Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-01-25
AN EPICURE'S EXPERIENCE.

Man Who Has Eaten Everything
RhinOcerOs Steak and Star Fish-Dev-
He'd Octinia-Earth Worms a la Piute.
1eac York Letter IN PAilddelp1iq Times.
Il can give you sea eggs to-day, sir"
said waiter to my friend as we seated
ourselves in an uptown cafe.
Good" was the reply, land lett be for
two"
Land eggs are well enough for me-" 1
suggested, knowing the somewhat re-
markable tastes of my cOmrade.
III you have never eaten sea eggs
he protested, ''you should not allow an
other day to pass over your head; it's a
positive sin to neglect the offerings OF
nature. All, here they are" and the
waiter placed upon the table silver dish
mounted upon a spirit-lamp that, uncOv-
cred, displayed four oval sea eggs, or
echlni, deprived of their spines and pol
lshed white, the oval balls upon which the
spines worked shining like silver, and at
the top the five eye-plates, with the little
madreporic seive, had been removed,
forming a small chimney, like the crater
OF volcano, out of which rose mysteri-
Gus fumes of the sea egg.
Nv here did you contract this habitF L
asked, as he took one of the eggs in his
left hand and dlsemboweled it with gold
plated spoon.
Contract it?" was the reply; ''why, a
love for such things is Unborn in the soul
of every man of taste. The sea egg is an
inheritance from the Greeks and RO-
mans, our ancestors. 1t was their
choicest dish. You perceive l eat it with
the ancient cOnditions-vincgar or hy-
drOmel and little mint and parsley. In
this way they were served at the mar
riage of the Goddess Hebe, and when
Lentulus dined the priest of Mars, the
s,1s a.. 4
principal dish. But, like many dishes, it
depends much upon the surroundings,
and to my mind there is only one spot
where you can thoroughly enjoy them,
and that the famous Reserve Restaurant at
Marseilles, especially in the old glass
building that OYerhung the sea were they
deliciOus-as you seemed suspended be-
tween heaven and earth-and as you eat
the eggs the roar of their native waves
fell upon your ear, the music of nature.
The eggs of this coast are useless and
have rank, dlsagreeable, fishy taste,
but these, but perhaps you don't perceive
i'll didn't and SAID so. "Well, it's a
matter of education, perhaps. To me
they are as balm to a wounded spirit. The
proprietor here knows my taste and every
time there is an opportunity he has some
imported. They are mostly brought over
by Italian sailing vessels, and 1t requires
an expert to select them, as even on the
coast of Italy there are kinds not agreea-
bic to the inner man. The species most
in demand are the sea melon of Corsica
or Echinus melO. In Naples they much
esteem Echinus liYidus, while at the
French ports many eat the esculentus and
granulasus. In point of fact, said my
friend, while we have advanced in the
arts and sciences we have refrigerated in
'gastronOmy.' The majority Of people
will reject a dish because the original
animal is disagreeable. Now, this is
manifestly foolish. If you follow it out.
why not reject the baked potato that
grows in the ground and is often served
surrounded with gOOdly amount of the
original earth and bone dust that contri-
buted to its growth?
THE DELICIOUS BOA.
''Now take snakes. Some of the large
bOas that l have eaten in South America
are simply delicious and their flesh is al
ways in demand. 1t is clear, white and
firm, Just like that OF q turkey, and why
should you object simply because it is a
snake? You esteem the turtle, that is as
much reptile, and yet the snake is to be
neglected, and, indeed. some go so far as
to refuse cells because they resemble |
snakes. The Lamprey eel is one Of the |
finest edible fishes We nave, yet only on !
the Connecticut and in a few towns are |
they eaten. In olden times thousands of /
dollars were paid for them by the cpl |
cures of the day. To show you that I am |
right ] served a dish OF potted striped |
snakes at a dinner last summer and |
every man at the table wanted to know |
how it was done. One fellow offered my /
cook fifty dollars, but It's a state secret /
so far. But let me tell you that bOued |
snakes and frog, pressed with alternate
layers OF hare, and served cold with
A,N-A h
ground that all things that taste we'll and |
are good for US should be eaten. There is
nothing more delicious than caviare of
the great mygale's eggs OF South America, |
and indeed the natives informed me that
the species were not bad themselves, and |
why should they be when they are so
closely related to the crabs? They have
a curious way of catching big spiders on
the Amazon. They are huge fellows, some
times six inches across, with great hairy
bodies and legs, and, like some crabs,
they live in holes in the sand and often
dart out and bite the feet Of horses
or mules as they are passing along, and
If it don't kill the animal the hoof comes
off. So when natives want the spiders
they jar the ground near the nest, they
drop q piece of wood or stone in, suspend
ed from a string; this is seized in rage
by the spider, that is jerked out and
killed before it knows where it is. l
suppose have tried fifty kinds Of insects
as food, and some are delicious.
TUE HONEY ANT AND WORMS.
I'm Mexico have eaten the honey ant,
one that gorges itself until its abdomen
looks like an amber globe, so distended is
it with honey. They are served in this
7ay for dessert and are very fine. In the
have been entertained by the
Indians with dried earth worms, not at
all bad when you acquire the taste for
them. The Indians of some tribes col
lect thousands and dry them for winter
use, and in many countries worms are es-
teemed. In some of the Pacific islands
great sea worm IS eaten, and when it first
appears is collected and sent to the King |
with much ceremony, and great feasts
are held during the time. In some parts
OF Africa a sort OF May fly is collected
and made into a very nice bread. At GER
tain seasons they appear in such vast num-
bers that they are swept up by the
bushel, and when flying the air is COM
pletely filled with them, so that it seems
to be showing.
''Did you ever eat dragon fly: No?
Then you have missed a treat. In the
South Of Africa they are caught on line
twigs that are held aloft by natives.
Great fellows, six inches long, are sold at
the markets as luxury, and when cooked
in white wine are very fine, indeed. The
grasshOpper-Or locust, as some |
call him-is eaten in North Africa, and /
locusts and wild honey is, believe rec
commended in the Bible. Some people in
sist that flies indirectly give a flavor to |
cheese, but draw the line there. L can't !
20 it. Now, coming back to meats, the |
common cat, when in good condition, is |
fine eating. It's only matter Of preju- /
dice, and will prove it. consider my |
self good judge of living and game, and |
once was invited to breakfast where |
there was a game pie, supposed to be |
hare. In fact, every body thought 1t was !
hare, and wouldn't ask what 1t was for |
fear of being considered behind the time. I,
It struck me as being something very fine |
and determined to have 1t, so l went to |
the host, who was friend OF mine, and |
said: Bob, must have the rules tor
that pie.' He didn't want to let it go,
but, as he said he was indebted to me for
a new way to cook crow, 80 he told me IN
confidence.
KITTEN PIE.
alt was a kitten pie. For certain rea-
sons kept IL to myself at the time, but
knSws that puma 10 a royal dish-aud the
puma is nothing but big cat. In tact,
all these animals are good eating. Take
the skunk"
''You don't mean"
''NO, DON'T" replied the epicure. "You
oyerreach me. What / was about to say
was, the skunk will eat an owl, and why
shouldn't anyone else? and when proper
lY cooked owl Is fine eating, only you
don't want 1t for q steady diet, you know.
II has a STAYING power that rather spOilS