The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1873-02-01


railroads projected and other schemes con
cocted during the post -prandial wine drink
ing. Official patronage, intrigue, love, pol
itics are discussed friendships formed
and schemes Of power, fame and ambition
! hatched at the dinner table. So it will b,
seen that the significance and importanc,
attached To those gatherings can not b,
we'll Overestimated
| The mighty RelvasOn was to give a din
ner party Invitations were sent to vari
GUS other Greats and Mightics, and wer,
all If course unequivocally accepted, for i
there is anything your modern capitalist
really enjoys it IS good dinner. Money
never files of the grossness Of his animal
| ity they are of that class whose God ii
their belly and whose glory is their shame,
as st. Paul expressed it.
In making up his dinner party RslVasOI
did not follow the rule of Brilllat S&varin
that in number it should not be less thar
the Graces or more than the MUSES.. III,
went on the pcincipal that # = small party
was AL enjoyable affair, q large one wa,
proportionately more 50, and besides ht
was a man that supposed the more noise he
made in the world the greater his claim t.
fame and popularity.
The prandial day arrived and in the af-
ternoOn little knots of gamins and grown
persons Of both sexes began to congregate
on { le corners in the vicinity and Opposite
the great Relvason mansion. They lad
assembled through mere curiosity, or from
that morbid love Of seeing something out
Of the ordinary course Of events, that seem
To inhero So strangely in humanity They
did not dream they ere paying homage to
wealth, and yet ia a certain sense they
were. The gaudy equipages, the liveriod
groons, the dashng toilets Of the Occu-
pants Of the carriages were all wonderful
Sights to these poor people. Even the
delicate Brussels that extended from the
curb stone into the hall door that the
dainty shoes, distorted by ungainly feet,
might not be solied, came IN for share of
the open-mouthed admiration. And yet
these capital worshippers never once
dreamed that the money thus foOhshly eX-
pended on show, frivolity, gew-gSws and
ever-dying phoenix fashion came directly
fromthe proceeds Of their own toll. Neither
did they dream that the costly dinner soon
to be served in the yra,tde mansion, instead
Of being eaten in the sweat Of the eaters
faces, was TO be eaten in the sweat Of the
faces Of themselves, for if man does not
work, and hence does not fulfill the Divine
command of eating his bread in the sweat
uf his face, he certainly eats the bread of
others if he eats at all And who yorB.da-
di.e more than those who ignore work, ami
despise those who do work. Surely the
world has left the path Of Deity and seems
travelling at a galloping pacing in the broad
highway Of Mammon.
All the invited guests having arrived,
dinner was announced. and Mr.. Kelvasun
rising. gave his arm 10 Erie, visitor from
New York, and bowing as gracefully he
kneN how, led the way to the dining room.
He was followed by Mr.. Stockbank and
lady (wlfe), Hon. Peter Oleum and lady,
Mr. Legal-law and lady, Mr. NJ d. Squills
and lady, Mr. H. Packer and lady, Mr..
Bishop and lady, besides several other
Hons and Messrs. Of lesser note. The
fat, plump hostess and Mr. a. Speculator
brought up. the rear The dining groom
was large and spacious, the floor WAS richly
carpeted, the table oval, the chairs had
slanting backs, and each lady Was furnished
with n very soft footstOol The appoint
ments Of the table could scarcely be said
to be ''delicately elegant" but they were
sumptuous and recherche it had sort Of
untouchable lmmAculateness about it.
There was an abundance Of solid silver
ware. and antique picturesque, benitian
glass, there were queer old fashioned jars,
rare china vases and statuettes, artificial
and real flowers in pIOfusion, rare paint
ings and chrumos on the wall, and many
other efforts at ornamentation calculated
to satisfy every other taste rs well as the
gastronomic, except one. There were no
books visible in this room, or any other
room Of the Relvason mansion. A house
without books is like body without soul,
and this may possibly account for the lack
Of sympathy and fine feeling in the Relva-
son family.
The dinner was served up a la RUsse, L
decided improvement on the old fashion Of
serving dinners, as it is really perPlexing
to a man to see all his dinner before hiIa
and have to carve, help others and talk
and eat at the same time. This old way
was cumbrous, and besides it suggested the
idea Of work, and our modern money col
umns have such a horror Of work that a
new method Of dining was invented or
borrowed, and hence the a Ia Rasse, ''the
poetry Of dining, came into universal
fashion with the DOntworks. In the din
ner Ia Rasse no eatables or dishes appear
on the table when the guests are first seat
ed, but dish after dish follows each other
~ If hy magic, A. soon a. the signal is
given, and the gourmAnd has nothing to do
but eat and be- happy.
l.. fk1. 4
qusried Relvason Of Mrs. G. Speeulator
No, thank you, don't wish any |
have a horror Of strange dishes Are they
good > she innocently asked.
why, my dear, said Mr.. Speculator,
looking up, they are revclutionlsts.
''Oh, my sakes another war when did
it begin =
My dear, there is no war, mildly an
swer-d the spouse These are working
people who engage in strikes"
well, | hope they won't strike each
other very hard if there in anything |
hate it il fighting, it ia 80 vulgar you know. "
Mr.. SpeculatOr wiped his face with his
napkin, and then stuck or tucked q corr or
Of it between his collar and neck, letting
the rest dangls down over his breast.
49, NOesAf SAos yO0 A~ 20 AO1A0 "
these troublesome fellows well, they ain I
worth bothering ones head about anyway.
These people are becoming unusually
Audscious, believe, said Mr.. H. Packer,
adjusting his napkin in . button hole Of
his coat.
''They are indeed, replied Relvason.
"Why don't you arrest and punish them =
asked Mrs. Erie.
''Oh they don't directly violate any
law, replied Spindle, from the lower end
Of the table.
but they murder law and order ike
FAlstaf murdered sleep" persisted Mrs.
Erie
she means Macduff, whispered Mrs.
Hon LegallAw to her lord.
Macbeth, my dear, Macbeth" he re-
piled in an undertOne.
But what do they want r put in Mrs.
~ Dax.kar