St. Landry democrat., 1888-02-25
PLAIN ENTERTAINING.


THE Kind of Courage which Needs Guilt
walton by People Of Moderate Means.
Some years ago an accomplished di
plomate at Washington, the represent
alive of power not of the first import
ance, expressed his regret to friend
that he could not give dinners, ''be
eause," he said, my Government il
poor, and I can not afford it." The
conversation occurred at the profuse
and splendid table of a rich and court.
eous host, whose feasts were OF great
fame, and whose invitations were Gre
dentials of admission to the best So
siety. A young diplomatic comrade
who sat by heard the remark, and
smiled as he said: s'My Government
Is poorer than yours, and l am but
lately arrived. But what is diplomacy
without dinnersp and I am going to
give one. 1t will not be like this, but
the splendor is not an essential part OF
the feast 1 shall give plain and
cheap dinner, to which / invite you
both
His manner was gay, and his invita-
ton was gayly and gladly accepted be.
cause he was one of the delightful men
in Washington. His colleague, how
ever, who had spoken first, shrugged
his shoulders, and said that for his
part lie couldn't do it; he couldn't ask
people to come to his house and eat a
poor dinner. Not SO fast" replied
his friend; II didn't say poor dinner.
but plain and cheap dinner. I hope
it will be good. nevertheless, although
there may be no baked carp or stewed
n1ghtingales' tongues. But come and
see.n
The young Minister of the small and
poor kingdom was one of the most &C
complished men in Washington. He
was known to have corrected Justice
of the Supreme Court in regard to a
decision of a United States Court in a
Western State, and to have made the
correction in English. which was a
foreign tongue to him, but in English
so exquisitely chosen and urbanely ex-
pressed that the Justice was probably
unconscious of the modification of the
correction. The young Minister had
no foolish, fond reserves. "'My Gov
eminent is poor, am poor. we are all
poor in my country" he said, land l
and my secretary work like day-labor-
ers here in Washington to acquire and
to report necessary information to my
Government It." But nobody was more
sought; there was nobody whose COM
ing more surely brought pleasure
to any circle than that of the young
Minister.
The day of the dinner came, and a
palmer and pleasanter dinner was
never known in Washington. Every
guest, from Secretary of State and the
English Envoy to all their neighbors at
table, gave every week, indeed, repasts
much more magnificent But the SIM
pie dinner admirably cooked and
served, without display of table service,
without the carp and nightingales'
tongues but with the enlivening and
inspiring charm. of the host and the
welcome variety Of plainness after the
luxurious extravaganza and ostentation
of the usual dinner, was so fresh and
delightful that the satisfaction and
pleasure were universal, and the skep-
teal colleague who had thought great
cost essential to successful dinner
owned himself converted, and the next
month yentured upon similar feast,
and with the same success.
The courage of the young Minister
is almost universally wanting in what
is called good society. If the social
entertainment can not be as costly as
that of the household which is very
much richer, it must be abandoned.
But in New York. as in every great
city, the most expensive and extrava-
CANT feasts and balls are not the
pleasantest, and obviously, if nobody
is to open his or her house who can not
dress as richly and offer as superb
supper as the chief Dives or Cresus in
town, society will be reduced to the
very lowest terms. The Easy Chair
would respectfully recommend to de-
butantes and to their parents careful
course Of reading in Thackeray's
t.Book of Snobs," and also an instruct
i've paper by the same social philoso-
pher upon "A Little Dinner at Tim
Minis. !" In his early and Late Pa
pers'' also there are most amusing
and valuable treatises upon dinners in
Paris.
Besides. if rich people entertain as
they please, why do not poorer people
entertain. as they pieasep VIII you re-
fuse to ask your friends because you
san not servo ortolans upon Dresden
china and gold, or pour Schloss johann
nisberger for all the boys in Venetian |
glass. as your neighbor doesp To put
! truth in q homeiy way. you are as |
good rs he, il not as rich, and why |
should you permit him unconsciously |
o bully you because he is richer than
7ou? Mothers and fathers deplore the |
the late hours. Of So
,iety, the wanton dressing. the utter
ranity 0and yexation. of the social |
read-mill. And 10! q little courage, a
title spirit. little good sense in prac-
ice upon the part of q very few sensi-
lie persons, would relieve the press