Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-12-26
The Hour for Dinner.

The Hour for Dinner.
From the London Spectator.
On the whole we are inclined to think now
that unpunctuality has become fashionable
that. like other fashions, it is past praying for
past reconciliation with comfort and only to be
put down with the strong hand of force. And
with this idea we make the following sugges-
ton to all intending hosts, namely that they
| should consider that to keep their dinner wait
ing for unpunctual guests is to do grievous
wrong to those who have already arrived and
that. come who may, and whoever it may be
that has not come, they should make stern
and rigid practice of sitting down to dinner
within five minutes Of the stipulated hour.
Doubtless the practice would be attended nj
first with many disag. cable incidents-some
guests would, peIhaps, rot arrive until the very
last course, and in doing 30 would get no more
| than their deserts-but in the long run, and il
steadily persevered in, the practice would, we
believe. bear good fruit and common sense and
common politeness would once more prevail
II people would only realize how extremely
damaging it is to the dinner and how much
worse than damaging it is to the cooks temper
to be kept waiting for more than half an hour
we are sure they would refrain from spelling
two things which are SO essential to our com.
fort and well being.
What is the proper hour for dinner? The
proper hour for dinner Is that for which one
has been invited. Apart from that we should
not like to give an opinion. Our grandmother
said that 1t was between and o'clock; our
grandmothers also asserted that supper was q
dangerous and harmful meal, but they ate il
Notwithstanding want of consistency on
their part which also proved want of cOnsid-
Grafton for their grandchildren's digestions
| which were thereby damaged. Some wise man.
whose name We cannot remember, remarked
that the best hour for dinner varied according to
the diners means; for a rich man, it was best
to dine when he was hungry; for poor man,
TO dine whenever he could-a very sensible
axiom, but one that hardly meets the case OF
dining together in order to show good fellow
ship. From the point OF view OF health. it il
impossible to come to any conclusion; for who
| shall decide when doctors disagree? Some
doctors say it Is best to go to bed fasting, and
others recommend recent meal. From
emptiness there arise cramps, sleeplessness,
restlessness, uneasy tossing, the thoughts OF
unpaid bills, uncomfortable pillows and cold
feet. From fullness there comes many another
evil. such as nightmares bad dreams, the
workings OF bad consciences. the bad headache
OF the next morning, and the still worse temper.
Let those who will choose between these evils
or perhaps hit upon the happy mean
that avoids both the Scylla OF plenty and the
Charybdis of want. We ourselves are prepared
to dine at any hour. provided that the dinner
il good one and as to supper we are entirely
in sympathy with '.Greedy Man. of the nursery
rhyme, who wished TO investigate the contents
Oh Tue COOKING pan OelOre SHE went 10 DeU. But
then, of course, We are blessed not only with
q good conscience, but with a good digestion
Also for those two terms are not, as some peo-
pie insist. synonymous As for the natural
hour of dining, that can only be the hour at
| which the natural. wild. unoivilized man
| takes his food. But the natural man dimes when
he pleases. What a blessed thing it is az
Mr.. Squeers said, Ito be in state of nature p
Some savagcs, uncivIlized men, dine once in
three days, spending some thirty hours after
| their dinner in comatose state ike boa con-
strictors--a custom that is hardly suited to
LONDON society. According to the Leeds Mer-
| curry. London society-always in the exclusive
sense of the words going to dine at for the
! future. Well, 8 o'clock il as good an hour al
| any other and We are quite willing to dine at
| also if we arc not excluded from that arrange
ment. Perhaps we have been mistaken in the
| term, and the society in question is only ex.
| elusive Of unpunctual guests. An excellent
sense, a most sensible sense of the word, and
| one in which We most heartily concur; in that
case we shall always be delighted 10 dine even
with the most exclusive society.