Mother's Cooking

The l'iataíiield boys alwaye had the biame of beimj? smart, and Ingesb Lute Baker was just about the martes loy the old town ever turaed out. Well, he carne by it naturally. .ludss Baker was kaoivn all over western Massachusetts as the sage of Plaia. field, and Lute's mother- she was Kellogg befare tJve judge. marrled he -she had more faculty than a dozeif of your girls nowadays, arod her cool img wás talked a bont everywhere; never wae anotlier woiman, as folk isaid, could cook like Mis' liaker. Th boys- Lute's friends- used to hans around the bark porcli of nooningtf just to gel some of her douglmuts; ►-.lie was always considérate and Hberal to growimg boys. Maybe Lute wouldnt have been so popular if PI hadn't toeen ïor those doughnuts, and1 and maybe he wouldn't liave been kj amart Ui iit hadrn't been ior all thtf good tülaigs his mother led into hlffi. Always .d;d beliieTe then1. wm piets and wiadoau m New Ërigland victuals. Lute VKUt to AmHei-st college and d:d vejl; theji he taught school ii -iviaiter, lor Jude Baker sakl that ncbody could amount to mach in th world uniese he'd taught school a üpell. Lute set on beimg a lawycr, and o presently he went down t iSpriinglielid land read and studied iii Judge MorriB' offise, and Judge Moi' a-is wrote a letter home to the liak re once testiíyiaig to Lute's "probity aod acumen"- ttoiings that are nevcï (heard rtell of except high up in th legal professkm. How Lute came to get the westera fever I can't &ay, but get it he dk', and one' winter he up and piked o! to Chicago and there he hung out to:e BhiuiKlc and joined a literary s& cial and proceeded to get rich and faanous. T-The next spring Judge Bak er feil off the woodshed while hö was Blviinglkig it, and it jarred him so Jie kimd of drooped and pined around o, spell, and tlwn one day up aoid died. Lute had to come back home to settle up the estáte, When he went west again he took B wiie with him- Emma Cowlcs that was {everybody called lier Em fot short), pretty as a picture wad a lilkely a gU-1 as tüiere was the townehip. Lute had always had a líankerimg for Em, and Em nerei tlhought theie was another such a young fellow as Lute; ehe undei etood luiim perfectly, having sung in tlhe with him two years. The yoimg couple went west well pro1 ■v-ided. Lute amd Em went to hooisekeev ing iin Wiicago. Em wanted to dol her owrn work, but Lute wouldn'i liear to it, so they hiired a Germaií giirl that was just over trom the vime yaj-ds of tJie Rhlue country. "Lute," says Em, "Huida doesn'í taiow muoli about cooküng." 'So I see," says Lute ieelinglj-. "She'8 a green as grass; you'll have to teach her." Huida, 'could swing a hoe and weild a spade deftly, but of the cuisine she knew somethimg less thau nothing. Eni had lot of patience and plnck, but she found teaching Huida how to cook, a preeious hard job. Lute was amiable eaiough at first, used to laugh it off with a coi dial bet tliat by and by Em would make a famous cook of the obtusa but willing immigrant. This mornH backing bouyed Em up considerable nntil one e-entog in an unguard cd moment Luie expressed a pinmg for froine doughnuts "like those mothe makee," and that casual remark made Em unhappy. But next evening wheu Late cftmc home there were douglvnuts on the table- l)eautiful, big, ple thoric doughnuts that fairly reeked with the hotnely, deliciou Bentlmeni of New Bnglaiwi. lyut ate one. Em feit liun-t . "I guess it's liecause I've oaten su niuch el1," explained Iutc, "bui somehow or othier they don't tasto like nnothier's." . j. Next iilay Din fed the rest of tlit doughmuts t a poor man who carne and Said he was starviniK. "Thank