Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1889-05-01
AUNT MAHALAH.
She Reveals What TRANSFERRED at
the Browning Club.

IS SnlurttNg WlucT UCtUStCC SCHoe "
JcRny'S Indifference TO him.
How came you to go to the Brown
ing Club, Aunt Mahlah? | thought
you were too well up in that line to
need any help from the literary fell
lers.
What do you mean by that line?
why, the browning line, to be sure.
Who ever saw any thing to compare
with tho hue Of your roast-ducks or the
crust OF pigeon piep A-ah! my soul
melts within me only to think OF
them
well. | always said mans heart
was in his stomach. His soul may be
there, too, for any thing that know
to the contrary.
"Oh, say! There's a hint for the
Society for Physical Research! Any
how, Aunt Mahalah, how came you to
60 to tho Browning Clubp That's the
question:
ut wasn't exactly ducks and pie
crust that took mo there; but one day
when | was down ut Maria's, picked
up book, and the very first piece in
IL told how they cook little birds in
Italy, strung on skewer with II crust
OF bread and u sage-leaf between each
pair OF 'em. Talk about melting your
soul! | never read over recipe that
made my mouth water like that one.
I've always meant to try IL with squads,
ard | will, too, some day.
"Some day soon, ! hope"
''I,ut that wasn't all. Some OF the
words were so curious, and they went
together so queer to make rhymes, and
there was such lot of dashes that
brought me up with jolt, that had
TO read il through several times before
| fairly sensed it; but | wasn't going
TO give II up. These lines bothered
me considerable:
But through oil these bite boldly-lo the gust!
Flavor-no fixture
Flies permeating fesh and leaf and crust
What To- the gustn meant was n
mystery to me, till happened to think
OF gusto, and / knew that with gusto'
mean with a relish. But that Flies
permeating flesh and leaf and crust
was most too much with me. knew
the Italians ate strange things, and !
remembered the locusts and wild
honey, but the directions on the first
page didn't say word about flies, and
it's we'll they didn't. for / should have
lost my interest straight of. bothered
and bothered till was tired, and then
/ looked back TO tho line before:
'Flavor-no fixturc'-and | read that
with il, the way old Master Scavey
taught us: Flavor, pause. no fixture,
pause, flies pcrmeatlng flesh and leaf
and crust Then | didn't see any
sense OF that 40 Fixture there any
way. 80 left that out and read right
over the pauses, this way: Flavor
flies pcrmcating flesh and leaf and
crust Well, never! Was it kind
OF Italian flies used for Havoring, or
had you got to flavor tho flies With
something's Somehow couldn't seem
TO be rcconciled TO IL, it spoiled the
whole thing so; and then, just like
lightning. oh. hor says /, The flavor
flies, that's what the flavor does when
you bite through the bread and sage
and bird. II goes through it all, of
course Then read IL over again
and put in No fixture and hat was
all right, for. OF course, il the flavor
flcs il isn't fixture; and then leaned
back and took u long breath, for all
the world rs if had had tussle with
the pig in the garden.
"Whcn | came TO little, looked
back TO see who wrote the book, and
you could have knocked me down with
feather! hadn't the sense TO put it
down when heard the girls coming,
and tho first thing know, Miss Henry
said:
why, here it is. in Aunt Mahalah's
lap
"'Oh! Aunt Mahalah's putting or
airs, reading Browningr
How do you like him. Aunt Ma
halahP DO you find him obscurep'
But he's just heavenly when you
do get at him.
Nothing would do but l must tel!
them what l had read. and they were
amused enough when they found I'd
boon taken in by prologue, as they
called it, and thought it was only
recipe for roasting ortolans in Italy.
held my ground, and when / said
would like TO have whole cook book
full OF recipes like that TO puzzle out,
with little piece tackled on to the last
Of each one like: Take what Is. trust
what may bcr at the end OF the roast
ortoans. they declared ] should be
made an honorary member OF the
Browning Club. wouldn't have any
such works as that, but | thought