Peter :
I did a web search on Clara Davis and came up empty. Can anyone point
>me in the direction of some her works and maybe share with the list
>some more of her research?

Denis
Please bear with  me the time for  a small digression , before I give you
the actual reference  :

I guess we could classify  the reactions  of the  elite after their reading
of "La guerre du cru" into four different categories :

- Downright Rejection : "there is no such thing as paradise lost" "instinct
is not reliable"" we are all better off than cave man, thanks to science,
medicine  and civilization ..." We all know too well that kind of reaction,
which has constituted the "Hindenburg line" of  positivist science  as from
the French Cartesian onwards.

- From Curiosity to Timid Praise : Many psychologists, psychoanalysts,
analytic philosophers, metaphysicians,  closed systems analysts
(physiologists, computer ananlysts,  mathematicians ) are likely to be
interested, if not fascinated, by Burger's comprehensive theory of food
instinct. Supposing they were interested by a change in diet,  many of them
would proabbaly  never show up at Montramé, on account of the  dogmatism  so
perceptible in "La Guerre du cru". They will perhaps  make their own
experiments and draw their own  conclusions, some of them based on hasty
reading.
Many of these very intelligent people  carry around  the  ball  of
suspicion : "sectarism" is very often  their favorite epithet. Although
their intellect might have been seized by the clarity of Burger's
demonstration , their suspicion is so deeply rooted  that  they will never
get close to  realizing that Burger is as prone to doubting as anyone else [
except that he doesn't share his doubts with "n'importe qui"...] They simply
deem it useless to get out of their  ivory tower. Mr Tu, which I would
readily put in this category, has at least the courage of exposing his
doubts publicly. Given his high standing curriculum, he should be praised
for his open attitude.

- From High Praise to Devotion :  It doesn't take a Harvard graduate to
understand that Burger has kept most of the practical recommendations for
to-be instinctos out of the remit of  his book. Those who think they are
smart enough  to read the book between the lines, and avoid the traps of the
method all by themselves,  in order to save  2500 FF (course + accomodation
+food), will most certainly  have to bear the brunt of their
misunderstandings.
Despite the entrance ticket  being quite high,  many  intelligent people
have  flocked in  to pay  their tribute to the Raw War leader. Those  who,
in addition,  did  stay at  Montramé for a while know that there is  much
more to be gained in Burger's close  company than that which is revealed in
"La guerre du cru" or in the "cours d'introduction" .  For anybody  intent
on  living  on royalties and undeterred by underground  theories, Burger is
just a "hen with gloden eggs " . You don't often meet people bubbling with
ideas who do not have time (nor will) to put them down on paper !
Bruno Comby, who always had  a lot of time but few original ideas, might
have thought he was a perfect match. Anyway he  has perfectly understood how
he could benefit from the situation, and the contacts he could get while
staying at Montramé. Needless to say, he would  never have published
"Maximize Immunity"  without Burger's prior consent, for the theoretical
borrowings to Burger's unpublished "viral phenomenon model" are just too
evident. [Immunology  is one of Burger's pet subject, thanks to a daughter
working  at  Inserm, France's national center for medical research].
One thing these two guys have in common is their will to make us believe
that the moon is made of green cheese...

- From Devotion to Disillusion : Bruno called me the other day and asked me
"What is your interest in debunking my business ?" I guess none, except the
satisfaction of putting a few records straight. After all, I became a
crudivore because I could not stand being lied at anymore.  See, I'm not a
man of power : I do not know the meaning of  "compromise "... Burger
proabbly thinks he can set his own limit to the truth : truth  would only be
concerned with   scientific facts. IMO , "truth"  also  encompasses  the
conditions in which these scientific  facts are brought to light.
Independantly of the validity of the instinct theory, we need to be told the
truth concerning Burger's hidden source of inspiration.

Writers  who have no special demand for historical accuracy are content, I
guess, with the kind of truth embedded in "La guerre du cru". I guess  any
author preparing a  book on instinct would nowadays be  satisfied  with two
or three quotes from "La guerre du cru" and a reference to Burger in the
bibliography. I'm not. IMO, such  books serve only one purpose : to compound
plagiary  with more plagiary... What we need here is real research. Not
scientific  journalism.

Now to Clara Davis. A characteristic feature of Montramé litterature (Comby,
Schaeffer, you name it...) is that you will never see in these books  that
which Burger has deliberatly kept secret. I ain't saying that  there is a
tacit  arrangement between   Burger and passing-by  writers to hide away
disturbing truths. But Burger knows all too well that, in the ruthless world
of alternative medicine,  his success also depends  on his ability  to hide
those facts which could hamper his theories, or make him look like a
plagiarist. The man has got well preserved secrets. Clara Davis is just one
big exemple.

Peter, you are asking me and others to give you the exact  reference on
Clara Davis  because  a mouse click was not sufficient to get data from the
Net.  Let me tell you one thing  : if you want  to find the truth about
Burger ( but may be you too are  satisfied  with what Burger wrote in his
book ...), you'll need more than one click of a mouse. Much  more... unless
of course you are very very lucky.
Do you remember what I wrote earlier on ? That Burger was lucky enough in
his plagiary  to have fallen for a theory which everybody wants to bury
each time it comes under the spotlights  ?  As we say in France talking
about "ticklish files" , the XXth century   reappearance of food instinct
really received   a "first class burial".
Well I guess it's time  to fulfill my promise and tell you where the corpse
has been buried.   This ref  was the very first text which set me on for
six years of research on Burger's hidden sources.
The American Journal of Diseases of Children, Number 4 Volume 36 October
1928, page 651-679 is what you need for your purposes.

>Denis: You mentioned that G.C. Burger at first experimented eating
>instinctively with cooked foods and was observing taste stops with
>these items. I find this to be very interesting indeed - could you
>please share with us anything you might know of this subject?

I don't remember having said that, although he might as well have
experimented with  cooked foods on himself . I just said that he knows,thru
Clara  Davis,  that instinct is not completely baffled by foods, such as
vegetables, that have been  slightly cooked, but which remain unmixed and
unseasoned. I also said that he acknowledges this idea  in private circles,
but that I've  never heard him talk about this matter publicly .

Cheers
Denis