The Republican journal., 1899-02-16

porea peppers, potatoes and fruit with
lemon, cinnamon, sugar. Inc, mushrooms
fish, oil, what not; and they are always
delicious. Rice is invariably served with
eggs and about ninty- nine times in
hundred, tomatoes and red peppers are
stewed with the rice.
The second course is fish, of which there
are as many kinds and ways of cooking
there are as many men of many minds. "
| never saw badly cooked fish in Cuba.
and at the poorest table the fried fish is
sure to be a regular chef d oeuvre, done
in olive oil, of a beautiful golden brown,
and without a suspicion of grease about it,
served with sliced lemon. For boiled
fish there are delicate sauces, the best of
which are compounded with tomatoes or
picante, with pepper like liquid fire., OF
''Salsa tomato" Cuban entree which
finds favor with most Americans Is the
land crabs, (camerones) found in all parts
of the island and superior TO the hard and
soft shells of the Potomac.
Next to the fish comes sesos (sheep's
brains) fried with oil or frcasseed, and a
much more appetizing dish than it ap-
pears ON paper; or calves liver, boiled Or
stewed; or a kids head, baked entire; or
giblet stew; or hash of anything under the
the sun. Very appropriately, hashes are
called piccadilos, ''small sins" and at
least one or two are served with every
meal. A hash of rabbits and tomatoes,
for instance, or pigs feet and cheese, or Of
chicken and rice is not at all objection
able, if you only know of what your
''small sins" consist Having thus dis
posed of preliminaries, you now come to
First and foremost is the ubiquitous
''bifsteek' Cuban for beetsteak), which
there is no lodging if You are an Ameri-
can, for our nation is believed to be adj
dicted to it as topper to his cups; but you
fail to recognize it la Cabana without
explanation, being a chunk cut from any
part of the beef creature between horns
and tail, sizzled in fat to the toughness of
leather There are mutton chops, also;
sausages, which the Cubans greatly affect,
and sometimes veal and pork. With the
meats, papas fritos Cried potatoes( are
served, and bananas cooked in grease.
Then comes the ensalada, salad, which is
sure to be excellent enough to make up
for other deficiencies, whether of lettuce
and tomatoes, or crisp, pungent crosses
fresh from some running stream, OF
strange compound of fish, flesh OF fowl,
with fruits, nuts, seeds and vegetables.
Then the pasta de guayaba, con questo,
(guava jelly and chetse) is in order, and
afterwards fresh fruits of various sorts,
followed by coffee. The latter is strong,
black and bitter, which you are expected
to take with sugar, but no milk, and may
be with a dash of cugnac. All this time
bottle of Bordeaux claret or the thin,
sour wine of Catalina, has stood at your
elbow, and you might as well ask for the
moon as glass of water, which as a
table beverage is not thought of in Span
ish America. Butter, as we know it in the
North is not ''cosa de Cuba There
| is yellowish-looking, strong smelling
compound, brought from Denmark in tin
cans and labelled american Butter"
which resembles wagon grease and sells
at dollar pound, when it can find a
patron.
Dinner is a duplication of breakfast,
with the addition of broth and maybe
game or poultry. The cado, fbroth or
soup, is made thick with onions, carrots
and seeds; or maybe is a worm like mass
of vermecelli wriggling amid garlic; or
the favorite caldo de pan-bread soup,
which closely resembles poultice.
| FANNIE BRIGHAM WARD.