The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1883-11-07
Finger-BOwls and Mince Pies.

"To-dsy is finger-bowl days." said
winsome little grille to me, when her
mother urged me to stay to dinner, "well
have oranges" "That is one of my ways
of teaching the children table manners"
said my friend. 81 remember being 80
embarrassed as young girl, when was
fnger-bowls, etc., and so l try to accus.
tom my children to all these little things
at home. Once week we have fruit and
use finger-bowls; once in a while we have
raw oysters and use my pretty set of
plates and oyster forks; every Sunday we
have nuts cracked with the table nut.
cracker, and coffee served in tiny cups
the children's coffee is really milk, but
they learn to use the little cups" az
should think all that would make extra
work for your one servant; do tell me
how you manage" l said. "Stay to din
ner and see," was the laughing rejoinder,
and stayed. When the bell rang, rose
to go at once to the table, but my friend
said, That is the children's bell the
boys wash their hands and Daisy goes
down to get seated at the table with her
pinafore tied on" / made note of that
idea at once and shall try it at home.
How often Rob or Dick have to be sent
away to wash little of the dirt off their
fingers, or the grown people are kept
chair and gets her "feeder" adjusted. In
few minutes another bell rang and we
went to the table. At my friends
right hand was small stand with six
inger-bowls on plates, with a colored
napkin between each bowl and the plate.
At her husbands right hand was another
stand with plenty of extra plates and
saucers. The oranges were already in
the center of the table, taking the place
of the pretty china fower-pot, holding a
geranium in full bloom, which grsced the
table on other days. The older children
helped the dishes in front of them, my
friend saying that she had found this quite
possible by trusting them first with rice
or potatoes and gradually leading up to
tomatoes or maccaroni. There was no
waiting by the servant, except when the
dishes were removed and the crumbs
brushed off. "That is the only extra bit
of work give Bridget" said my friend,
"and feel it very important that chill
dren should be used to seeing the crumbs
day, by any means never if Bridget is
overworked." When the plates were re.
moved, Mrs. D. passed the finger bowls
and dessert plates, a silver dessert knife
being laid by each plate. 1t was pretty
to see little Daisy lift her finger.bowl and
put it by her side, and then, when her
elder brother had cut her orange in quar-
ters for her, manage it so daintily and
rinse her fingers as prettily as any young
lady ain society," The boys, too, used
their fnger-bowls with ease, and would
know how to go through quite a state
dinner. This is little matter, of no
very great Importance, but it may be a
useful hint to some other mother of young
children, as it has been to me. One
reader wishes to know when finger. bowls
should be put on the table. When the
dessert is served. If pudding or pie is
served before the fruit (and finger-bowls
are used only with frui) the bowls are
put on then and the pie or pudding is
eaten first then the fruit-plate, which is
same dinner we fell to talking of mince
pies how TO make them without wine Of
brandy. Mrs. DPS recipe is two bowls Of
apple to one of meat, a pound of raisins
one Of currants and quarter of pounc
of citron. Her bowl was "slop-bowl
of an old tea-set Sugar and spice &C
cording to taste and cider to moisten all
Another friend used the juice from he
sweet picked peaches as she did no
approve of cider, while still another rec
ommends making a syrup of the sugs
and using the juice OF two or three lemon
in it. All this is hearsay with me, 70
mince-pies are unwholesome affairs an,
troublesome to make, therefore as m,
"John " fortunately does not crave them
l go without.-Hope Ledyard, in Congrt
qationalist.