12 cents could buy a pound of corn, and a pound of beef with a little salt.... in 1868 ~ THE SHERMAN LETTERS, page 318

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[–]Alphix 4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 0 fun5 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

A pound of corn... Do they mean dry? On the cob, raw? I'm not sure... Plus a pound of beef. Each day. This isn't exactly a MEAGER subsistence for an average sized human.

[–]Zapped 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Cornmeal was a common form back then. It would only need to be rehydrated.

[–]Alphix 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

OK so while economical, that's a far cry from starving.

[–]In-the-clouds[S] 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Interesting book from the time of the American Civil War:

The Sherman Letters

correspondence between two brothers: General William T Sherman and Senator John Sherman, from 1837 to 1891

https://archive.org/details/shermanlettersc00shergoog