Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1909-01-05

NOb0dy 1CdS heTc eTCepI u youTy Htun
In evening dress.
peared on a tray. l was sure that
mother would not approve Of cocktails
for me, as II sounds SO fast for q
young girl who isn't yet out. When l
excused myself Mrs. Ess Kay laughed
and said, Then what about that sher
~ cobbler?"
While was trying to think what she
meant Sally came into the hall, and
Immediately after was surprised BY
kind Of musical moaning which be-
gan suddenly and kept on for a long
time.
THAT'S the Japanese gong" said
Mrs. Ess Kay when / looked round to
see where the sound came from. ITS
for dinner. Potter, give Betty your
arm"
was glad she didn't use that nick
name I'd been thinking Of, for II she
had / should certainly have laughed.
We began dinner by eating pinky'
yellow melons cut in half and filled
with chopped ice. thought at first
that 1t must be a mistake and they
ought to have come In ut dessert, but
everybody else ate theirs without ap'
pearing disconnected, so did mine
and it was good. So were all the
other things that followed In long
procession, though they were very
strange. and some Of them shouldn't
have known how to eat II Mr.. Parker,
whose place was next to mine, hadn't
told me.
We had bouillon partly frozen In
stead Of soup, and then came the most
extraordinary little fried animals
which quite startled me, they were SO
like exaggerated brown spiders. done
in egg and breadcrumbs. "Soft shell
crabs, dear child" said Mrs. Ess Kay.
"and you eat every bit, down to the
tippiest end Of his claw"
should never have managed the
green corn, which grows like lots OF
pearls set close together in rows on a
fat stick, II Mr.. Parker hadn't scraped
all the pearls off for me with a fork
and put butter and salt on them. l
liked him little better after that, for
he did the thing with great skill.
When had got so far nothing could
surprise me, and l didn't turn a hair
when l found that | was expected to
eat pears cut up with salad oil. But
they were alligator pears. and when
you tasted them It appeared that they
had nothing whatever to do with the
fruit kingdom. Best Of all liked the
watermelon which came ut the end.
cut In little balls. looking like straw
berry water ice and soaked in cham
pagne. I hope that all the things to
eat In America won't be 80 nice or j
may grow stout before 60 hack. and
Vic saws It is better for girl to hang
herself.
1t was very trying, too. to find that
was keeping every course waiting
I've never been accused Of greediness
at home. though I've often been made
W lccI SuutJ VI thOot OthSa Cih' -, .''>
calendar, but did feel queer when ]
began to realize that everybody else
had finished what was on their plates.
when I'd just about discovered what
the thing was. 1t made me so uncom
Portable to see them all leaning back
waiting for me. after their plates had
been whlsked away, that l took to
boiling the rest Of my food. and by
the time we'd got rid Of nine courses
In about half an hour felt qualified
to write the autobiography Of an ana
conda.
As for the iced water. had intend.
ed to refuse 1t at any cost, because
Vic aud mother both solemnly warned
me that 1t made oil the difference be.
tween complexion and mere skin
But the minute landed began think
Ing hard about iced water, and soon
discovered that when you are In
J America 4 comparatively small con.