Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1897-04-01
THAT LITTLE DINNER.
How to Arrange f1r aud Serve a
Charming Meal.

I hat tiJle dinner yu would AXE &c
Civ, Is ult such .. ~.- .rs-l ID ,..s,sir il yoH
pay heed 80 c.r-.ia ps,.ltial Joints and
see that rour maid j. ", ID drilled bofor,
the occasion.
You would perhaps like to attempt
higher tlieht than the usual family dinner,
Let Us say, then-or rather, this may he
taken as Il sU- gcStiNu-that the dinner
consists OF a soup, a fish, Il rea>t, a salad,
dcss, rt and cntg'. II IA daintily pretty II.
Bile is wanted, have an under tahlccloth
of canton flannel fine linen tablccloth,
napkins, cary ing cloths, if you have them,
but they are not essential. II your maid is
untutored, you must personally attend &c
the laying of that table. see that the can
ton cloth is put on perfectly smooth and
the linen cloth over it wrinklelcsS
Place a daintily arranged bunch of flow
ers in the center of the table If you have
a handsome tall lamp, use that for the
centerpieec. If YOU are the fortunate pos
SCISSOR of pretty eaneielabra, put one on
each side of the flowers. If you use candle,
sticks. you need four. which must he
placed in a square little distance from
the flowers Lay Il dinner Plate for each
person. On the right of this plate the
maid must lay soup spoon, a dinner
knife, knife for the fish. On the left she
must place fork for the fish and larger
one for the roast. There is proper way
in which to lay each of these articles. The
bowl of the spoon should be upward, the
sharp edges of the knives toward the plate:
and the tines of forks up. Those points
are essential to good form. A tumbler foI
water is placed at the RIGHT of each plate
and napkin, holding piece of bread, al
the left.
See that all the things necessary fol
each course are ready and at hand. Place
the dessert plates, with their spoons OF
forks, on the sidehoard. On side table
have ready a tray with after dinner coffee
cups and sancers and spoons with sugar
bowl and cream jug Have extra glasses,
knives, forks and spoons ready at hand tc
meet emergencies that sometimes happen
at the best regulated dinner.
Your tureen dishes and plates must be
warm. 10 neglect this point spoils good
dinner. The salad bowl and olive dishes
must be cool 1t is rather nice to have
couple of olive dishes and couple of dishes
of sailed almonds. These are placed out.
side the candclabra. Just before dinner is
announced tunblers and carafes should be
filled and candles lit. The mistress who
has not full confidence of the skill of heI
er it is laid to make sure that no essential
is missing. As TO serving this meal, the
maid should be instructed TO place the
soup tureen with the soup ladle at its
right and warm soup plates at the head
of table, after which she may announce
that dinner is served The guests scat.
ed the maid uncovers the tureen, placing
the cover on the little side table. The mis-.
tress places a ladleful of soup in a plate
and passes it to the maid, who receives ii
on her tray and, going to the right side
of the PERSON at the right of the mistress,
places it before him on the cold dinner
plate. Serve guests on one side of the table
and then the other. The maid removes the
tureen first, then a soup plate in each hand
until all are removed She should take the
plates from the right of the guest. The
platter of fish and warm fish plates art
placed before the host, with fish knife and
fork to right and left of platter.
In serving the first slice of fish the maid
should place it before the hostess. Thii
raises mooted point. The guest Of honor
was usually the person first served, but il
these days of innovations, when new dish,
es, strange table implements and novel
methods of eating are SO in vogue, it hal
been decided that it is best for the hostess
danger of blunders by uninitiated guests.
The maid places the roast before the
host, with the carving knife and fork and
gravy spoon and hot plates. She server
the roast as she did the fish. She should
then take vegetable-say, potatoes-or
her tray, with its spoon, and offer to each
guest at his left. Each vegetable must bt
served in turn, The removal of this course
requires carefulness She should first take
the carver and fork and gravy spoon OF
her tray and carry them from the room
then the platter and after that the plates
one in each hand. All crumbs are careful
ly brushed from the table.
She puts the salad fork and spoon in the
salad bowl which she places, with the sal
ad plates, before the host. While he il
helping the first plate she quickly puts
knife and fork at each place When the
salad Is removed, the maid must also take
away the salts and peppers, almonds,
olives, etc, and the table again brushed Ct
crumbs. The dessert, with its plates, i:
placed before the hostess, and the person
at her right served first. This course re-
moved, the maid places the coffee tray be
fore the hostess and brings the coffeepot.
When the coffee Is poured, she serves it.
beginning with the guest at the right, and
Offers cream and sugar, always at the per
son 5 left. If the carafcs are filled and
nothing else is needed, the maid may leave
the room, and the hostess may give herself
up 20 those delicious - minutes over the
coffee which only come to a woman who
has achieved that triumph of social art,
well IrlIar,d and wei served dinner,
whether It cost 50 or philadelphia
Pres
Fashion In House Lighting.