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Show THE CONVALESCENT 1 1 THE lime of peace Is tho time to prepaic for war, and by the same token the day of health Is the day to get ready for sickness The shops seem to hnve taken this fact to heait, for never before wtro the windows so full of Utractlve things for invalids, from the largo mid serious seri-ous things, llko tolling chads, to the little comforts, such as rubber cushions and the like There are tables, for one thing Tho vei best Is a while Iron one v. Ilh a foot which turns dlicctly under the bed, 00 that It cannot possibly trp up the nurse, and a top which can bo raised 01 lowered, by a ecrevv, which tuins at an angle This lop which Is about a foot .ind a half by two feet, does not rest on tho bod at .ill and so It alvvas level, and slnco It can bo raised 01 lowered, It accommodates Itsi'lf lo the, position of the pitlent, If he Is lIng" down fiat, It can bo brought directly over his chest, and If ne Is piopped up with pillows. It lies across his lap The next host thing to this Is a table with short legs It tho clothes are sprrad smooth bofore It Is put on the bed. tho table should stand qulle, firrh, olhcivvtee theio Ls alWM tho danger that It will Hlichjly Up One can be oasllj prepared at home by shortening tho lc?s of a' folding sewing tahle "When not In use, It can be sot against th" wall Even If ono has the more substantial tab)o, this homomndo sub-fitltule sub-fitltule Is oxccllqnt for a convalescent child, as he crfn push It about the bod and on It out puper dolls, or p tint pictures But the chief U'lpU np IrtvaJW cnJos 1 Is a prett. tempting tiay for meals, with china never Been at any other time Somehow coffee always seems dlfforont from a little pot, lather than poured fioin tho stalw irt silver one used by the family In general, and a hot dish under a cover of Its own Is much more Interesting than tho veiy same delicacy on an oidlnary plato with a bowl reversed to keep It warm Hero Is tho especial delight Just now of tho largo china shops for they aro filled with the most charming breakfast break-fast and Invalid trays The most elabonlo has a loa, coffee and chocolate choco-late pot, each with a cup anl saucer lo match, a coveied dish, a toast rack, an egg cup, a plate, and salt and peppei shakers all In gold and white Tho soup set Is a good-sized covered bowl with a plato for ci ackers, and salt and pepper shakers Besides these two aie coffee sots with or without tin- covered dish, and sets for toji alone. With each comes u tray of llgnt wood palntod while, with two ha ml lea Ono can buj the tray by Itself and took It with china lo suit the Individual needs and purse Tho comfort such an outfit can bo tho busv housektopei nlono knows With It on the sholf she no longei has to hunt for tho umall teapot onlv to find It has mysteriously disappeared All she has to do Is to heat the lovely Invalid dlwhefl, put tho small snow napkin on tho tray and arrange the meal, and the effect would glvo the worst depeptlc a digestion Thero Ih that most useful utonsll. the Individual chafing dish. This is small, Inexpensive and wonderfully convenient. At night It will quickly heat a cup of milk or broth, and In the dnytimo ono can scrnmble nn egg and serve It piping hot, to tho amusement amuse-ment of the invalid AVIth a child Ibis dish la an unfailing source of Joy and comfort. Then thero Is tho little rcfilgoralpr. In a city house whero tho patient Is on the third lloor foi tho saku of quiet and tho leg Is In tho basement, thero aro endless trips up and downstairs day and night, and the cost In wear and tear Is greater than iho cost of tho refrlgciator. It should not stand In the sick room but out In the hall. Bosldes tint Ice itself. It will taslly hold a day or a nlght'n supply ot milk, eggs, soup, custards and Jollies. If ono cannot hnve this, however, tho next best thing Is n largo-slcd ied flannel cozy, lined with asbestos, this slips on tightly ovel a pi Ichor of cracked crack-ed loo arid keeps It from melting for ten houis. with a fovor patient this Is a valuable- help. Of course the cozj keeps hot thlriKH hot quite as well as it keeps cold things cold, so It serves a double purpose. One moro useful thing for tho convalescent's con-valescent's comfort Is the individual lco cream freezer Pure lco cream Is Breailj favoied by doctors as palatably convoying a larRC amount of nourlsh-jii'-nl. Tho lUtl frcczei which holds n pint, or a still smaller size, costs but a dollar, and takes llttlo lee With ll one can make a dish of lco cream In only a few moments; and experience proves that nothing Is bettor liked by a patient. Last Of all thoro Is to be considered the vital quustlon of food, and this requires constant stud. Usuall there aro cot tain things a sick person cannot can-not have, such as starch and sugar or eggs, and It seems as though these things were necessary In evciy dish ono can think of Thero aro threo ways out of this dilemma, di-lemma, tho first Is too often taken by tho Inexperienced amateur nurse. It is, find out what ho can have, and glv'o It to him. Can he have milk toast? Then milk toast It Is, day In and day out Aic eggs suggested? Thej aro served at each meal till tho patient prefers an easy death to more of them. Tho second way Is better It Is to ask tho doctor to write out a diet list to bo observed and keep It pinned up In tho kitchen It will tell Just what ono can have under such and such circumstances, suggesting dish after dish which one could never havo remembered re-membered by ono's self If starch Is forblddon. hero are dishes without It, or. If meat Is prohibited, hero are meatless meat-less menus. j The third way Is to got a boojc of Invalid's cookery and study It ap tho uuisch do at training school. If one has time for that tho patient will havo a perpetual feast CAROLINE TRENCH BENTON. WHILE In Italy I found a groat deal of pleasuro In lllnsliatlng books with the Italian photographs photo-graphs These photographs nre erv Inexpensive I bought paper-covered books for 30 cents each I bought Hawthorne's Marble Faun for Rome, r.ulvvn Lvtton's Last Days of Pom-pell Pom-pell and Agnes of Soirento'for that locality, llnvv ell's Venice for Venice and George Eliot's Icomola for FI01-ence FI01-ence It Is very easy to find photographs photo-graphs for the characters, as well as the scenes depleted In the' text Thcc books I h id lound for -10 cents each. When In Scotland I Illustrated Ihe Lady of tho Lake. Tho books mnke very charming souvenirs of travel. C. R. M. |