you, onairm," eaid he WítB hi hearí íull of gratirmde aiwl luis mouth íuli of douglinuts; "I ha'n't had any. thing as good as tliie stoce I left Con mecticut, twenty years ago." Tliat little subtlety consoled Era, but stiJl ehe fouoid tt hai"d to beai up under her apparent inability ty lo 'her duty by Lute's critkal palatc. Once "wlien I-ute brought Golonel Hi Thomas home to dtainer tliey had cMckeai pie. The cokmel pralBed i and passed his píate a thtrd time. "Oh, but you ought to eat sorae of hiother's chieken pie," sald Iute. ■■Motlier oever puite an undercrust ira (her chicken pies, and tliat makei 'em uiciier." Same way w"hn they liad íricj pork and potatoes; Iute couldn'; understand wliy the ílesh of the wal lowuiR, carnivoruns western hoj t-1iouldn."t be as wtrfite and íirm and fcweet tas the meat of the swill ivj Yamkee pig. Aiid why were tle Hubbard Isquíisdieís so tastless, and ■yrpgf was maple syrup ko very diffeiEmt ? íes, ainid all liis professional ílutles, Lut found time to remaní upon tJite aad other similar thingf, amd of oourse Em was- by implieatiKwi, at least- held reeponsible for tlnem aM. Amd Dm did try so BarTI, so very hard to correct the evils aod to aiW wer Uve hypercritical demanda cl I-Aïte's foolishly petteó aod poiled appetSt. She warred valorously witu butchers, grocers amd hucksters; she sent idown east to mot her Baker ior" lor all the famoue family recipes? wre6tled ia speech an-d in practico with ftliat awful Huida; Bhe experimented lon and pat.i)ently; she bliitered her pretty face amd burned hes Httle hands over that kiitchen rang - yes, te. eiow, const-ajit martyrdoiJ that 'caneciwitioue wMe wiUingly en dured íot years m her enthusiatic. de termiaiation to do her duty by Lute. Doutfmnt, chicken pies, boiled din íiers, layer cakes, soda biscuWs. ílai iacke ïiehballs, baked beans, squasa píe, earöed beef hash, driod appw Bgmce, eurrant wine, succotash, browjí 1 rivad- how valorously Em toiled oe tíuTii, only tío be rewarded wlth BOiue cruel romkuler of how "mother" useu" to do these tliimgs ! It was terrib'.t; -a ted'.ous maTtyrdom. Lute- miad you- Lute was nat wil fully cruel. No, he was simply anj irredeemably a heedleas idiot of a' man, just ae every married man i-, for a spell, at least. But t broks Bni's lieaa-t, all the same. Lute's mother carne to visit theii when thoir íirst child was born, and ehe liíted a great deal of trouble o.'í the patiënt wiíe. Oíd Mis' Baker nlways likod "em; had told the mii.ister there years a that she kuew Em would make Lute a good Christian wiíe. They named the boy Moses, after the oíd judge who vaj dead, amd ald Mis' Baker sald lid tUiould have his gran'pa's tratcli when he got to be twonty-oné. Olí Mis' Bake-r alwaye stood by Em; niay be she reniembered how the oíd Judge liad talked o.nce on a time about hls niothor's cooking. For all married mea are, as I lHive said, idiotkally cruel about that sort oí tliioag. Yes, oíd Jlis' Baker bracod Km up wondeifully; broug'iit a lot oí íried catnip out west with. her for the baby, taught Bm how to make salt risiiiíí bread, told her all about stewinij things, and broiling things, and roasr ing thdugK, and told her how to teil the real Yankee codfish froin the coui terfeit - oh, sue jut d:d Em lots it good, did old Mis' Baker ! The rewards of virtue niay be tslo in coiuing, but t'hey are sure tö eom'. Bm's fchree boys- the three bouneintf boys tlhat eame to Era and Iute- those three boa's waxed fat a-nd grew xvp bodsterous, blatant appreciatoiy of their mother's eooking. The way tJiose boye did eat mother's dougl iniite and mother's pies- wow ! Other boys- the neighbors' boys- caroe aroumd regularly