Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1921-06-01
Felicia's "Quick
Lunch Room"
By cLARIssA MACKIE

During they honeymoon the New
tons read poetry together. There
would be so little time TO do that
when they were settled down and
James had to hurry so much. And so.
during this blissful period, James
Newton frequently reminded his
charming wife that to him food was
mere incident of life. Had not old
Omar said:
Here. with Loaf of Bread beneath
the Bough.
A Flask of Wine, Book of Verse
and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness
And Wilderness is Paradise enow."
Felicia Newton listened and loved
her lord all the more for his indiffer-
ence to the material pleasures of eat
ing and drinking. But of course there
came an end to the honeymoon. and
there was the exquisite pleasure of
the return home to the new house in
the suburbs, the little round of social
events, the novelty of getting a hus-
oand off to catch the SIS train to
town every morning, and wrestling
with the vagaries of an incompetent
cook.
Within one short week after their
return home James Newton had
ceased TO quote Omar Khayyam. and
Felicia suspected tearfully that he
was yearning for the flesh pots of his
bachelor days. To tell the truth,
James was plainly dissatisfied. Com
pared to the ruinous food that Biddy
served even the memory of downtown
white-tiled lunchrooms became endear-
ing. There followed days when he
quoted from the menus of his quick
lunch palace amid the skyscrapers.
and Felicia for the first time learned
that corned beef hash and griddle
cakes, well cooked, were esteemed by
her husband even above the peace and
refinement of his own home, where
the table was spread with fine damask,
wedding silver and a centerpiece of
cut flowers.
Dear heart" sighed Felicia. who
looked ravishing in silk negligee with
a cobwebby lace cap on her sunny
head. isn't this heaps and heaps bet
ter than a lunchroom which looks like
the inside of a refrigerator and all
kinds of smelly things cooking
around?"
James peered into his cup of weak
coffee, stared at the petrifed hot bis
cults" shifted at the greasy platter of
blackened bacon and pushed back his
chair
I'm hungry. Felicia he said in a
strained tone. "Honest-to-goodness
hungry for food Can't you fire the
cook and get another one. darling?"
Il will send her away today. jim
my" said Felicia meekly; "but l am
afraid l cannot get another one.
tried the other day and Miss Minchin
said all she had was girl who ha6
ton" as his face frightened would
you rather eat in that horrible white
p-pl-pla-place than. in our lovely din
ing room?'
"I've got to eat somewhere, some
how. dearl canno: eat Biddy's
burned stuff. cannot survive long
on the lovely table appointments or
browse on the bunch of flowers, can
/? OF course not-good-by, honey I'll
have to race for that train after ALL"
So Jim raced for the train as he
did every morning, and Felicia stood
on the front porch and waved her
hand until he was out of sight. Then
she tarned back into the house and
sank down on the couch in the living
room. Hurry Hurry Hurry all
the time" she groaned. flames wants
his food prepared here so he can eat
and run in the morning and eat and
sit down and read at night-and-rm
going to give it to him."
First. she cried. which cleared the
atmosphere considerably. Then she
went into the kitchen, paid Biddy in
lieu of months notice and let that
damse go. Then che telephoned to
Miss Minchin TO send along the girl
who had worked in a lunchroom. The
rest of the day she spent shopping in
town a1d working feverishly in the
pretty, white enameled kitchen with
the new girl. whose efficiency was
somewhat dazed by her young mis-
tress' astounding proposition.
Meanwhile. James has reached the
Iunchroom of his choice and enters
10 eat griddle cakes and coffee and
bacon and eggs. From the bottom of
his heart he loathes the whole tribe
of griddle cake bakers. During his
bachelorhood he had snatched hasty
breakfasts and luncheons from these
white tables and he had hoped that
he was done with them forever. Now
he braced himself for the ordeal. en-
tered and enjoyed hearty meal
Beside Biddy's wreckage of food
this was nectar and ambrosla. At
noon he bolted down another meal
with less enthusiasm. and he began
to look forward TO the evening with