The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-12-02
FARE THAT IS COSTLY.
rERRAPIN UNIQUE IN BEING 4
KUN AT ALI SEASONS.

Some Fish ARsetea n Price ny the Season
SD Others Frutts Tor which
There - a Deu,s.a-SpecinIties Prepared
BY wo-en which BrinE High Prices.
"of all the articles in our business,' said a
hsh dealer, only one is q luxury the year
through. That Is terrapin--not t~errapin In gen.
eral. but the finest variety Of the dismond-back
species. The cost ranges from $40 TO 500 q
dozen. One terrapin will make, when properly
cooked. about three plates. so that the cost Of q
dish Of stewed terrapin must necessarily range
from 81 10 $3.50, according TO tho way II
Is cooked and the place where II Is served. I
question II there are q hundred judges Of terra
pin in the United States. My opinion is based
on the fact that clubs. restaurants, and hotels
use vast quantities of Texas. Florida, and other
common terrapin, aud serve them as the bona
nde diamond-back, and never seem 10 be taken
70 task for the fraud.
THE other luxuries are such only at those
seasons when they are rare. Salmon. which at
one time of the year costs the same as good
, keelsteak, goes up to $3.50 and even 81 q pound.
Shadi IN a few weeks ranges from 81 down to q
quarter apiece. Spanish msckerel, q king among
fish, runs as high as rs cents and 81 q pound.
Trout holds It's own every year for a time at 81.
$3.50, and sometimes. though seldom. at SO a
pound. Pompeno and Long Island smells often
reach the half-dollar mark. The sheepshead
has sometimes brought 81 q pound. Why these
fish should be singled out I am unable to say.
There are many others just as good, such as the
bluehsh, blackfish, porgy. red snapper, and king
fish. which do not show such marked variations.
"Green turtle, which Is employed popularity
- q synonymo for extravagant living, Is just the
opposite. It is a good, wholesome food, equal In
n~utritive value TO animal flesh. and costs about
the same. At Its dearest, IL Is only so cents q
pound. For Englishmen with a ycarning for the
good things Of home and for Anglomaniacs with
no such excuse, we import turbot and sole from
the other eide of the Atlantic and sell them be-
tween 40 cents and 81 a pound. When they are
imported alive the expense involved puts them
on q par with ~terrapin. This has been done q
few times, and then by American bon wants.
"An our oysters are good, in fact, the best In
the world, and range in price from 30 cents TO
8 $50 q hundred. The epicures go further. and
condne themselves to Mumford coves and gen.
uine mill ponds at 81 and $3.50 a hundred. We
have very superior lampreys in America, but,
with the exception It may be, OF the Ichthyo-
phagous Club. they are never used on our tables.
The sybarite prefers the canned lamprey of
Bordeaux and Marseilles, which costs about Sc q
pound.s II is q delicious fish. and though no
their pools as they were In the DAYS Of Nero and
Galigula, they ought 70 be as popular in New
The conversation was continued by a Broad
range in price. according to the season and the
size Of the crop. A few. such as raspberries,
strawberries, / think. lead the list Of iuxuries.
1t 10 no uncommon thing for them to be sold at
a esSI.sr r ,Ss : y sis'i e p Sasns. q ap 3 Ssse s.p ss5TlSs;
handsome poundsweets. will often fetch 25 cents
s sssh; o, T = Extensive. Gs saS ins Ssv scalSIs lso are s sIsi
superior TT mar Sabs, 60 as high as " and sa;5o
s%SGasn; are rn' p snsafSSf; sf ths . snms ' tSlP Psms srs
generally out Of the reach Of the poor. 4 good
S Vii rssd RG% fete Th sa.5 . dP Fine se f4ssh M fr mS s :
as high as 10 cents apiece.
popu uhsn IN nne New sre Y nss'v e,a eep,t' . mniSh a are sm nIi
elnss wb s5 are s Willing ing to S.B psy i msieb yw fGr . them n;
steady demand for these, but a small one.
Tropical ,r rrGiss are sSd always trnj, in demand; % OWNS;
these, particularly the orange lemon. lime;
free freely yi # S : dolls IS o While III $ + sa sSnss5e ! { sm'u
the star apple. or caram 6ola, a snowy but insipid
Fruit, ; has sb bsSue ao a 3uar me s:;n The ,ns so ss 30
and what few sustaGd apples have reached New
lai-chis from Canton at a dollar. canned man
gosteens from Co~chin-China at the same figure;
dried lai-chis from China ut SO cents n pound,
potted loquoto from Macao at a dollar, canned
arbutus from Japan at a dollar. These foreign
chants who have lived abroad and grown to love
them then: The he'll. long q Soyags roes s., h Ss,e imported Ts
AIuAtN Va. u " theh heNoi. oha oOAithtS. ut |
orange. banana, and pineapple suffer the least,
while the mango. avocado, and custard apple
Judge them from the specimens that are bought
In lands other than their own.
and comprises fine canned goods and similar
preparations. Any number of clever women
foods OF the most expensive kind on a scale that
grows larger every year. A woman In south
and although she now uses q three-story house
for her work she is unable TO I'LL all the orders
goods. Where a jar Of, fruit prepared by a man
niaetnringh house would sell for afty cents, hers
Specially Of supernno Pickles. They Charge
a of'y the oFi mp S q in English than pickles sGs p6ti Ss
OF ,hem has taken up an old French idea and
combs. They have averY pretty appearance as
she prepares them the first being a half trans;
imaginable. single jar OF these commandsa
dollar. Another woman makes tomato ketchup,
bottle. Others make mineemeat for pies. Eng
lish plum pudding, apple butter; stuffed man;
i gHssa u an town. P'e esrns h Shii iIsing BY y making G,i fancy SiS
~vinegaIs. She uses different kinds OF white wine
and red Mine VINEGAR as a basis ,e ana sIm n6c
v~inegars, Among these there are tarrsgon vim
egar, chilli vinegar, garlic vinegar, shaiot vim
Al very pleasant % the eye. ~nostEil, and palate.
One woman tried her hand at aromatic mustard,
like the French and German varieties. She did
not succeed in excelling the imported article.
and after a year or two gave up the business.
There Is a steady demand Tor such fine yege-
tables as artichokea, Brussels sprouts. ~trufties.
and fresh mushrooms. Fresh mushrooms when
scarce bring as high as 81 q pound. OF late
years market gardeners have taken 10 raising
tham regularly, so that they are growing cheap
er and setter all the time. Men about town have
adopted the London practice OF having broiled
mushrooms with a steak or chop. II makes q
good combination. but in cold weather an expen-
sive one. The Jerusalem artiehoke was former:
ly very popular. but has largely gone out OF
fashion. IL Ia. nevertheless. a very good and
wholesome eseulent."
at is very remarkable" said a dealer In deli
catesssn, 10 note how the American taste has
broadened in the past two decades. Formerly
my patrons were almost exclusively ernAns
now they are two-Ihirds Americans. Among
them are quite a large number who want the
best and the dearest. For such customers | have
venison. chicken. and game sansages, either
plain or trufied; Roose-liyer sausaRes, like the
pates de fOie grAs Of France; the preserved
breasts of tame geese and Wild geese, and hams
and bacon from wild pigs. The prices of these |