in troops. batta ioms, armies, and like a oonsuming finí Ilcked the wholesome viiaduds whieii Em'8 skill and liiberality provided for her own boye' enthusiastie playmateti Auxl all t'bose boye- there must hare been mMlions oí them- were ttylns breatbing, vocilerous testimoniáis tí the inapproachable excellence of Emï cooking. Lute got idito politics and theji elected htai to the legislature. Aite( the campaiign, needing rest, he took it ieto his head to run down east to see hits mother; he had not beoa' batk home in eiglit years. He tooli Httle Moses with him. ïhey wen gone about three weeks. Gran'mu. Baker had made gi-eat preparations for them; had eooked up enough pie to last all wiiuter, and four plump beheaded, well plucked, yellow-leggej pullets huaig stiff aiwl solemn like ia tlhe chili pantry of the kitchen, awaitiing tlie last succulent ecene of all. Lute aaid tlie liittle boy got there late of am evening. The dear old lady was so glad to see them; tho love that beained Lrom her kittidly ej-es well nigh melted the glaiss in her sllver bowed specs. The tabla was spread iin the dilning room; the sheet iron stove Bigbed till it seemed like to orack wiitii the heat af thai hardwood fire. "Wíhy, Lute, jyou aiíi't eaten' enough to keep a fly alive," remoiistrated old Mits' Baker when, her sou deeliaied a second doughnut; "and what aillB the chiüd ?" she coatinued; "h'ain't he Rot no appetite ? Why, when. you were hiis age, Lute, seemcd as if I c"ouilda't cook doughnuts las; enough you." Lute lexpliaimed tistalt both he and the líttle ne had eaten pretty hearf ïly on the traini that day. Rut all tlie' tinne of vi'sit tliere Gran'mu Baker wondered and worried becausd they ïbdm't eat enough - neeined to hér 'as tf -wentOTii folkg hadn't the rfght kJod of appetit. Even the plump l)ullet, Be.r-d only m a styleí tJitót liad made HW Itaker fameu tliroughout thos? discrtaninating par. - eon Itlwjse puiillets failed to awake' tlie expectd anl proper enthusiasul ha tlw risiltors. Home agata in Gluicagx), IUttf Klrow Ihite i'lvair up to the table witli aai iel(Kiu.'nt siigh 'tuf relief. As foir üttle iMoses, he clamorod his dcliglU. "Chlcken pie !" he cried gleefullyj and thien lie added 'm a aotüiul "wow'.' a hii eaigre cyes IfeU ui)O'ii a plateiul of lKot, exuberant, voluptuoiw douhmutn. Yes, we are focrtJn glad to ('6 back," said Lflite. ■But I am a.iraid." sugRested En, timiidly, "thiat fframdma's oooklng bad spuilcd jou." Wttle loi-es (l)lesa lvini !) howled au indisnant, v youthiul ri'inoistrame. "(randma can't cook wortii a cent !" sa id ive. Eni expected Lute to be dreadfuly shocked, but he waan't "I wouldn't let her know it tor all the warld," remarked Lute con tkteatteJly, "tat motlier has lost luf gi-ip on oooking. At any rate her cookiing iKn't whiat it use to be; it1 lilas changed." Thein Eim carne bvavely to the re - cuie. "Ko, Lute," naya abe, aiwl slie meajit iit, "yoiiir mcrther's cooking horf mot cluanged, but you llave. The niau lilas growm away f rom the boy, anJ thie tastes, the ways aaid the delights ot boyliiood have no longer any fasc ■niation tor the man." "Maybe yon're rigtot," said Lute. "At any rate, I am free to say thaí your pookimg beat all the world." Goold for Lute ! Viirtue trhimpl anwi jny tstory ends. But first an ex planation to conclude my I houtö oever have known thif true frory if Lut-e Mmsell had noi tioM fflt to me at tlie last dinner o tihe oms of New BngLand- told jt to ime rigtot beiore Em, that dear, patiwnt little martyred wife of hú. And I kaew by the lowlitflit in Emi eyes rthat she was glad that she haj idured (that martyrdom for J.utei1 eake.- Chicago Ps'ews.