Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1883-03-22
The Dyspeptic's Struggle.
[Golden Rule,l

Dyspeptics, with morbid appetite, if intel
! ligent, coscientious, and determined not tO
abuse themselves, are constantly engaged in
hard struggle, in a and-tO- hand fight. The
dyspeptic sits at the table at each meal with
determined will, and gives his whole mind
to it.
He says, now 1 will eat one dish of soup
small piece of the beef, one spoonful of the
potato, one of squash, a small piece Of pie,
and just a spoonful Of ice-cream. But his
appetite is ravenous the conversation pleas
ant: he forgets little; his good resolution
lets up; he takes just one more mouthful
of pie, which turns out, of course, to be an
other piece; just the least bit of pudding,
which they all declare to be delicious then
another spoonful of ice-cream-well, in short,
he repeats for the thousandth time an excuse,
suffers, and so goes on for months and years.
This struggle of the dyspeptic always
seems to me most pitiful. Eating was de-
signed by the Good Creator to afford a real,
unmixed pleasure. It is sad to see it changed
into bitter fight between appetite and con-
science. Besides, this earnest effort of the
will breaks in upon the pleasant flow and
harmony of nature and disturbs digestion.
The whole trouble grows out of lack of
common sense in the management of our
meals.
What sense, should like to ask, is there in
this: Suppose drunkard finds himself too
weak to resist temptation, and he persists in
keeping right before him the most delicious
liquors, in placing right under his nose, sew
eral times day, just that brandy which he
never found himself strong enough to resist.
What an idiot! we all should exclaim. Not
only Miss Ophelia, bnt every one with five
grains of common sense would cry out, "Why
don't the fool keep away from it ?"
For one man who is spoiled with drink, a
hundred are spoiled with pie, cake and such
similar trash. join this common sense party
and ask why they don't keep away? Take,
for example, the ordinary American family,
consisting, say, of half dozen persons
Nine-tenths of the dyspeptics of this country
live in such families Of these persons, con-
stituting large part of the population, not
one IL ten has perfect stomach. Now, 1
ask. can't these people shun the sweetmeat
and pastry temptation? Nothing is simpler
and easier; and will add that few duties
are more sacred and imperative.
The time will soon come when intelligent
mothers will no more think of providing
such stuff for their children, than they would
prepare whisky slings for them.
just now, we feel about these things as
people used to feel about whisky. Nothing
mortified a good deacon more than to be
caught with no whisky in the house. What,
no whisky? If when the minister called,
our good deacon could not set out decanter
befor him he was poor indeed!
And now when entertaing friends at your
table, if you can't close the dinner with pud-
ding and pie, or if you can't present them at
the supper table with preserves, cake, strong
tea and half dozen other indigestible things,
you feel it is "real mean" What, nothing
but roast beef, potatoes and bread for dinner;
and nothing but plain sandwich for supper? /?