Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1874-04-02


table at which two elegantly dressed
gentlemen Were already seated, and or
dered some roast beef and salad, which
was all the few small coins that still re-
manned to him would pay for The beef
he found entirely TO his liking; the salad,
on the contrary, he pushed aside as abso
lutely unfit to be eaten.
Meantime, three more fashionable young
men of the world had seated themselves
at the table. They smiled as he pushed
the salad aside, and nodded assent as he
said;
What an abominable mess they give
you here under the name of salad With
us, in France, a salad is a very different
sort of thing"
"Then you are Frenchman, sir?"
asked one of the gentlemen in a courtly
tone. Is it true that your cou ntrymen
are the adopts have heard they are in
the dressing of salads?"
"That is one of the arts in which they
are certainly proficient" replied the
Frenchman.
But the secret is, of course, not known
to every one; it is probably only in the
hands of professional cooks and cpl
cures?"
Not at ALL" replied Henri; "every
child with us knows how to dress salad
fit for king. True, our petit crepe is a
very different sort of vegetable from the
bitter lettuce that grows in England"
" fear you do our gardeners injustice;
the lettuce they raise is good enough, it
only requires to be properly dressed"
The discussion was continued at some
length, when one of The Englishmen
turned to D'Albignac and asked if he
would not undertake to prepare a salad
then and there after the French manner.
Certainly! why not?" replied Henri;
whereupon the waiter was called, and all
the necessary ingredients were immedi-
ately ordered for the dressing of salad
a Ia Frunc0jse.
Then the young nobleman wen. to work
answering, meantime, the questions of the
Englishmen with regard to his country
and his impressions of theirs And thus
it came that he told his interlocutors his
own story-that he was an eDaigre, had
exhausted all his means, and was at
loss to know what to do or which way to
turn.
In due time the salad was dressed,
tasted, and pronounced superb. Indeed,
one of the young Englishmen was so well
pleased that he insisted on testifving his
appreciation Of the Frenchman art by
presenting him with fve-pound bank
note.
Henri, very naturally, objected at first
to accept it, but the Englshman would
listen to no excuses, and he was finally
compelled to yield. At parting, they
took his address, and assured him that
he would hear from them again.
D'Albignac returned to his lodgings
in a much better frame of mind than
he had been in for many days. His first
step was to satisfy his impor.unate land
lord with the five pounds that had so
fortunately fallen into his hands; his
second, to look for other quarters. The
huckster was not little chagrined to see
his tenant leave him, but he made no
effort to induce him to remain. ave
shall see" he thought; you will be glad
to come back to me and accept my offer
if not to-day or tomorrow, then later.
Return you are sure to, for what can
you, triendless and moneyless, do in
LondOn?"
Henri found, in the same street, in the
house OF Il weaver, modest apartment
that answered his purpose. He now be.
gan to look diligently about for some
means of earning livelihood, and
thought no more of the salad adventure
until he was reminded of it in manner
that, in his impoverished condition, was
most agreeable.
-Four or five days had elapsed, when
one morning he received a note in which
he was politely requested to do the writer
the favor to come, on certain day, at a
specified hour, to one Of the hantlsomest
mansions in Grosvenor Square, i'll order
that the guests at a large dinner-party
might profit by his skill in salad-dressing
Grosvenor Square in those days was the
most fashionable part OF London. Once
iavorably known in that neighborhood,
and his fame could not fail to extend
throughout the city. The young French
man had sufficient sagaclty to see that
his skill in dressing salads might be made
to retrieve his fortunes he therefore spent
the time that interviewed between the re-
ceipt of the note and the day on which he
was to visit the square in making some
experiments, which finally resulted to his
entire satisfaction.
He was punctual, and found the prin-
cipal ingredients for the dish he was
called in to prepare awaiting his arrival.
Ia little box which he carried with him
he brought various condiments he deemed
necessary to enable him to acquit himself
in the best possible manner. He was en-
tirely successful, and won the highest
praise; but what gratitied him most was
the liberal recompense he received for
his trouble, which strengthened his de
termination to reap whatever pecuniary
advantage from his art he could.
Heni's hopes and expectations were
more than realized. His second socallcd
Italian salad did much more toward max
ing him known than he anticipated. In
very few days he received another inyi.
.a-ian or 10 har oydar. soon afferward