The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-01-15
LUNCHEON.
Britain's Characteristic Meni-its
EtymOIogy, Etiquette and Develop
mont.

tlOiis dlG Olu OtlCSf anu VIC heANN u NSN@NN
the first into service as an intransitive
verb; but it is sometimes forgotten how
very recent is luncheon as an institution.
Eighty years ago the house of Longman
published little volume entitled rs
says and Sketches of Life and Character,
by One Who Has Left His Lodgings
Dropping into this upon an idle morning
in a friends library l found the papers
so much better than their promise that
l gave some trouble to the publishers in
tracing out the author. This turned out
to be done other than Lord John Russell,
who, it may be assumed, understood the
society he undertook to criticise, and
whose statements about its habits must
be considered above cavil. He grumbled
about the excessive lateness of the dinner
hour in London, even in the reign of
George III, and advocates the establish
ment of luncheon at or 4 go clock tea
berg, of course, an unknown luXury) He
said
THE first inconvenience of a London life
is the late hour of dinner. To pass the
day impransus, and then to sit down to
a great dinner at o'clock, is entirely
against the first dictates of commonsense
and-common stomach. Women, however,
are not so irrational as men in London,
and generally sit down to a substantial
luncheon at or 4. If men would do the
same the meal at might be lightened of
many of it's weighty dishes, and CONVEX
sation would be no loser, for 1t is not be
concealed that conversation suffers great
interruption from the manner in which
English dinners are managed. First the
host and hostess Cor her unfortunate CO.
adjutoD are employed during three parts
of dinner in doing the work of servants
helping fish or carving large pieces of ven
ison to twenty hungry souls. If a
guest wishes for a glass of wine he must
peep through the Apollos and Cupids of
the plateau in order to find someone to
drink with him, otherwise he must wait
till someone asks him, which will proba-
bly, happen in rapid succession, so that
after having had no wine for half an
hour he will have to drink five glasses in
five minutes"
Well, Lord John Russell lived to see the
tiresome custom OF taking wine with other
guests given up; he witnessed, also, host
and hostess relieved from the labors of
carving by the introduction of dinner la
Russo lastly, luncheon became firmly es-
tablished among our services of oblga-
tion-so firmly that it may be backed 10
outlast several other British institutions
that might be named. Two o'clock lunch
con- and the etiquette under which ladies
leave the dinner table before the men,
now constitute the most salient differ
ences between English and continental
domestic habist Attempts have been
made in this country by those who appre-
cate the magnificent occasion either for
dawdling or business afforded by the in
terval between the early coffee or choco-
late and the midday dejeuner a la four
Ghetto to acclimatize that arrangement of
hours and digestion. 1t has much to COM
mend il and one can but commiserate
those "goddams" who may be seen each
tourist season insisting upon being served
with heavy breakfasts ianglaise in con-
tinental hotels But it does not flourish
on our soil, chiefly perhaps, because It
clashes with the hours usually given TO
field sports, and more than one hostess of
repute has had to revert to the normal
British meal-times.
Approach to maturity-let me name five
and-ffty as the prime of life in both sexes,
though others may be found to fix the age
both earlier and later-approach to ma
turity, l say, is usually accompanied by
an increasing reliance upon luncheon az
a prop but il must be admitted that
there is some risk of its being overdone.
Luncheon parties, even where that terror
of uncertain digestions, daylight cham
pagne, Is not offered. sometimes differ
no whit either in profusion or duration
from dinner parties. You do not hand
lady to the luncheon table, indeed but
license 90 sit next whom you choose is
not always dlOIuett yOu- ANdulC GAYS
for the places at table have made their
appearance. and so sheeplike is the docil-
ity with which people follow almost any
decided lead, that the spread of this Gus
tom is matter of imminent apprehen-
sion Guests are not arranged accord
ing 20 precedence of rank; the luncheon
table is the favorite hunting ground of
the lion-dramatic. literary artistic, or
otherwise-and you may estimate with
cons derable precision the position you
have attained in any of these spheres by
observing the place assigned 90 yourself
in the concentric disposal of the party
at table in relation to the star of the
day.
II Is hszardous-very In the judgment
of some the sole justification for titles
hereditary or otherwise-eXists in the i'm
mutabie laws of precedence which regu-
late the order of a FEAST They relieve
a host of all responsibility. and, although
exalted rank is not always inalienable from
agreeable social qualities, although Dull
ness-"born a goddess''-will at times as
sert her right TO the chief rooms Of our
feasts II Is not the hosts fault If some
OF his guests bore one another. II was not
he who decreed that a maid of honor
should rank before the wife of baronet;
II is part of the British constitution that
she does But he goes on ticklish ground
who attempts to adjust his party on their
individual attachments. Whatever care
and tact are applied 10 arranging a lunch-
con party land these cannot be applied TO
better purpose) the meal itself loses half
its charm il it is suffered TO part with at
least the suggestion of impromptu
And let 1t not last too long. Luncheon
should be dealt with only as a stay. Many
people want-al are better if they get
no more Shooting luncheons have attain
ed an exorbtant excess; | have even seen
and partaken of voraciously-a hot joint
served in an oser bed in the Mayhy sea
son and the most ascetic is not proof
against the persuasion of an agreeable I
host Most sporSsmen must have noticed
mat omen air exercise abates the appetite
for luncheon. very moderate ration car
ries one comfortably over a long day, but
that ration must not be in the form OF
sandwiches. Oh, no. How little that no.
HE earl suspected to what a melancholy
series OF pale insipid arid atrocities he
was lending his name! Perhaps without
mai name-without any convenient specific |
term-the unhallowed union of bread and
meat would have wthered in its honey