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stomachs of papier mâché, or rouse an appetite which is ever flickering in the socket, would require more genius, insight, and labour than the resolution of one of the most difficult problems of the Geometry of the Infinite.*

Under Louis XVI. there was a constant increase Louis the in all the occupations relating to the presixteenth. paration or sale of food-such as cooks, traiteurs, pastrycooks, confectioners, eating-houses, and so forth-and there is evidence that the increase was only in proportion to the actual demand. The art of preserving food of different kinds also became a distinct profession, with the object of presenting us all the year round with the various substances which are peculiar to each

season.

Gardening also began to make great progress, continuing to our own days. Hothouses have put before us the fruits of the tropics; different kinds

* 'According to information which I have gathered in several departments, a dinner for ten was, about the year 1740, composed as follows:

'First Course :-Soup, followed by the bouilli; an entrée of veal cooked in its gravy; a side-dish.

'Second Course :-A turkey; a dish of vegetables; a salad; and sometimes a cream.

'Dessert :-Cheese; fruit; sweets.

'Plates were changed only thrice-after the soup, at the second

course, and at dessert. Coffee was rarely served, but they frequently had a cherry-brandy or some similar preparation.'

of vegetables have been gained by culture or importation; and amongst others the cantaloup melon, which, in spite of the proverb, "Good melons are rare; before you find one you'll have to try fifty," only produces good fruit.

The wines of all countries have been grown, imported, and presented in due form-Madeira to open the trenches, the wines of France during the dinner, and those of Spain and Africa to crown the entertainment.

Amongst recent improvements is the distinction of good living from gluttony or guzzling. It is now looked upon as a bias or liking which one need not be ashamed of, as a social quality agreeable to the host, useful to the guest, and advantageous to science. In short, the gastronome is ranked with the connoisseurs or lovers of the fine arts.*

* But for the reign of Louis XVIII. being so recent, our author would probably have referred to his qualities as a gastronome. In these he as certainly equalled Louis the Magnificent and his worthless successor, as he surpassed them intellectually and morally. His most famous maître d'hôtel was the Duc d'Escars, of whom a Quarterly Reviewer says that, when he and his royal master were closeted together to meditate a dish, the Ministers of State were kept waiting in the antechamber, and the next day the official announcement regularly appeared-' M. le Duc d'Escars a travaillé dans le cabinet.'

The king had invented the truffes à la purée d'ortolans, and invariably prepared it himself, assisted by the duke. On one occasion they had jointly composed a dish of more than ordinary dimensions, and duly consumed the whole of it. In the middle of

One of the most recent creations in the development of gastronomy is the political banquet. It is given with the object of bringing some influence to bear directly on a large number of wills, the main requisite being abundance of good cheer, although it is generally lost upon the guests. Positive enjoyment, moreover, has but a very small share in such an entertainment.

At last the restaurants appeared—an entirely new institution which has by no means received the attention it merits, and must therefore be separately treated.

XXVIII.

ON THE PARISIAN DINING-HOUSES.

ABOUT the year 1770, after the glorious days of Louis XIV., the wild dissipation of the Regency, and the long tranquillity under the ministry of Cardinal

the night the duke was seized with a fit of indigestion, and his case was declared hopeless; loyal to the last, he ordered an attendant to wake and inform the king, who might be exposed to a similar attack. His majesty was roused accordingly, and told that d'Escars was dying of his invention. "Dying!" exclaimed Louis le Désiré; "dying of my truffes à la purée? I was right then; I always said that I had the better stomach of the two."

Fleury, travellers arriving at Paris found its resources very poor in respect of good cheer.

At last there was found a man of thought who formed for himself the conclusions that the same want being constantly reproduced every day about the same time, consumers would crowd to any place where they were sure the want would be agreeably satisfied; that if the wing of a fowl were detached in favour of the first comer, a second would be sure to present himself who would be satisfied with the thigh; that the excision of a choice slice in the obscurity of the kitchen would not dishonour the remainder of the joint; that on having a good dinner served promptly and neatly, no man would grudge a small increase in the charges; and that if the guests were to discuss the price or quality of the dishes ordered, there would be no end to it amongst so many details, and therefore there should be a fixed scale of charges; and, besides, that the combination of great variety of dishes with fixity of prices would have the advantage of being suitable to all fortunes.

Numerous advantages flow from the use of restaurants, an institution in which all Europe has Advanimitated Paris. Thus, every man can dine tages of when and how he chooses, according to the demands of business or pleasure; and

the res

taurant.

having beforehand made his reckoning according to the length of his purse, makes a hearty meal-substantial, or refined, or dainty, as his special tastes may incline-washes it down with the best wines, aromatizes it with mocha, and perfumes it with a favourite liqueur, the only restrictions being the vigour of his appetite or the capacity of his stomach. The Parisian dining-room is the paradise of a gastronomer.

Every man who has twenty francs at command can take a seat at the table of a first-class restaurant, and will be at least as well served as at the table of a prince.

Glance

round a diningroom in Paris.

When the philosophic eye scans the details of a public dining-room, the action and variety of the groups present much that is interesting. The background is occupied by the regular diners, who give their orders loudly, wait impatiently, eat hurriedly, pay, and go. That other group is a family on a travelling excursion, who, satisfied with a frugal repast, give it a zest by ordering some dishes which are quite new to them, and evidently greatly enjoy the sight of all that goes on around.

Close by them you see a Parisian couple, easily distinguished by the hat and shawl hung up over their heads. You can see that they have not had a

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