Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1890-10-31
Hasty Eating
Harper's Bazaar.

There is no doubt that the average
American eats too rapidly. No one who
has witnessed the feats of deglutition per
formed by CONNIE rcial travellers at rail
way station will cavil at this assertion. 1t
is safe to attribute the national disease of
dyspepsia to this cause fully as much as
to the indigestible vians of which the ordi-
nary citizen makes his chief diet. And
this haste is not confined to the hotel din
ing room or the railway eating house. In
the private household as astonishing and
disgusting exhibitions of rapid g1rging
may be seen as are ever witnessed in public
restaurants.
Ne one who had beheld the spectacle
could ever forget the fashion in w.,Ia..
ue2iS we're conducted IN certain hon .
where wealth and every evidence CT GU
ward refinement gave promise Cf letter
things The fathe~. man Of business
from his sixteenth wear, plainly cons jereL
eating the duty to be accomplished at the
table and quite ignored such minor con-
siderdtionS as the interchange of thought
or observation, Of an of the social feat
ures usually connected with sthe operation
Of dining If he could not quite equal
Napoleon the FIRST. who Is said to have
often dey0ured his entire dinner IN six
minutes lie Hid not fall far behind thr
great warrior Soup. meat. vegetables.
dessert. were widowed In rapid success
sion ard in almost utter silence. Thu
slight delay inseparable from change Il
courses are endured impatiently. Almost
before the last mouthfu! was down the
eager man would push back his chair.
spring to his feet, and with a muttered
word of farewell. make a rush for the
81. l., +la 81 II bo
door would announce that he was on his
way back to his office.
His children are not backward in imitat
ing him. and all the pleadings Of their
refined. care worn mother were p0werIess
to check the influence Of the father 5 ex-
ample. With such rush at meal times
elegant or even tOlnTably decent table
manners were impossible, and the visitors
in the home found eating different busI-
ness. when accompanied by the sight Of
haste and habits that often could only be
described as revolving.
If the midday meal must be hurried.
let it be simple. There l. no rhyme or
reason in attempting to dispose of three
or four course dinner in thirty or forty
minutes. If only half an hour can he al
lowed for the repast let this consist Of
two courses only, either a soup and meat
course and Il salad. OF a meat course and
dessert. These should d. served promptly.
out in an orderly fashion, and both the
conduct OF the dinner and the gastric
powers will be benefited by such sim
plicity.
Upon this point the house mother must
insist. Even if her husband will not con
form to her wishes in tins regard. She
should require from the servants and
children certain amount of pr0prIety in
serving the meal and dec0rum n It's dis
cus>ion. After seeing that the dinner Is
punctualiy served. aud that the courses
follow one another promptly. ne should
herself set the example Of deliberate eat
ing. and should strive. by the III -oduc-
ton of interesting subjects. to encourage
the pleasant chat that Is poter- aid to
digestion. Ii will cost an effort do this
when she Is weary and harrassei oy house
hold worries. but she viii en- : her own
meal more if her mind is, b any agree
able means. distracted little while from
her cares.