The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-10-05
BANQUETS OF ANCIENTS.
BY A. 2. cAFFEE.

We have all read of the royal enter tainments given Anthony by Cleopatra when she met him in Cilicia. in which every dish was golden inlaid with prec- ious stones and wonderfully chased and embossed. And the walls" continues Socrates the Rhodian, in his history of the civil war. were hung with cloths em- broidered In gold and purple and she had twelve triclinia laid. and invited Anthony to bring his friends to the ban quet. On another day, she prepared far more sumptuous and splendid ban quet for Anthony and presented to him everything on the table. and to the cap tains his own couch in which he lay and the jewelled goblets which were set be- fore them. And when they were depart ing she gave those Of the highest rank palanuuins with the slaves for palanquin bearers, and to every one she gave Ethiopian boys to bear torches before tnem. and she paid more than talent G5OO) for roses; the floor of the chamber was strewed a cubit deep, nets being spread over the blooms
 Xenophon tells, and of this all our school boys will vouch, about the Thrae- ian suppers In the seventh book of his Anabasis, describing the banquet given by Seuthes, In these words-"But when they all came to the supper. and the sup per was lald go they might all sit around in circle, then tripods were brought to all the guests-about twenty r num- Der, all full of meat ready carved, and leavened loaves were stuck in the joints with skewers.
 And as the liquor went around, q Thracian came in, having a white horse, and taking a horn of wine said, 70, Seuthes, pledge you, and I make you a present of my horse: and if you ride him you will catch whatever you are after and no enemy can ever catch you" Our boys who have followed the ten thousand heroic Greeks up the ascent will remem- Der this. One man gave his son, another garments for his wife, and another a sclmetar. And Xenophon rose up and said, q, o, Seuthes. give you myself, and these my friends to be faithful com panions to you"
 But of all the munifcent banquets of which I have read, Athenaeus tells of one which surpasses the others. "In Macedonia, then, as I have said, Caranus made a marriage feast and the guests were twenty A silver bowl was given to each as a present; each guest hav' ing been previously crowned with golden chaplet Then a brazen platter of 0oTlntHidu WofkAldHSnip COHtdiiliH6 d loaf was given to each, and poultry and ducks and pigeons and a goose And each guest gave the platters and food to the slave behind him. Many other dish es were served up. And then a second platter made of silver. loaded with geese, hares and kids. and rclls curiously made. and doves and turtledoves and cartridges, and every other bird magma pie was gfv en the guests; and they we're given to the slaves behind them.
 Having eaten to satiety, we washed our hands, and chaplets were brought in in great numbers, made of flowers from all countries and on each chaplet a circle of gold. And while we were amusing ourselves, some flute-playing women and musicians, and some Rhodian players came in and they were naked. And hav- ing played a prelude, departed; and oth- CTS came in in succession, each bearing two curiously wrought cruets of perfume, bound with a golden thong; one of the