Billywasnotayoungwomanthatdidthingsbyhalves。Longago，inthedaysofherchildhood，herAuntEllahadoncesaidofher：IfonlyBillydidn’tgointothingsallover，so；butwhetherit’smeaslesormudpies，Ialwaysknowthatshe’llbethemeasliestorthemuddiestofanychildintown!’Itcouldnotbeexpected，therefore，thatBillywouldbegintoplayhernewrlenowwithanylackofenthusiasm。Butevenhadsheneededanyincentive，therewasstilleverringinginherearsBertram’saccusing：Ifyou’dtendtoyourhusbandandyourhomealittlemore——’BillystilldeclaredveryemphaticallythatshehadforgivenBertram；butsheknew，inherheart，thatshehadnotforgotten。
　　Certainly，asthedayspassed，itcouldnotbesaidthatBillywasnottendingtoherhusbandandherhome。Frommorningtillnight，now，shetendedtonothingelse。Sheseldomtouchedherpiano——savetodustit——andshenevertouchedherhalf-finishedsong-manuscript，longsincebanishedtotheoblivionofthemusiccabinet。ShemadenocallsexceptoccasionalflyingvisitstotheAnnex，ortotheprettynewhomewhereMarieandCyrilwerenowdelightfullysettled。TheoperaandtheSymphonywereoverfortheseason，butevenhadtheynotbeen，Billycouldnothaveattendedthem。Shehadnotime。
　　Surelyshewasnotdoinganygallivanting’
　　now，shetoldherselfsometimes，alittleaggrievedly。
　　Therewas，indeed，notime。FrommorninguntilnightBillywasbusy，flyingfromonetasktoanother。Herambitiontohaveeverythingjustrightwasequalledonlybyherdoggeddeterminationtojustshowthem’thatshecoulddothisthing。Atfirst，ofcourse，hamperedasshewasbyignoranceandinexperience，eachtaskconsumedabouttwiceasmuchtimeaswasnecessary。
　　Yetafterwards，whenaccustomednesshadbroughtitsrewardofspeed，therewasstillforBillynotime；forincreasedknowledgehadonlyopenedthewaytootherpaths，untroddenandalluring。Studyofcookbookshadledtothestudyoffoodvalues。Billydiscoveredsuddenlythatpotatoes，beef，onions，oranges，andpuddingsweresomethingbesidesvegetables，meat，fruit，anddessert。Theypossessedattributesknownasproteids，fats，andcarbohydrates。
　　Faintmemoriesoflongforgottenschooldayshintedthatthesetermshadbeenheardbefore；
　　butnever，Billywassure，hadshefullyrealizedwhattheymeant。
　　ItwasatthisjuncturethatBillyranacrossabookentitledCorrectEatingforEfficiency。’
　　Sheboughtitatonce，andcarriedithomeintriumph。Itprovedtobeamarvelousbook。
　　Billyhadnotreadtwochaptersbeforeshebegantowonderhowthefamilyhadmanagedtolivethusfarwithanysortofsuccess，inthefaceoftheirdenseignoranceandherowncriminalcarelessnessconcerningtheirdailybilloffare。
　　AtdinnerthatnightBillytoldBertramandWilliamofherdiscovery，and，withgrowingexcitement，dilatedonthewonderfulgoodthatitwastobringtothem。
　　Why，youdon’tknow，youcan’timaginewhatatreasureitis!’sheexclaimed。Itgivesacompletetablefortheexactbalancingoffood。’
　　Forwhat？’demandedBertram，glancingup。
　　Theexactbalancingoffood；andthisbooksaysthat’sthebiggestproblemthatmodernscientistshavetosolve。’
　　Humph!’shruggedBertram。Well，youjustbalancemyfoodtomyhunger，andI’llagreenottocomplain。’
　　Oh，but，Bertram，it’sserious，really，’urgedBilly，lookinggenuinelydistressed。Why，itsaysthatwhatyoueatgoestomakeupwhatyouare。Itmakesyourvitalenergies。Yourbrainpowerandyourbodypowercomefromwhatyoueat。Don’tyousee？Ifyou’regoingtopaintapictureyouneedsomethingdifferentfromwhatyouwouldifyouweregoingto——tosawwood；
