though usually higher in price. Where there is no fireless cooker, however, and where the saving of fuel is to be considered, they are not necessarily more expensive.

Oatmeal Porridge

As oatmeal is ground in different grades of coarseness, the time for cooking varies and it is best to follow the directions given on the packages. The meal should be cooked until soft, but should not be mushy. Cook in a double boiler the required time. Keep covered until done; then remove the cover and let the moisture

Oatmeal With Cheese

1 cup oatmeal Water

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup grated cheese

Cook the oatmeal over night and just before serving add the butter and cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted and serve at once.

Baked Apple With Oatmeal

Pare and core the apples and fill the core space with left-over oatmeal mush. Put the apples in a baking dish; sprinkle with sugar; pour a little water into the bottom of the pan and bake in a moderate oven until the apples are tender. Serve warm with cream for breakfast or luncheon.

Wheat Cereals

Wheat cereals, like oatmeal, are best cooked by following the directions on the package. Most of them are greatly improved by the addition of a little milk or by a few chopped dates or whole sultana raisins.

Corn-Meal Mush

1 cup corn meal 1 cup cold water

1 teaspoon salt 1 pint boiling water

Mix together the corn meal and salt and add the cold water gradually, stirring until smooth. Pour this mixture into the boiling water and cook in a double boiler from three to five hours. Serve hot with cream and sugar.

Fried Mush

Pour hot corn meal into a square dish that has been rinsed in cold water. When the mush is cold cut it into slices one half inch thick; dust with flour and fry a delicate brown. Serve with syrup.

Boiled Rice

1/2 cup rice

2 quarts water

1 tablespoon salt

Put the rice in a strainer; place the strainer over a bowl nearly full of cold water; rub the rice; lift the strainer from the bowl and change the water. Repeat the process until the water in the bowl is clear. Have the two quarts of water boiling briskly; add the rice and salt gradually so as not to check the ebullition; boil twenty minutes or until soft; drain through a colander and place the colander over boiling water for ten minutes to steam. Every grain will be distinct and tender.

If desired, the rice may be brought to a boil in a little milk instead of being steamed, though in this case the grains may not remain separate.

Serve as a vegetable with butter and salt, or as a cereal with cream and sugar.

Rice In Milk

1 1/2 cups hot milk

1/2 cup rice

1/2 teaspoon salt

Clean the rice as for boiling in water; and cook with the milk and salt, adding a few seeded or sultana raisins if desired. Serve hot like boiled rice or press into small cups, cool and serve with cream and sugar.

Farina

3 tablespoons farina

1 pint boiling water

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cook the mixture in a double boiler for about one hour.

Hominy

1 cup hominy

2 quarts water

2 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cream

Get the unbroken hominy and after careful washing soak it twenty-four hours in the water. Cook slowly in the same water in a covered vessel for eight hours or until all the water has been absorbed by the hominy; add the butter, salt and cream and serve as a vegetable or as a cereal with sugar and cream.

To Use Left-Over Cereals

Cold cooked cereal Peaches, apples or pears

Chop the cold cooked cereal quite fine. Butter a deep pudding dish. Spread a layer of cereal on the bottom. Cover with sliced fruit. Sprinkle with sugar. Continue in this manner until dish is filled. Cover top with cracker crumbs, buttered. Bake until well browned. Serve with sweetened cream.