Page:In defense of Harriet Shelley, and other essays.djvu/370

 MARK TWAIN

Never was anything so delicious in the world; and yet as a rule I don t care for game. But don t interrupt me, don t I can t spare my mouth, I really can t.&quot;

Then the doctor said:

&quot;The cure is perfect. There is no more doubt nor danger. Let the poultry alone; I can trust you with a beefsteak now.&quot;

The beefsteak came as much as a basketful of it with potatoes, and Vienna bread and coffee; and I ate a meal then that was worth all the costly preparation I had made for it. And dripped tears of gratitude into the gravy all the time gratitude to the doctor for putting a little plain common sense into me when I had been empty of it so many, many years.

II

Thirty years ago Haimberger went off on a long voyage in a sailing-ship. There were fifteen pas sengers on board. The table-fare was of the regula tion pattern of the day : At seven in the morning, a cup of bad coffee in bed; at nine, breakfast: bad coffee, with condensed milk; soggy rolls, crackers, salt fish; at i P.M., luncheon: cold tongue, cold ham, cold corned beef, soggy cold rolls, crackers; 5 P.M., dinner: thick pea-soup, salt fish, hot corned beef and sauerkraut, boiled pork and beans, pudding; 9 till ii P.M., supper: tea, with condensed milk, cold tongue, cold ham, pickles, sea-biscuit, pickled oysters, pickled pig s feet, grilled bones, golden buck.

At the end of the first week eating had ceased,

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