　　andwhatthisbooktellsis——iswhatIoughttogiveyoutomakeyoudoeachone，Ishouldthink，fromwhatI’vereadsofar。Nowdon’tyouseehowimportantitis？WhatifIshouldgiveyouthesaw-woodkindofabreakfastwhenyouwerejustgoingup-stairstopaintallday？AndwhatifIshouldgiveUncleWilliama——asoldier’sbreakfastwhenallheisgoingtodoistogodownonStateStreetandsitstillallday？’
　　But——but，mydear，’beganUncleWilliam，lookingslightlyworried，there’smyeggsthatI_always_have，youknow。’
　　Forheaven’ssake，Billy，what_have_yougotholdofnow？’demandedBertram，withjustatouchofirritation。
　　Billylaughedmerrily。
　　Well，IsupposeIdidn’tsoundverylogical，’
　　sheadmitted。Butthebook——youjustwait。
　　It’sinthekitchen。I’mgoingtogetit。’Andwithlaughingeagernesssheranfromtheroom。
　　Inamomentshehadreturned，bookinhand。
　　Nowlisten。_This_istherealthing——notmygarbledinaccuracies。`Thefoodwhichweeatservesthreepurposes：itbuildsthebodysubstance，bone，muscle，etc。，itproducesheatinthebody，anditgeneratesvitalenergy。Nitrogenindifferentchemicalcombinationscontributeslargelytothemanufactureofbodysubstances；
　　thefatsproduceheat；andthestarchesandsugarsgotomakethevitalenergy。Thenitrogenousfoodelementswecallproteins；thefatsandoils，fats；andthestarchesandsugarsbecauseofthepredominanceofcarbon，wecallcarbohydrates。Nowinselectingthedietforthedayyoushouldtakecaretochoosethosefoodswhichgivetheproteins，fats，andcarbohydratesinjusttherightproportion。’’
　　Oh，Billy!’groanedBertram。
　　Butit’sso，Bertram，’maintainedBilly，anxiously。Andit’severybithere。Idon’thavetoguessatitatall。Theyevengivethequantitiesofcaloriesofenergyrequiredfordifferentsizedmen。I’mgoingtomeasureyoubothto-morrow；andyoumustbeweighed，too，’
　　shecontinued，ignoringthesniffsofremonstrancefromhertwolisteners。ThenI’llknowjusthowmanycaloriestogiveeachofyou。Theysayamanofaveragesizeandweight，andsedentaryoccupation，shouldhaveatleast2，000calories——
　　andsomeauthoritiessay3，000——inthisproportion：
　　proteins，300calories，fats，350calories，carbohydrates，1，350calories。Butyoubotharetallerthanfivefeetfiveinches，andIshouldthinkyouweighedmorethan145pounds；soIcan’ttelljustyethowmanycaloriesyouwillneed。’
　　Howmanywewillneed，indeed!’ejaculatedBertram。
　　But，mydear，youknowIhavetohavemyeggs，’beganUncleWilliamagain，inaworriedvoice。
　　Ofcourseyoudo，dear；andyoushallhavethem，’soothedBilly，brightly。It’sonlythatI’llhavetobecarefulandbalanceuptheotherthingsforthedayaccordingly。Don’tyousee？
　　Nowlisten。We’llseewhateggsare。’Sheturnedtheleavesrapidly。Here’sthefoodtable。It’slovely。Ittellseverything。Ineversawanythingsowonderful。A——b——c——d——e——hereweare。`Eggs，scrambledorboiled，fatsandproteins，oneegg，100。’Ifit’spoachedit’sonly50；butyoulikeyoursboiled，sowe’llhavetoreckononthe100。Andyoualwayshavetwo，sothatmeans200caloriesinfatsandproteins。Now，don’tyousee？Ifyoucan’thavebut300proteinsand350fatsallday，andyou’vealreadyeaten200inyourtwoeggs，that’llleavejust——er——450foralltherestoftheday，——offatsandproteins，youunderstand。Andyou’venoideahowfastthat’llcountup。Why，justoneservingofbutteris100offats，andeightalmondsisanother，whileaservingoflentilsis100ofproteins。Soyouseehowit’llgo。’
　　Yes，Isee，’murmuredUncleWilliam，castingamournfulglanceaboutthegenerouslyladentable，muchasifhewerebiddingfarewelltoadepartingfriend。ButifIshouldwantmoretoeat——’Hestoppedhelplessly，andBertram’saggrievedvoicefilledthepause。
　　Lookhere，Billy，ifyouthinkI’mgoingtobemeasuredforaneggandweighedforanalmond，you’remuchmistaken；becauseI’mnot。
　　IwanttoeatwhatIlike，andasmuchasIlike，whetherit’ssixcaloriesorsixthousand!’
