The Nevada County picayune., 1918-03-28


 "Why not give our digestive appa- ratus restT' she propounded.
 Why nOt?" l rushed to my doom. 1 was having my two weeks vacation and was too happy at being able to spend it on the island to care any thing about an argument.
 Il suggest that we fast for a week"
 A suggestion like that put me in a nice fix. l don't mind stating that at that time l was about 210 pounds of eligible bachelor, aged thirty-fve, con- forta6ly in love with Lucille, but too old and set in the complacent selfish ness of single blessedness ever to pre- tend to be Romeo The idea of fast Ing gave me a sinking sensation right where there was the most room to sink
 ''What2" I calculated, forgetting for the moment that 1 had a reputation for ready repartee.
 'I said, Why not fast for a weekY I read an article by Lipton S. Clair about 1t just this morning. He claims that fasting thoroughly rebuilds the system, gets rid of all toxins and in- creases the mental efficiency 90 per cent"
 She picked up a magazine which was propped open face downward on the lower shelf of the porch table.
 Listen to this" she continued. Eat Ing three meals Il day is simply hab- It. We have made tyrants of our stom- achs. They demand to be fed every few hours, and if we answer that de- mand we are slaves There, that sounds like the reasoning of d thinker, doesn't it?'
 Tt sounds more like the reasoning of thinker than of an eater
 Lucille reproved my fippancy. Il think it would do us all good.
 But feel all right now" I called her attention to an obvious fact.
 She dismissed my objection. You can't be healthy unless you fast for a week at least once year. Lipton S. Clair says so. Mother, you'll try it, won't you?"
 Try what?'
 Fasting for week
 Why. yes. if you want to-" Her mother picked up q book as if she had decided nothing more momentous than a question as to whether she preferred cream or lemon in her tea. She had been used as an experiment station for so many years that nothing surprised her.
 l got up casually and tried to slip in doors. but Lucille stopped me. Don't you think 1t will be lovely. Montmo- rencyf'
 I collapsed into a chair which col lapsed immediately after did. She had called me by my first name. Yes; Montmorency is my first name. It sounds like several names, but it is only my first That first name thing made fl very hard 10 refuse. As l sat there on the porch surrounded ny legs. runs and other parts of chair ter rife struggle went cn in my being be tween my heart ar my stomach, and the weaker party won. Possibly my mind was stunned by my fail, although ! have no recollection of hitting my head. l felt that Lueile was putting me ta the test From the look in her eve I knew that she Was asking me to choose between love and beefsteak. So rising phoenix like I answered brayely. Yes, l think fasting would be delightful"
 So that was how we began.
 As you can easily see, the cause of the trouble was that Lucille is one of these persons who take the magazine health and hygienic writers in good faith It is impossible to convince her that those fellows have to make a liv- ing by their pens the same as other human authors and that every bizarre idea they can bounce on means just so much more copy at a regular rate per word. No. Lucille must needs try by experiment every new theory, using herself or any convenient relative oI friend as a laboratory.
 The absurdity of Lucile's attempt to improve upon her health and looks is apparent to any one who has ever beer blessed with sigh, of her. You cant make q slim young body like hers by simply rolling on the floor for an houl every any. nor are soft brown eye' l with long, curly lashes the result o chewing any particular number O times upon piece of stea',. Natur,
 must have been experimenting a goo,
 many centuries before she got jus
 that particular texture for hair ant