Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1868-01-09
Fashionable Dinner Party
in AbysSinia.

been entertained in regard to th'
mode of supplying brinde, or raw
meat to the guests in the fashiona
BILE parties at Condor, the capita
lof Abyssinia. When the colnpa
ny have taken their seats at table
a cow or bull is brought to the
door and his feet strongly tied, af
! ter which the cooks proceed to Sc
lect the most delicate morsels
Before killing the animal, all the
flesh on the buttocks is cut off in
solid square pieces without bones
or much effusion of blood. Two
or three servants are then employ.
ed, who, as fast as they can pro-
cure brinde, lay it upon cakes of
teff placed like dishes down the
table, without cloth or anything
else beneath them. By this time
all the guests have knives in their
hands, and the men prefer the
large crooked ones, which in the
time of war they put to all sorts
of uses. The company are SO
arranged that one gentleman sits
between two ladies; and the for
mer with his long knife begins by
cutting a thin piece, which would
be thought a good steak in Eng
land, while the motion of the f.
bres is yet perfectly distinct.
In Abyssinia no man of any fash
ion feeds himself or touches his
own meat. The women take the
flesh and cut it lengthwise like
strings, about the thicknesso of ones
little finger, then crosswise into
square pieces somewhat smaller
than dice. This they lay upon a
portion Of the teff bread, strongly
powdered with black pepper, or
cayenne, and fossil salt, and then
wrap it up like a cartridge. In
the meantime the gentleman hav-
ing put up his knife, with each
hand resting upon his neighbor's
knee, body STOPPING, his head low
and forward and mouth open, We
ry like an idiot, turns to the one
whose cartridge is first ready, who
stuffs the whole Of it between his
jaws at the immediate risk of
choking him. This is a mark of
grandeur. The greater the man
would seem to be, the larger is the
piece which he takes in his mouth;
the more noise he makes in chew
ing it, the more polite does he
prove himself. None but beggars
and thieves, say they, eat small
pieces, and in silence. Having
dispatched the morsel, which he
does very expeditiously, his neigh
Dor on the other hand holds forth
a second pellet, which he devours
in the same way, and SO on till he
is satisfied. He never drinks till
he has finished eating; and before
he begins, in gratitude to the fair
ones who have fed him, he makes
up two small rolls of the same
kind and form, each Of the ladies
opens her mouth at once, while
with his own hand he supplies u
portion to both at the same moment.
Then commence the potations,
which we are assured are not reg
ulated with much regard to sobrie-
ty or decorum. All this time the
unfortunate victim at the door is
bleeding, but bleeding little; for,
so skillful are the butchers, that
while they strip the bones of the
flesh, they avoid the parts which
are traversed by the great arteries.
At last they fall upon the thighs
likewise; and soon after, the ami
NAL, perishing from loss of blood,
becomes SO tough that the unfeel-
ing wretches who feed on the re-
mainder can scarcely separate the
muscles with their teeth. In the
description now given we have
purposely omitted some features
which, it is not improbable, have
been a little too highly colored, if
not even somewhat inaccurately
drawn. But there is no rea-
son to doubt the general correct
ness of the delineation, not except
lug the grossest and most repul-
sive particulars.