The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-11-10
The Dining-Hall in the 18th Century

Tables for meals in the thirteenth century
were simply boards placed on trestles, and
removed when the repast was over. On
the table at the dais was silver plate, then
rare luxury restricted to the highest
classes, the articles being spoons, knives,
plates and goblets. There were no forks,
for only one fork had ever been heard of
as a thing to eat with, and this had been
the invention of wife of Doge of Ven
ice about two hundred years previous, for
which piece of refinement the public re-
warded the lady by considering her as
proud as Lucifer. Forks existed both in
the form of spice forks and fire forks, but
no one ever thought of eating with them
in England until they were introduced
from Italy in the reign of james l., and
for some time after that the use of them
marked either traveller or a luxurious,
efeminate man. Moreover, there were no
knives nor spoons provided for helping
oneself from the dishes Each person had
knife and spoon for himself, with which
he helped himself at his convenience.
People who were very delicate and particu-
lar wiped their knives on piece of bread
before doing 50 and licked their spoons all
over. When these were the practices of
fastidious people, the proceedings of those
who were not such may be discreetly left
to the Imagination. The second table was
left in much more ordinary manner. In
this instance the knife was iron and the
spoon pewter, the plate wooden trencher
(never changed) and the drinking cup of
horn. In the midst of the table stood
pewter saltcellar, formed like castle, and
very much larger than we use them now
This saltcellar acted as a sort of barometer,
not for weather but for rank Every one
of noble blood, or filling certain offices, sat
above the salt With respect to cooking,
our fathers had some peculiarities. They
ate many things that we never touch, such
as porpoises and herons, and they used all
manner of green things as vegetables
They liked their bread hot from the oven
Ito give cold bread, even for dinner, was a
shabby proceeding), and their meat much
underdone, for they thought that overdone
meat stirred up anger. They mixed most
incongruous things together; they loved
very strong tastes, delighting in garlic and
verjuice; they never appear to have paid the
slightest regard to their digestion, and they
were, in the most emphatic sense, not tee
totalers. The dining hall, but not the
table, was decorated with flowers; and sing
ers, often placed in a gallery at one end,
were employed the whole time. A gentle
man usher acted as butler, and yeoman
was always at hand to keep out strange
dogs, snuff candles and light to bed guests,
who were not always in condition to find
their way up stairs without his help. The
hours at this time were or 10 o'clock for
dinner Except on fast days, when it was
noon) and 3 or 4 for supper. Two meals
day were thought sufficient for all men
who were not invalids. The sick and wo-
men sometimes had 'rear-supper" at 6
o'clock or later. As to breakfast it was
meal taken only by some persons, and then
served in the bedchamber or private bou-
doir at convenience. Wine, with bread
sopped in it, was favorite breakfast, es-
pecially for the old. Very delicate or ex-
ceptionally temperate people took milk
for breakfast; but though the middle ages
present us with examples of both vegeta-
rians and total abstainers, yet of both there
were very few indeed, and they were mainly
to be found among the religious orders.