taught M. de Borose that the number of dishes being pretty well determined by custom, a good dinner is not much dearer than a bad one; that for less than £20 more a year a man need never drink anything but the best wines; and that everything depends on the will of the master, on the order he keeps in his household, and the tone and energy which he imparts to the establishment generally.

Starting from these fundamental points, the dinners of Berose assumed a character and importance quite classical. Renown celebrated the enjoyment of the guests, and men were proud of having been invited; some even praised the attractions of his table who had never sat at it.

He never asked those so-called gastronomes who are mere gluttons, whose belly is an abyss, and who eat anywhere, of anything, and to any amount. All his guests were men who, whilst devoting to the business in hand all the necessary time and attention, never forgot that there is a moment when reason says to appetite, Non procedes amplius—not a step further.

Twice a week he invited ladies, taking care so to arrange matters that each of them should have the exclusive attention of a chivalrous guest. On the first Monday of every month the parish clergyman had his place at the table, sure of being received

with respect and esteem; and he is said to have more than once expressed a wish that every month had four first Mondays.

With reference to tradesmen, he only trusted those who were honourable and just in their dealings with all, treating them as friends, and sometimes giving them assistance or advice. He made the fortune of his wine-merchant, by giving out that he was never guilty of adulteration-a virtue rare even at Athens in the times of Pericles, and by no means common in the nineteenth century.

Those details may be forgiven in the case of M. Berose, who did much to refine gastronomic taste and elevate its tone, especially on reading the closing scene which so lately saddened all who knew him. About the middle of last March he was invited to spend the day in the country with several friends. It was one of those unseasonably warm days, a forerunner of spring, and when they were out walking the sky suddenly became gloomy, and a frightful storm burst forth with thunder, rain and hail. Everybody ran for safety as they could and where they could, and M. de Berose sought shelter under a poplar whose lower branches seemed to offer some protection.

Ill-fated shelter! The tree's lofty top rose to the clouds as if to find the electric fluid, and the rain

falling down the branches served as its conductor. Suddenly a fearful explosion was heard, and the unfortunate pleasure-seeker fell dead without having time to breathe a sigh.

XXX.

GASTRONOMIC MYTHOLOGY.

GASTEREA is the tenth Muse; she presides over the enjoyments of taste.

She might lay claim to the empire of the universe, for the universe is nothing without life, and all that has life requires nourishment.

She takes special pleasure in those rising grounds where the vine flourishes, or those which the orangetree perfumes, in the thickets where the truffle grows, in the countries which abound in game and fruit.

When she deigns to show herself, she assumes the form of a young girl, her zone the colour of fire, her hair black, her eyes azure-blue, and her figure and movements full of grace. Fair as the goddess of love, she is above all sovereignly beautiful.

Of all places where Gasterea has altars, that

which she prefers is the town, queen of the world, which the Seine imprisons between the marbles of his palaces.

The worship of the goddess is simple. Every day, at sunrise, her priests come to remove the crown of flowers which adorns her statue, placing on it a new one, and singing in chorus one of the many hymns by which poetry has celebrated the boons which the immortal sheds abundantly upon the human race.

TRANSITION.

WHOEVER has read me thus far with that attention which I have sought to excite and sustain, must. have seen that in writing I had a double object in view, never lost sight of. The first was to lay down the fundamental theory of Gastronomy, so that she should take her place amongst the sciences in that rank to which she has an incontestable right. The second, to define with precision what must be understood by love of good living, so that for all time coming that social quality might be kept apart from gluttony and intemperance, with which many have absurdly confounded it.

The misleading double use of the term was introduced by some intolerant moralists, who, being misled by an unrestrained zeal, were ever seeing excess where there was only well-regulated enjoyment; for the treasures of nature have not been created to be trod under foot. The blunder was afterwards propagated by some unsocial grammarians, who defined with their eyes shut, and swore in verba magistri. It is time such an error were put a stop to, now that the matter is clear; for at the present day there is nobody who has not a slight dash of the gastronome in his composition, and does not plume himself upon it; there is nobody who would not feel grossly insulted by being accused of gluttony, voracity, or intemperance.

These two cardinal points having been fully treated, I might have laid my pen aside; but in fathoming subjects which touch everything, many things have come into my mind, such as some original anecdotes, witticisms, and similar sidedishes, which could not have been inserted in the theoretical part without breaking the continuity, but will, I trust, yield the reader some pleasure as a collection.

A little mixture of something relating to my own personal history could not be avoided; but that element leaves room neither for discussion nor