The Cairo daily bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1870-1872, 1871-05-14
THE POETRY OF A DINNER
NJ SUSAN COOLIDGE.

Everything in the world. from love-
making 80 sweeping q room, hasits grace
ful side and ITS ungraceful. All depends
upon the way in which it is done. Awk-
wardness, self-consciousness, want of tact,
may convert the most beautiful moment Of
life into ludicrous spectacle for lockers
on, while in the hands of Fairy Fair even
the prcsaic employment Of darning stock
ings become invested with certain charm.
And poetry costs no moro than prose.
A hundred cheap methods of embellish-
ment suggest themselves when people once
begin to look them up. Housekeeping
dress, society, aro open alike to their in
fuence, and even so humdrum thing us
family dinner may be made pretty and
attractive with hardly the additional cost
Of penny. tf
What, for instance, can be easier than
to pare and trim the mutton-ciops which
form our frugal repast, and serve
them neatly stacked in the center of
platter las soliiers stack arms), the bones
forming a pyramid, "eactI bone finished
with O narrow rufiic of cut paper, and the
whole bordered with mashed potatoes
nicely Drowned. Ten minutes additional
work (or less than that FOR the cut papers
Ter evening", and tho simple dish takes on
the air Of dainty French entree; or,
how easy to make Goldfish dinner at
tractive ty serving IL in shapely mound.
crisped and glazed with eyg.,auce? :?
or, to put . cluster Of parsley ut either end
Of the roast beef, and few shavings of
horseradish on top? or to adorn the hash
with rim of toasted bread cut in points,
or sprinkle crosses over the hot steak, or
lay few slices OF lemon about tho dish of
veal outlets or to make the mince-meat
into ''croquettc. by pressing II into forms
within n wine-glass, browning in the oven
and sticking a minute sprig Of celery OF
top of each little cone?
The most rigid economist need moi
grudge the pennyworth Of cress or parsley
or the scrap Of white paper which makes
a plain dish appetElng and attractive
And If the house boasts garden, how
ever small, the number of these adorn
mcnts may be indefinitely multiplied
Nothing adds so much to the elegance o.
n table as flowers. A bowl of fresh roses
is worth all the silver and ornioiu in tn,
world, as far as effect goes. A button
hole bouquet in each napkin gives q gal,
air 70 a dinner of pork ard beans. AnC
any body with square rod OF sunny gar
den bed can command for eight month, "
n year these ornaments--the loveliesi
choicest, and cheapest in the world.
4 Every table should have center. an,
jthis center must not be too high. l
Is a certain damper to conversation whel
n your opposite neighbor is hidden behin'
great bunch of something green. and yo
are obliged to dodge this way and that {
catch sglimspe Of his face. The howl o
basket in which the flowers rest should no
rise more than half foot above the leve
of the dishes which surround it. A baske
Of fruit-oranges, apples, grapes-taste
fully arranged and trimmed with ivy
leaves makes a pretty center or a salad
bowl of crisp green lettuce, dotted with
scarlet nasturtiums, or flowers and vines
suspended aboce tho table, from lamp or
chandelier, So as to clear the range of the
eye. We have seen large conch-shell
used for this purpose quite effectively.
Table linen and china being usually
white, an artistic housekeeping will aim
nj producing judicious contrast of color
in other things. Mats of red and white
| straw, or Of crocheted cotton, with scar
let initial in tho middle. are pretty. Nap
kins may have q similar initial in red or
blue, worked in their corners Or the
fnger-bowls may be of alternate hues
crimson and blue, or green and amber.or a
bit of brght-colored dish may DO used for
Jelly, or horse-radish, or pickles (; or the
sugar may be put into bowl lined with
brilliant glass. All these littlo touches
make table gay and relieve tho general
kwhiteness. And the desert may be en-.
livened with pudding-piate or custard
bowl of decorated china. Never mind il
it dosn't match, so long as the general Of
feet is uniform.
A delicate finish will characterize each
detail of the ideal dinner. Tho sal. will
BE- pure and smooth, or formed into a
snowy pyramid by means Of tiny wine.
glass. The butter will be in dainty pats,
or stamped with some pretty device, OF
rolled into small criss-crosscd globes with
"Scotch spatter" Tho currants or
Strawberries will have few OF their own
leaves tucked round them to heighten
their blushing red Tho dnger-bowls,
perhaps, may have geranium or lemon
leaf in them to scent the fingers. Every
where will be signs of care, and of that
perfect taste which scores no detail how
ever small.
One word about desserts. Many people
1 do not bellows in them at all. Others do'
but deplore tho frequent use OF pastry.
Then why not have fruits, which, OF one