Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1854-06-07
MISC ELL A N Y.
HOW :, Roman Emperor Lived


How u Roman Emperor Lived.
Bruce IN his Classic and Historic Por-
traits gives the following sketch OF that
effemnate creature, Emperor Heliogabalus:
In his magnifcence Heliogaba'us was
truly Oriental. He had beds and couches
of solid silver. He adorned others OF his
beds with gold. His charots glittered with
gems. They were drawn sometimes by
elephants, sometimes by stays, and some
times by beautiful women. His drink
inc and cooking vessels were Of sill
yer. He was also guilty Of the luxury
which, at a later period, st. Chrysotom
charges as sin against the Christian ladies'
of Constantinople--ot using vessels of the
most precious material for the use of most
ignobe purposes. He had cups artifclally
perfumed for drinking, and others on which
lascivious designs were sculptured; an In
iouity not confined to ancient and heathen
times. AT table he recllned on couches
stuffed with the fur of hares or the down Of
cartridges. He wore cloaks heavy with
gems, and used to say he was burdened
with load of pleasure. He had gems IN
his shoes, sculptured with designs by the
finest artist, He wore diadem of pre-
cious stones that he might resemble beau
tlful woman. He is said to have been the
first Roman who wore robes of entire silk.
He never, it is said, wore ring for more
than one day, or twice put on the same
shoes.
In his more refined and elegant luXuries
he was the rival of the ancient Demetrius
Poliorcetes. He had beds and couches of
roses, and walked amongst lilies. violets,
hyaclnths and marcissuses. When he
wished to add the p;quant flavor of cruelty
to his eniovments, he would stiae cour-
tier to death in bed of flowers. He swan
in water periumed with saffron and precious
uacuents; and wine and aromatics were
poured into his fish ponds ard his baths
In eating and drinking he appears not so
much as glutton, but as the chief of all
royal epicures, the equal in gasfronomic
science of the renowned Apidius. Hejoin-
ed with all who studied the pleasure Of the
palate in admiration of the dish which the
Romans made of the teats of newly bar
rowed pig; the most celebrated of ancient
luxuries. After the example Of fApiclus he
INDUCED in dishes made of the tender parts
of the heel of the camel, and of combs
torn from the heads of living cocks. This
delcacy Cassaubon in his commentary on
the passage in the Augustan historian in
which 1t is referred to, tells US. Is at this
day-that is his day, two hundred years "a
go-pasSionately sought after by men ,ol
learned palates. Like VitelIius he seems
to have had his appetite whetted by the ex-
pensiveness of the dishes which he procur-
ed and like him he took pleasure in sac
rifcing the rare and most beautiful birds,
for the sake of eating their heads or their
brains or their tongues. At one entertain
ment he displayed on his table the heads OF
SIX hundred ostrIches, whose brains aswell
as those of the hamingo and thrush, were
amongst his favorite repasts. He also in
dulged in the tongues of peacocks and
nightingales, believing that they had amed-
ical virtue in averting epilepsy. He also
made dishes Of the entrailS and sometimes
of the boards Of the mullet, of the eggs OF
partridges, ard the heads of pheasants, pea
cocks and parrots. We wonder at the de-
struction of creatures so lovely to the sight
as the peacock, the hamingo, and the
pheasant for the particle of delicate eating
to be got from them: but epicurism and
sluttony consume aud destroy all other
tastes.
Tie Able Dubois, in his curious work on
India, notices with regret that the prospect
i IL Nra.,co he r. &
the Hindoos which they would have ac-
CURED if they would only have consented
to abstain from one single article of food
the flesh Of the COW the representative on
earth Of the goddess Bhavant, would not
restrain the English from horrliying the
heather by eating that one article, even in
the unsavory condition in which it is found
in India. A devout Danish missionary, of
the Moravian sect, is still more severe on
the same subject. He tells us that when
an English child is shown any pretty bird
or fish, its first question about it is: rs il
good for eating :"
We presume that Heliogabalus knew the
rich merits OF the goose'S liver, though he
may have been ignorant of that terrible cru
city WulCu CuIiSIdU COOkS,lu NlOueTH lllneS
are guilty Of practising to please Christian
palates IN the preparation OF the celebrated
fat liver; but it is recorded of him that
while he put grapes into his horses man
gers and fattened his lions On parrots aud
pheasants, he fed his dogs with the liver Of
geese.
The genius Of Heliosabalus shone partic-
ularly brightin the cooking of fish. In this
department he is said to have invented new
modes unknown TO Apicius but with re-
fined hatred OF things common and cheap,
he would never taste fish at all when near
the sea, but always took delight in them
when far removed from water, Just as he
took fancy to have snow brought TO him
in midsummer. He offered rewards for the
discovery of new dishes of exquisite flavor,
and be had humorous way OF stimulating
the invention of those around him in-this
science. When courtier, after eXerting
his best skill to please him, produced a dish
which he did not relish, he made the inge-
uiouS artist himself continue 10 eat Of that
dish aud nothing else, TIL sharpened by dis