Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1923-02-28
THE DYsPEPTIc
BY VIVIAN G. HAYES
60 by Mcclure Newspaper syndicate.)


Lucinda Lee, from the veranda of her
stately ancestral home, sent wither-
ing glance across her own fair expanse
of green lawns and graceful shade trees
to the unsightly yard and weather
beaten house beyond the iron fence
Half a dozen children laughed and
shrieked and gambolled riotously
through house, barn and yard. A moth
erly looking woman In blue gingham
apron sat upon the rickety doorstep
peeling potatoes anc. incidentally, ref
erecting lively game of Steps"
Miss Lucinda thrust forward her
head. Her aristocratic nostrils dilated.
She shifted daintily. then backed pre-
cipitately toward her front door. Boiled
dinner again
Miss Lucinda hastily repaired to the
dining room and, selecting bottle
from the Heterogeneous assortment Of
TASKS and boxes surrounding her plate,
extracted a small pill and swallow ed
it In a tiny glass Of carefully sterilized
water She noticed with great salts
faction that her heart action seemed
much stronger directly after taking It.
Miss Lucinda now took from beside
her plate a small book which contained
list Of articles of food which the doc
tor had forbidden her to eat. The list
included practically everything that
was particularly worthy of human con-
sumption, 80 it was very simple mat
ter indeed to find the meager supply
which was not banned. And so, at the
back Of the book, Miss Lucinda had
jotted down little two-inch para
graph, headed simply, Things I Can
Eat"
Today she decided on boiled rice, and
started rather slowly and reluctantly
to cook it. She gazed at the little
white particles abstractedly and sighed
A curious, empty, gnawing sensation
had replaced her "heart SPELL"
She wandered ahniessly back to the
kitchen. Her eyes roved over the PAN
try shelves. Suddenly her face lighted
up. She pulled down her mothers old
Cook Book" and. sitting In the big
rocking chair, she turned the yellowed
pages eagerly, her eyes dim with old
memories.
Many of the recipes were in her
mothers cramped, old-fashioned writ
ing. "Escalloped oysters |" Miss Lucin-
da drew in her breath slowly, long
ingly. What perfectly wonderful escal-
loped oysters mother used to make.
In quick succession she read the
headings Of another page: Indian
Pudding" Pumpkin Pie!" "Ginger-
bread !" and-what was that? Boiled
Dinner!" She remembered now, her
mother had been partial to boiled din
ners. In fancy she could see the big
platter in which TIE steaming vegeta-
bles had been borne triumphantly to
the table
Miss Lucinda closed the book slowly
Her colorless dinner simmered In a
spineless fashion upon the stove, odor-
less, tasteless, highly nutritious. She
eyed it frowningly, then turned and
went out upon the veranda, closing the
front door firmly behind her. The lock
clicked sharply and, with little ex-
clamation of dismay she realized that
she had locked herself out. The back
door was also locked, as were all the
windows downstairs. She sat down to
ponder her plight.
Big drops Of rain began to fall thick
and fast, promising to drench Miss
Lucinda's thin gown. She started to
sympathetic voice sounded from the
gate, and the motherly-looking woman
next door hustled up the walk.
"Come right straight home with me,
dearie." she chirped, holding her UNI
brella over Miss Lucinda's head and
grasping her arm. "I'm always getting
locked out myself, thanks to those
needless young ones Of mine"-she
laughed comfortably-"and know just
how 1t feels. Dinners all ready, and
we'd love to have you stay. When the
shower lets up, Sammy can borrow a
ladder and climb In one Of your win
dows"
While she talked she had propelled
Miss Lucinda vigorously down the
walk and in at the dilapidated gate
next door. In the dining room the
boiled dinner was steaming irresistibly
upon it's huge platter. and Miss Lucin-
da viewed 1t through a sudden mist Of
tears, her mind busy with old memo
rieS.
Her capsules and pellets and pills,
with their bewildering directions for
"before and after meals" were I'M
available, and she didn't care. Her
rice stood burning upon the stove, and
she was glad of 1t. Every article Of
food on the table before her was con.
tained among those she shouldn't eat
but 1t worried her not whit.
She beamed affably upon her hostess
and her noisy brood and graciously
permitted them to heap her plate with
a goodly portion Of the intensely vul-
COR hiUhly indivpstihle hut incOmDor-