Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1890-07-26
Fingers and Forks.

have known that she loved show and
style, that she was so fond of fine
clothes that when she died she left
three thousand dresses and any quanN
tity of jewels; but did you ever i'm
agine that such a lady could be so
inelegant rs to eat with her fingers?
But she did, and so did Shakespeare,
and Caucer, and William the EN-
peror, and King Alfred and every
body else who lived before her time.
These last were more eXcusable than
she-they had no forks; but even she
was not without excuse, for though
she had several, they had been given
her as curiosities, which, l suppose
nobody expected her to use There
was one of crystal garnished with
gold and sparks Of garnet, another of
gold with two little ru bies and two
pendant pearls, and still another of
coral.
Why didn't she use them? you ask.
Well, because she had never seen or
known anybody that used one, and
they were something new; and bes
sides, there was prejudice against
this invention just from Italy. But
you must not think because there
were no forks that the old fashioned
dinner made no pretentions to ele
gance or refinement.
The guests had knives and they
had fingers, and with these two inn
plements they managed nicely.
From their old books of etiquette we
learn how they did it. In the first
place, the fingers must be publicly
washed before beginning the meal;
even if this had jast been done pri-
vately, it must be repeated at the
table, that no one might feel uneasy
in eating after his neighbors' fingers
had been in the dish. To aid further,
the meat was prepared as far as pos
sible before it was brought on the
table. If in stew, as was usually
the case it was in bits; if roasted, it
was cut by carver, and passed in
large plates with knife.
AS to the way of helping himself,
each guest must choose and keep a
particular part of the dish for his
own. He must help himself dainti-
ly from this place, using only three
fingers; afterward, in carrying the
food to the mouth, which, of course,
was done with the hand, these same
three fingers must be used, taking
care, however, not to touch the nose
with them, to do which was extreme.
ly inelegant, and showed lack of
gOodbreeding.
OF course all this soiled the hands,
and in refined households at various
intervals bowls Of perfumed water
and different napkins were passed,
and no one must refuse to wash. This
old fashion'Of handing round a silver
bowl or dish of rose water is some
times seen in Europe.
After while man found out that
he needed forks, or, rather, woman
did, for it was she who first used
them. Great danes kept them in
their rooms to eat cOmfts with and
to toast bread; and, in course of time
they brought them to the table:
AS have said, there was "A preju'
dice against them; and the first few
persons who were brave enough t
use them were laughed at and called
effeminate; preacher even went 81
far as to say that for any one to re
fuse to touch his meat with his fin
gers was an insult to Providence.
Nevertheless they spread in Eng
land slowly, even after Italy, tn,
home of their birth, was full of them
Those who knew their value, how
ever, found them so convenient tina
up to $50 years ago-since which i
has been no longer necessary-gen
tlemen travelling from place to place
and knowing how poorly supplie'
were the inns, carried one with then
in case with knife. Since tina
time the old two-prolonged fork, @
fourchette Qittle pitchfork), as tn
French called it-and really the
were only tiny pitchforks-has give
way to the more convenient thre
and four prolonged forks in use
our own homes. Mary M. Winston
in Harper's Young People.
Enulicb Snouin I inip1nnt rnO0OV(