Susan Lenox: Her Fall and Rise, by David Graham Phillips

And as soon as she was seated he began to form round her platea large inclosing arc of side dishes–fried fish, fried steak, fried egg,fried potatoes, wheat cakes, canned peaches, a cup of coffee. Hedrew toward her a can of syrup, a pitcher of cream, and a bowl ofgranulated sugar."Anything else?" said he, with a show of teeth white and sound."No–nothing. Thank you so much."Her smile stimulated him to further courtesies. "Some likes theyeggs biled. Shall I change 'em?""No. I like them this way." She was so hungry that the idea oftaking away a certainty on the chance of getting something out ofsight and not yet cooked did not attract her."Perhaps–a little better piece of steak?""No–this looks fine." Her enthusiasm was not mere politeness."I clean forgot your hot biscuits." And away he darted.When he came back with a heaping plate of hot biscuits, SallyLunn and cornbread, she was eating as heartily as any of herneighbors. It seemed to her that never had she tasted such grandfood as this served in the white and gold saloon with strangenessand interest all about her and the delightful sense of motion–motion into the fascinating golden unknown. The men at the tablewere eating with their knives; each had one protecting forearm andhand cast round his arc of small dishes as if to ward off probableattempt at seizure. And they swallowed as if the boat were afire.The women ate more daintily, as became members of the finer sexon public exhibition. They were wearing fingerless net gloves, andtheir little fingers stood straight out in that gesture which every trulyelegant woman deems necessary if the food is to be daintily andartistically conveyed to her lips. The children mussed and gormedthemselves, their dishes, the tablecloth. Susan loved it all. Hereyes sparkled. She ate everything, and regretted that lack ofcapacity made it impossible for her to yield to the entreaties of herwaiter that she "have a little more."She rose, went into the nearest passageway between saloonand promenade, stealthily took a ten-cent piece from herpocketbook. She called her waiter and gave it to him. She wasblushing deeply, frightened lest this the first tip she had ever givenor seen given be misunderstood and refused. "I'm so muchobliged," she said. "You were very nice."The waiter bowed like a prince, always with his simple, friendlysmile; the tip disappeared under his apron. "Nobody could helpbeing nice to you, lady."She thanked him again and went to the promenade. It seemedto her that they had almost arrived. Along shore stretched acontinuous line of houses–pretty houses with gardens. There wereelectric cars. Nearer the river lay several parallel lines of railwaytrack along which train after train was speeding, some of themshort trains of ordinary day coaches, others long trains made up inpart of coaches grander and more beautiful than any she had everseen. She knew they must be the parlor and dining and sleepingcars she had read about. And now they were in the midst of a fleetof steamers and barges, and far ahead loomed the first ofCincinnati's big suspension bridges, pictures of which she hadmany a time gazed at in wonder. There was a mingling of strangeloud noises–whistles, engines, on the water, on shore; there was amultitude of what seemed to her feverish activities–she who hadnot been out of quiet Sutherland since she was a baby too youngto note things.The river, the shores, grew more and more crowded. Susan'seyes darted from one new object to another; and eagerly thoughshe looked she felt she was missing more than she saw."Why, Susan Lenox!" exclaimed a voice almost in her ear.She closed her teeth upon a cry; suddenly she was back fromwonderland to herself. She turned to face dumpy, dressy Mrs.Waterbury and her husband with the glossy kinky ringlets and thelong wavy mustache. "How do you do?" she stammered."We didn't know you were aboard," said Mrs. Waterbury, a silly,duck-legged woman looking proudly uncomfortable in her beadtrimmedblack silk."Yes–I'm–I'm here," confessed Susan."Going to the city to visit?""Yes," said Susan. She hesitated, then repeated, "Yes."