　　Billychuckled，butsheraisedherhandsinpretendedshockedprotest。
　　Sixthousand!Mercy!Bertram，Idon’tknowwhatwouldhappenifyouatethatquantity；
　　butI’msureyoucouldn’tpaint。You’djusthavetosawwoodanddigditchestouseupallthatvitalenergy。’
　　Humph!’scoffedBertram。
　　Besides，thisisfor_efficiency_，’wentonBilly，withanearnestair。Thismanownsupthatsomemaythinka2，000caloryrationisaltogethertoosmall，andheadvisessuchtobeginwith3，000oreven3，500——graded，ofcourse，accordingtoaman’ssize，weight，andoccupation。Buthesaysonefamousmandoessplendidworkononly1，800calories，andanotheroneven1，600。
　　Butthatisjustamatterofchewing。Why，Bertram，youhavenoideawhatperfectlywonderfulthingschewingdoes。’
　　Yes，I’veheardofthat，’gruntedBertram；
　　tenchewstoacherry，andsixtytoaspoonfulofsoup。There’sanoldmetronomeup-stairsthatCyrilleft。Youmightbringitdownandsetitgoingonthetable——somanytickstoamouthful，Isuppose。Ireckon，withanincentivelikethattoeat，justabouttwocalorieswoulddome。Eh，William？’
　　Bertram!Nowyou’reonlymakingfun，’
　　chidedBilly；andwhenit’sreallyserious，too。
　　Nowlisten，’sheadmonished，pickingupthebookagain。`Ifamanconsumesalargeamountofmeat，andveryfewvegetables，hisdietwillbetoorichinprotein，andtoolackingincarbohydrates。Ontheotherhand，ifheconsumesgreatquantitiesofpastry，bread，butter，andtea，hismealswillfurnishtoomuchenergy，andnotenoughbuildingmaterial。’There，Bertram，don’tyousee？’
　　Oh，yes，Isee，’teasedBertram。William，bettereatwhatyoucanto-night。Iforeseeit’sthelastmealofjust_food_we’llgetforsometime。
　　Hereafterwe’llhaveproteins，fats，andcarbohydratesmadeintocalorycroquettes，and——’
　　Bertram!’scoldedBilly。
　　ButBertramwouldnotbesilenced。
　　Here，justletmetakethatbook，’heinsisted，draggingthevolumefromBilly’sreluctantfingers。
　　Now，William，listen。Here’syourbreakfastto-morrowmorning：strawberries，100calories；
　　whole-wheatbread，75calories；butter，100
　　caloriesnosecondhelping，mindyou，oryou’druinthebalanceandsomethingwouldtopple；
　　boiledeggs，200calories；cocoa，100calories——
　　whichallcomesto570calories。SoundslikeanEnglishbilloffarewithanewkindofforeignmoney，but’tisn’t，really，youknow。Nowforluncheonyoucanhavetomatosoup，50calories；
　　potatosalad——that’scheap，only30calories，and——’ButBillypulledthebookawaythen，andinrighteousindignationcarriedittothekitchen。
　　Youdon’tdeserveanythingtoeat，’shedeclaredwithdignity，asshereturnedtothedining-
　　room。
　　No？’queriedBertram，hiseyebrowsuplifted。Well，asnearasIcanmakeoutwearen’tgoingtoget——much。’
　　ButBillydidnotdeigntoanswerthis。
　　InspiteofBertram’stormentinggibes，Billydid，forsomedays，arrangehermealsinaccordancewiththewonderfultableoffoodgiveninCorrectEatingforEfficiency。’Tobesure，Bertram，whateverhefoundbeforehimduringthosedays，anxiouslyaskedwhetherhewereeatingfats，proteins，orcarbohydrates；andheworriedopenlyastothepossibilityofhismeal’sproducingonecalorytoomuchortoolittle，thusendangeringhisbalance。’
