A nurse will find a pleasant field for the exercise of ingenuity in selecting and preparing such dishes as shall (1) be suited to the digestive powers of the patient; (2) shall be savory; (3) shall be sufficiently varied to supply all those materials which the depleted and exhausted body needs; and (4) shall be in such judicious quantity as shall increase nutrition, but never overtax the digestive powers. The decision of No. 1 (food suited to the digestive powers) is the most difficult, and here again the doctor will advise for particular or peculiar diseases. There are certain things which from their natural composition are more easy of digestion than others, such, for instance, as milk, eggs slightly coagulated and raw, beef tea with the _juices in solution_, cocoa milk, and cocoa, coffee, jellies, gruels, porridge from prepared grains (except oatmeal) when _thoroughly_ cooked, oysters alive, rice, venison, and tripe. No. 2, the _savory_ quality, depends largely upon preparation, and is under the control of the nurse. A baked potato done in a _hot_ oven, just to the point, and served immediately, is a delicious dish; overdone, or done in an oven of low temperature, and served lukewarm, it is very far from appetizing. A steak, if cut thin, salted, and broiled slowly, will be hard, dry, and lacking in flavor, but if it is cut thick, at least an inch and a half, better two inches, broiled for the first minute over very hot coals, and then slowly, that the heat may have time to penetrate to the center, and raise the whole to a temperature sufficiently high to cook it (about 160° Fahr.) without charring the outside, it will make a dish both wholesome and savory. No. 3, the next consideration, is that of _variety_, and here the resources and judgment of the person in charge must come to the front. Only general hints can be given. Endeavor to supply some protein, some fat, some of the carbohydrates, and some mineral matter in each meal. Bread, grains, or potatoes will give the necessary starch. Sugar is usually supplied with drinks. Milk, eggs, meat, fish, and oysters will give protein; cream, butter, bacon, and the fat of other meats will furnish fat, and fruits and green salads give acids and mineral salts. For the latter, grapes, apples, carrots, onions, dandelions, and lettuce are very valuable. Grapes are composed of water with salts in solution, and glucose; both are absorbed with very little outlay from the system. The others are every-day foods, but science has taught that their instinctive use in the past has been a wise one.