The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1898-10-19
At The Appetite-Cure.

ny MARK TWAIN.

onj uebr me, SNOW me 10 my
room; forgot your hard rule"
"Wait just a moment before you
finally decide. There is another rule.
If you choose now, the order will be
filled at once; but if you wait, yon
will have to await my pleasure. You
cannot get dish from that entire bill
until / consent"
Cali right. Show me to my room
and send the cook to bed; there is not
going to be any hurry"
The professor took me up one fight
of stairs and showed me into most
inviting and comfortable apartment
consisting of parlor, bedchamber and
bathroom. In the parlor were many
shelves filled with books. The pro-
fessor said he would now leave me to
myself and added:
''Smoke and read as much rs you
please, drink all the water you like.
When you get hungry, ring and give
your order, and 1 will decide whether
it shall be filed or not. Yours is
stubborn, bad case, and therefore 1
shall be gratifed If you will restrain
yourself and skip down to No. 15 and
begin with that"
Then he left me and I began to un-
dress, for was dog-tired and very
sleepy. I slept Is hours and woke up
finely refreshed at 10 the next morn
ing. Vienna coffeel 1t was the first
thing I thought of-that unapproach-
able luxury-that sumptuous coffee
house coffee, compared with which all
other European coffee, and all Ameri-
can hotel coffee is mere fluid poverty.
1 rang and ordered it; also Vienna
bread, that delicious invention. The
servant spoke through the wicket in
door and said-but you know what he
said. He referred me to the bill of
fare. 1 allowed him to go-I had no
further use for him.
After the bath dressed and started
for walk, and got as far as the door.
1t was locked on the outside. rang
and the servant came aud explained
that it was another rule. The seclu-
sion of the patient was required until
after the first meal. l had not been
particularly anxious to get out before;
but it was different now. Being locked
in makes a person wishful to get out.
I soon began to find it difficult to put
in the time. At 2 o'clock had been
26 hours without food. / had been
growing hungry for some time; 1 rec
ognized that was not only hungry,
now, but hungry with strong adjec-
tive in front of it. Yet was not hum
CRY enough to face the bill of fare. 1
must put in the time somehow. would
read and smoke. Ibid it; b ,ur by hour.
The books were all of one breed
shipwrecks; people lost in deserts;
people shut up in caved-in mines; peo-
pie starving in besieged cities. read
about all the revolving dishes that ever
famished men stayed their hunger
with. During the first hours these
things nauseated me; hours followed
in which they did not so affect me;
still other hours followed in which
I found myself smacking my lips over
some tolerably Internal messes. When
/ had been without food 45 hours I
ran eagerly to the bell and ordered
the second dish on the bill, which was
a sort Of dumplings containing q COM
post made of caviar and tar.
1t was refused. During the next
Is hours visited the bell every now
and then and ordered dish that was
further down the list. Always re-
fusal. But was conquering prcju-
dice after prejudice, right along; I
was making sure progress; was
creeping up on No. 15 with deadly
certainty, and my heart beat faster
and faster, my hopes rose higher and
higher.
At last when food had not passed
my lips for 60 hours, victory was mine
and l ordered No. Is:
"Soft-boiled spring chicken-in the
egg; six dozen, hot and fragrant"
In Is minutes it was there and the
doctor along with it, rubbing his
hands with joy. He said with great
excitement:
"It's cure, it's cure! Iknew I
could do it. Dear sir, my grand sys-
tenn never fails-never. You've got
your appetite back-you know you
have; say it and make me happy"
"Bring on your carrion--I can eat
anything in the bill"
"Oh, this is noble, this is splendid
but 1 knew could do it, the system
never fails. How are the birds?'
'"Never was anything SO delicious
in the world; and yet, as q rule,
don't care for game. But don't inter-
rupt me, don't-I can't spare my
mouth, l really can't"
Then the doctor said:
''The cure is perfect. There is no
more doubt or danger. Let the poul-
try alone; can trust you with beef
steak now."
The beefsteak came-as much as q
basketful OF it-with potatoes and
Ninnna IraaI snI ~. a.,n. ...I Il -.