　　Billyalternatelylaughedandscolded，totheunvaryinggoodnatureofherhusband。Asithappened，however，eventhiswasnotforlong，forBillyranacrossamagazinearticleonfoodadulteration；andthissofilledherwithterrorlest，inthefoodserved，shewerekillingherfamilybyslowpoison，thatsheforgotallabouttheproteins，fats，andcarbohydrates。Hertalkthesedayswasofformaldehyde，benzoateofsoda，andsalicylicacid。
　　Verysoon，too，BillydiscoveredanexclusiveBackBayschoolforinstructioninhouseholdeconomicsanddomestichygiene。Billyinvestigateditatonce，andwasimmediatelyaflamewithenthusiasm。ShetoldBertramthatittaughteverything，_everything_shewantedtoknow；andforthwithsheenrolledherselfasoneofitsmostdevotedpupils，inspiteofherhusband’sproteststhatsheknewenough，morethanenough，already。
　　Thisschoolattendance，toherconsternation，Billydiscoveredtookaddedtime；butinsomewayshecontrivedtofindittotake。
　　Andsothedayspassed。Eliza’smother，thoughbetter，wasstilltooillforherdaughtertoleaveher。Billy，asthewarmweatherapproached，begantolookpaleandthin。Billy，totellthetruth，wasworkingaltogethertoohard；butshewouldnotadmitit，eventoherself。Atfirstthenoveltyofthework，andherdeterminationtoconqueratallcosts，hadgivenafictitiousstrengthtoherendurance。Nowthatthenoveltyhadbecomeaccustomedness，andtheconqueringasurety，Billydiscoveredthatshehadabackthatcouldache，andlimbsthat，attimes，couldalmostrefusetomovefromweariness。Therewasstill，however，onespurthatneverfailedtourgehertofreshendeavor，andtomakeher，atleasttemporarily，forgetbothacheandweariness；andthatwasthecomfortingthoughtthatnow，certainly，evenBertramhimselfmustadmitthatshewastendingtoherhomeandherhusband。
　　AstoBertram——Bertram，itistrue，hadatfirstutteredfrequentandvehementprotestsagainsthiswife’sabsorptionofbothmindandbodyinthatplaguyhousework，’ashetermedit。Butasthedayspassed，andblessedordersupersededchaos，peacefolloweddiscord，anddelicious，well-servedmealstooktheplaceofthehorrorsthathadbeencalledmealsinthepast，hegraduallyacceptedthechangewithtranquilsatisfaction，andforgottoquestionhowitwasbroughtabout；thoughhedidstill，sometimes，rebelbecauseBillywasalwaystootired，ortoobusy，togooutwithhim。Oflate，however，hehadnotdoneeventhissofrequently，foranewFaceofaGirl’hadpossessedhissoul；andallhisthoughtsandmostofhistimehadgonetoputtingoncanvasthevisionoflovelinessthathismind’seyesaw。
　　ByJunefifteenththepicturewasfinished。
　　Bertramawokethentohissurroundings。Hefoundsummerwasuponhimwithnoplansmadeforitsenjoyment。HefoundWilliamhadstartedWestforatwoweeks’businesstrip。Butwhathedidnotfindoneday——atleastatfirst——washiswife，whenhecamehomeunexpectedlyatfouro’clock。AndBertramespeciallywantedtofindhiswifethatday，forhehadmetthreepeoplewhosewordshaddisquietedhimnotalittle。
　　First，AuntHannah。Shehadsaid：
　　Bertram，whereisBilly？Shehasn’tbeenouttotheAnnexforaweek；andthelasttimeshewasthereshelookedsick。Iwasrealworriedabouther。’
　　Cyrilhadbeennext。