The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1884-05-01
: '.sE IL Il EssE11..ssI{. 4. -
CULTURE AT THE TABLE.

ner9-out-What TO eat ana HOW 20 &St
it-vulagrities to be Avoided. = d i
The best thing about plate of good
soup is to know how tos drink it. AS
this first course is only intended to pre-
pare the stomach for the dinner that is
to follow, it is never permissible to call
for it second time, nor is it necessary
to consume more than third of the
amount served to you. To break bread
in your soup is an insult to your hos
tess, who would have spared you that
trouble had she not preferred thin
soup. No notion under the sun
uses oyster crackers, in a soup but
Americans of the most shoddy class.
In taking the soup do not fill the spoon
more than half full, and dip up the Ii
quid by passing the spoon from you.
The manner in which. the spoon shall
reach the mouth is an open question,
ladies insisting that the proper thing is
Ito drink from the side of the bowl,
while gentlemen maintain that the cor
/ rect way is from the tip of the spoon.
! This certainly appears plausible to
many, who hold that if a blunt side was
preferable, modern spoons would not be
made pointed. Every man with a heavy
mustache knows from experience that it
is much easier and much heater for him
to take soup from the end of the spoon
! than it is from the side.
I In this course bread is served. Lay
| L. Ill Il 81 1.Ck e l.
plate and break off small pieces, with
out lifting it from the cloth, using the
fingers Of the left hand. Right here it
might be pertinent to mention that no
bread of any description should be eaten
in any other fashion Even hot bis
cults, mullins, buns, and rolls are to be
torn OF broken off in small pieces, and
| buttered just before being eaten. Fish
should be eaten with silver fork pro-
yided for that purpose. In managing
the fllets and roasts there is no regu-
lation further than to carry small pieces
to your mouth with your fork, using the
inward curve Of the utensil in doing so,
and above all things avoid making a
muss. - .r 2e5., *.s&F
In France there are SO many dressings
and rich gravies on thesubstantials that
monsieur finds it necessary to cut his
bread with his knife and fork, and then
uses the fork and cube of bread to eat
up the rich sauce. This practice is
zfrowned down, in English society, al
though her majesty, the queen,
is known to mop her plate
with diamond cuts of bread:
Albeit Americans do not like it, it is
the proper thing to leave the celery for
the crackers and cheese. Break the
celery in small pieces and strip it be-
fore eating. In eating cheese, small
morsels of the dairy product should be
placed on small morsels of cracker or
bread and the two morsels carried to
| the mouth with the thumb and forefn-
ger. The cheese should not be per-
mitted to touch the finger; neither is it
permissible to eat the cheese from the
point of the knife.
All made-dishes, such as quenelles,
rissoles, patties, ETC., should be eaten
with fork only, and, as a knife is I'M
necessary; it would be a vulgarism to
use one. With outlets, game, poultry,
and sweetbreads fried, knife is requir-
dinner-plate, and not from the side
dishes, which are fast disappearing
from the fashionable table. When peas
are served they should lie conveyed to
the mouth on fork, and not taken
from spoon. It is needless to say
that to put the knife into the mouth at
any time during the meal would he an
objectionable offense against good
breeding and mark of vulgarity. In
eating asparagusa knife and fork should
be used, as the proper way is to cut off
the points and eat them as sea-kale,
egg plant or any other vegetable. tits
solecism to take asparagus in the fin
gers.
tits also indicative Of the gorlnand to
overload the fork with q bit of meat,
some vegetable, and a piece of pickle
all of which should be eaten separately
and not arranged beforehand in COM
pact form. Gentlemen are sometimes
guilty Of this unpleasant manner, but
ladies are less rapacious. The hand
and mouth should be in sympathy
that is to say, the mouth should be
| kept open iii expectation of the we'll
laden forks arrival. Open the mouth
to receive the food at the moment it has
reached the lips. and let the morsels be
small rather than large, in order that
conversation may not be ignored. To
place the fork directly opposite the
mouth is p most lngraceful way of eat
ing; nor should the wrist ever be bent
or curved to accomplish this feat. In
eating from the wing or leg Of poultry
cut the meat, but never touch it with
the fingers, nor be guilty Of the extreme
vulgarity of picking the bones.
Pastry is always eaten with a fork,
but in case Of fruit tart or cream puff
a dessert-spoon is used. Small stones,
such as are found in CHEEKY, plum, dam
son, or date pudding should he received
from the mouth on the fork or spoon
and placed III the plate and not on the
table-cloth; when the fruit stones are
large they should be separated from the
fruit with the fork and left on the plate.
Whenever it is possible to separate the
stones from the fruit it is best to do So.
Jellies, blanc manages, iced buildings,
ETC., are eaten with fork, and not with
spoon, as are all sweets sufficiently
firm to admit of being carried in what
the Irishman calls the split spoon.