Mother: Yes, and the child no doubt thought if his body was “under,” his soul must be “on top.” I think it means that the mind should be the master of the body, doing only that which will be for its good. The master, when he knows what is best, will not let one of his servants be master instead of himself.
Helen: I should think every one would want to do what is best to keep the body well.
Mother: We would all think so, but there is one of the servants who often gets control of the master and coaxes him till he gets his own way. But, though he may be a good servant, he is a very bad master, and the body has a sorry time when this servant has his own way.
Amy: What is the servant’s name?
The tongue.
Mother: He is called Taste. His room is the passage where we found so many servants dressed in white. He wears a pink dress, and stays in the house most of the time, but once in a while he peeps out between the folding doors.
Amy: That is the tongue, I know.
Mother: Yes, that is where we find Taste at home. Sometimes when he has his own way, his dress becomes a dirty yellow or brown color, and if the master finds himself quite ill, he sends for a doctor, who comes, and about the first thing he does is to ask the tongue to step outside a moment, and as soon as the wise man looks at its dress, he knows whether Taste has been doing his duty or not.
Percy: But what is his duty?