"We only give bread to those who would otherwise die. The staple dish 5 points
here consists of mice, which the inhabitants hunt, so desperate are they
from hunger. They devour roots which the animals cannot eat; one can, in
fact, not put into words the things one sees This narrative, far from
exaggerating, rather understates the horror of the case, for it does not
record the hundredth part of the misery in this district. Those who have
not witnessed it with their own eyes cannot imagine how great it is. Not a
day passes but at least 200 people die of famine in the two provinces. We
certify to having ourselves seen herds, not of cattle, but of men and
women, wandering about the fields between Rheims and Rhétel, turning
up the earth like pigs to find a few roots; and as they can only find rotten
ones, and not half enough of them, they become so weak that they have
not strength left to seek food. The parish priest at Boult, whose letter we
enclose, tells us he has buried three of his parishioners who died of
hunger. The rest subsisted on chopped straw mixed with earth, of which
they composed a food which cannot be called bread.' What theme is
present in the excerpt above?
(A) Despite new economic theories, peasant agriculture still persisted
(B) New low-calorie foods benefited the populations of the New World
(C) The Columbian Exchange enriched the states of Eastern Europe during this era
(D) Europeans developed new farming techniques such as terracing