Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1875-03-26
NO. ID.
ChInese Dinner Part,.

dinner party in China is most me-
thodical affair as regards precedence among
guests, the number Of courses, and their
general order and arrangement. We shall
endeavOr to give detailed and accurate
account Of such banquet as might be of
iercd 10 halra dozen friends by native In
easy circumstances. In the first place, no
ladies would be present, but men only
would occupy seats at the square, four
legged "eight fairy" table Before each
there Will be found n pair OF chopsticks,
wine-cup, small saucer for son. a two
pronged FORK, spoon, a tiny plate, divided
into separate compartments for melon
seeds and almonds, and pile of small
pieces of paper for cleaning these various
articles rs required. Arranged upon the
table, in four equi- distant rows, are six
teen small dishes, or saucers, which con-
tain four kinds Of fresh fruits, four kinds
Of dried fruits, four kinds of candied fruits,
and four miscellaneous, such as preserved
eggs, slices OF ham, sort of sardne,
picked cabbage, etc. These four are in
the middle, the other twelve being arrang-
ed alternately around them. Wine is pro-
duced the first thing, and poured into the
small porcelain cups by the giver Of the
feast hinself. II is polite to make a bow
and place one hand oil the side of the cup
while this operation is being performed.
The host then gives the signal TO drink,
and the cups are emptied instantaneously,
being oflen turned bottom upward as a
proof that there are no heel-taps. Many
Cinnamon, however, cannot stand even
small quantity of wine; and il is no un-
common thing when the feast is given at
an eating house, TO hire one Of the theatr.
cal singing-bCys 10 perform vicariously
such heavy drinking as may be required
by custom or exacted by forfeit. The six
teen small dishes aboS c mentioned remain
there during the whole dinner, and may
he eaten OF promiscuously between courses.
Now we come 10 the dinner, which may
consist of eight large and eight small
courses, six large and six small, eight
large and four small, according 10 the
means or fancy of the giver, each bowl OF
food constituting course being placed in
the middle of the table, and dipped into by
the guests with chopstichs or spoon, rs cir
cumstances may require. The first is the
commonest, and we append bill of fare of =.
an ordinary Chinese dinner on that scale,
each course coming in its proper place -
l. Sharks fins with crab sauce; a
Pigeons eggs stewed with mushrooms (2)
sliced sea-slugs in chicken broth with ham.
ii. Wild duck and Shantung cabbage;
! 90 fried fish; a. Jumps of pork fat, fried
in rice flour. III. Stewed lily roots (5)
| chicken mashed TO pulp with ham; (0j
stewed bamboo shoots. ". Stewed shell
fish; ca flied slices of pheasant (s) mush-
room broth. Remore.-Two dishes OF fried
! pudding, one sweet and the other salt, with
two dishes OF steamed puddings, also one
sweet aud one salt. [These four are put on
the table together, and with them is served
a cup of almond teal V. Sweetened duck.
| VI. Strips of boned chicken, fried in ell.
VII. Boiled fish (of any kind) with soy.
VIII. Lumps of parboiled mutton, fried
in pork fat. These last four large courses
are put on The table, one by one, and arc
not taken away. Subsequently a fifth,
bowl of soup, is added, aud small basins OF
rice are served round, over which some of
the soup is po ured. The meal is then at
an end. A rince-JOuche is handed TO each
guest anu Lowell, dlpped in boiling waller,
but well wrung out. With the last he
mops his face all over, and the effect is
much the same as halla noggin of Exshaw,
qualified with bottle Of Schweppe. Pipes
and tea are now handed round, though
this is not the first appearance Of tobacco
on the scene. Many Chinaman take Whit
or two at their hubble-bubbles between
almost every course. Opium is provided
when dinner is over for such as are addict
ed 10 the fatal luxury; and after a few
minutes, spent perhaps in arranging the
prelimin aries of some future banquet,
the party, which has probably lasted from
three 10 four hours, is no longer of the
present, but in the past.