The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-09-27
COOKS AND EPICURES.
DIPLOMACY MAINLY THE ART OF
GIVING GOOD DINNERS.


waited Palates.
From the NeU York Commercial.
"Dis moi que tn manages, ct je to diral oe
que tues"-tell me what you eat, and l will
tell you what you are-says Brillat Savarin
the high priest Of gastronomy. Such a
doctrine, If it could be carried into practice
would doubtless be most useful one; but
it must be confessed that it is at least a.
difficult to tell a mans character from
his favorite dish as from his haId,
writing, aud requires, according to an
article on Cookery" in BidckUooG:
Magazine, an experience In the science
of the table which is rarely given &c
ordinary diners-out. What conclusions, for
instance, would be drawn from the fact
that Queen Elizabeth liked roast goose; thai
James l. preferred cock, a-leckie, or Will
lam III. asparagus; or that Lord Eldon't
favorite dish was liver and bacon; or that
George ILL.,, again, loved boiled mutton and
turnips beyond all other dishes; or That the
Duke of Wellington was SO utterly indiffer-
ent to what he ate and drank that his cook
one of the best in Europe-resigned his
office in despair?
After all, it may be further argued, what
is diplomacy itself-the great peace-pre-
serving machine of modern timess Nothing
but series Of good dinners, judiciously
blended with the delights OF wine ana con
versation. "Ienez bonnie table ct Soignez
les fenlmes" was Napoleon's parting advice
to his ambassador-advice as sound as 1t
was successful. History. in fact, shows that
the triumphs of diplomacy fall to the am
bassador who has the strongest head, the
largest appetite and the best cook.
Taleyrand's dinners at the beginning OF
this century were the best in Europe;
Prince Metternich's cellars and cuisine
were equally admirable. while Prince Bis
marck is almost as famous for his gas
tronomic performances as for his political
successes. ut is the manner OF the great
chancellor" says DR.. Russell, ''ridendo
dicere-fMnando, too, the very largest and
strongest cigars, and TO sit up till and after
all hours. So that average diplomatists
with weak constitutions had little chance
with him in protracted negotiations.
SOME GAsTRoNoMIC FEATs.
Nothing that we have read in history
equals this Gargantuan feat, except, per-
haps, the performance Of the "glutton of
Kent" whom Fuller places among his
worthless, and who devoured at a single
meal "fourscore rabbits and eighteen
black buildings, London measure" Coming
down to more recent times, there is
the probably apocryphal story of a
Scotchmsn who ate a solan goose by way Of
a whet for dinner, and Of a Welsh noble
man who devoured covey OF partridges
for breakfast every morning. There is
also weli-known legend, which found its
way into Punch. Of q certain eminent poll
tician who entered an eating house near the
Old Bailey, and after putting away seven
pounds and half of cold boiled beef OBJ
served cheerfully to the landlord: Capital
beef, this One may cut and come again
here" To which the landlord, regarding
him grimly, made the reply: "Sir, you
may cut, but rm-bothered-if you shall
come again."
A DEMoRALIZED FRENCH CUISINE.
From 1850 may be traced the decline and
fall Of French cookery, so far as the restaur-
ants are concerned, which certainly did not
maintain, under the second empire, the
high standard Of perfection which they had
reached in the days Of Carene and Beau
villiers. Many of the best chefs were at
traoted to London by the high salaries Of
fered by the English nobility and club COM
mittees; others were enticed by American
millionaires. Fashion changed, and the
school Of great epicures, like Brillat Sa-
warm, passed out Of date; again, men dined
more at home, or ii they dined at a restau-
rant they no longer cared to pay the fabu-
lous prices which their grandfathers had
paid without a murmur. And as the de-
mand for frst-class dinners fell off, 80 the
supply began to cease Then came the
Franco-German war. which ruined many
of the chief restaureteurs and thoroughly
THE best tables" writes Du-
mas, ''haye been overturned by
death or revolutions worse than death Gel
lars have been broken up, and the most
celebrated wines sold by pnbltc auction.
Lastly, of recent years there have been the
two great exhibitions, and the plethora of
visitors, the ceaseless crowd Of hungry and
unappreciative guests, filed the pockets OF
the restaurateurs, but at the same time
gave final blow to French cookery. from
which it has never recovered.
THE REPRoACH OF ENGLAND.
In the earlier part of this centurylEnglist
cookery, both in middle-class household.
and in public places of entertainment, was
q byword among the nations for its coarse.
ness aud insipidity. and we were still open
to Voltaire's reproach OF having fifty RS
ligions and only one sauce-that sauce
apparently being melted butter, as the
bread sauce on which our English cook 81
justly prides herself is regarded by oui
French neighbors as an unwhole
some form Of poultice. The
taverns and coffee houses, which
had been such an agreeable feature of Lon
don life in the preceding century, had de-
generated into dingy cookshops and forlorr
dining rooms, resembling that In which Mr.
Pickwick and his friends waited for the
Bath coach. and which is described as "the
last resource of human detection, divided
into boxes for the solitary confinement OF
travellers, aud furnished with a clock. :
looking glass and live waiter, the latter
article being kept in a small kennel fol
washing glasses in q corner Of the apart
ment.n
Few OF the modern clubs were then in ex
istence, and though rich man could the
as now. dine of turtle and venisoa at the
Albion, or eat fish dinners at Green witch
there were few places where a man oil
modern means the clerk from the public
offices, the lawyer or the country visitor
could get tolerable meal ct a reasonable
| price, There was cluster Of old-fashionec
houses near Temple Bar-the Cock, the
| Mire, the Rainbow and the Cheshire
| Cheese; there was Simpsons in the Strand
there were the Blue Posts in Cook street
and later on the Washington, built on tht
! site OF CTawford's and now the Devonshire
| Club; and there were some French houses
| of Indifferent repute 10 the neighoorhood Of
| Soho square. but the modern restaurant
with its table d'hote dinner and luxurious
| appointments, was almost unknown.
CHEAP DINNERS FOR THE EPIcURE.
At present there are probably over hun,
| dred establishments where you can dine
| cbsaply and with comfort-in fact, IL mn q
| QW'un embdrrds de choiC. There are din
ners of the joint, dinners from the grill
| and dinners of five courses at a fixed price
and there are also diners Francois and
| s.h 10