The Wichita daily eagle., 1896-12-11

| foolish fasting was glorified until a healthy
| appetite passed for a snare of the devil, and
| its qualification meant eternal damnation.
Poor. deluded humans, ever so keen to
make the least of the short space of life al
lored to them. With time all supersttions
| fail: and asceticism went the way OF many
| another ingenious folly. But as tradition,
| as convention, somehow it fingered long
| er among women. And the old Christian
| duty became new feminine grace. Ano
when the fanatic had tasted that his soul
might prove comeiier in the sight OF COD,
| silly matrons and maidens starved or pre-
| tended to starve that their bodies might
seem fairer in the eyes Of man. And DIRE
| indeed, has been her punishment Let
| her know that the love of good eating gives
an object to life. She need not stray after
false gods; she will not burden herself with
silly fads once she realizes that upon food
she may concentrate thought and energy,
and her higher nature--which TO her means
| SO much-be developed thereby. why
ciamor for the suffrage; why labor for the
redemption of brutal man: why wear. with
noisy advertisement ribbons white or blue.
when three times day there is work OF
art easily within her reach to be created?
All his life a veiasquez devoted TO his pic
lures; Shakespeare to his plays "ae-
ner to his operas; why should not the wo-
man og genius spend hers in designing ex-
ou,site dinners, inventing original break
| fasts and be respected for the nobility OF
her self-appointed task? For In the plan
ming of the one perfect meal there is art;
and, after all, is not art the one real, the
one important thing in life?
And the object she thus accepts will be
| her pleasure as well. For the sourmande,
or glutton, duty and amusement go hand
in hand Her dainty devices and harmo-
nies appeal to her imagination and fancy:
they play gently with her emotions, they
develop to the utmost her pretty sensuous-
ness. Mind and body are alike SATISFIED.
And so long as this pleasure endures II will
never seem time to die. The ancient phil
osopbers thought that time had come when
life afforder more evil than good. The good
of a pleasantly planned dinner outbaiances
the evils of daily trials and tribulations.
By artistic gluttony beauty is increased.
if not actually created. Listen to the WORDS
of Brillat-Savarin, that suave and sympa-
thetic gourmet: "By a succuent, dehcate
and choice regimen the external appear
ances of age are kept away for long time
II gives more brilliancy to the eye, more
freshness to the skin, more support to the
muscles Those who understand eating are
comparatively years younger than those is-
norant of that science"
Rejoice in the knowledge that giuttony Is
the best cosmetic. And more than this:
woman not only grows beautiful when she
eats well. but she is bewitchingly lovely in
the very art of eating. And who shall say
that woman. declaiming on the platform, or
spanking" progressive principles into the
chiId-man, makes prettier picture?
Another plea, and one not to be scorned.
| Is the new bond Of union between man and
wife Sport has been pronounced a closer
tie than religion; but what Of food? What
indeed? Let men and women look to 1t
that at table delicious sympathy makes
them one, and marriage will cease to be a
failure If they agree upon their sauces
and salads, what matter IL they disagree
upon mere questions Of conduct and finance.
Accept the gospel of good living and the
sexual problem will be solved. She who
first dares to write the great Food Novel
will be true champion of her sex. And
yet women meet and dine together, and
none has the courage to whisper the true
secret Of emancipation. Mostly fools! Alas!
that It should have to be written.