The Savannah morning news., 1902-03-13


explains. Most OF them work down
town in daytime. and at night they are
ready for special dinners here, or at
Sherrys. or at DelmOnico's. But in
this case, and in all cases where there
are more than 500 guests to be served,
l have to 90 beyond my selected list
I have TO pick up men that / don't
want particularly. There are not
enough Al walters among the extras
TO I'LL the bill for as big a dinner as
this one, yet the additional hundred
or so are fairly good. and they have
been pressed into service often enough
TO know how TO behave themselves.
Preparations for such an affair as
this begin forty-eight hours ahead Of
time. on the previous day the hotel
marketeTs go out and get all the nee
essary provisions. A brigade of deco
rators begins 10 festoon the balconies
and gilded columns OF the bail room
with whatever decorations the hosts
have arranged TO display. Scrubwo-
men and scrubmen start 10 polish up
the brass ratings. Sweepers and dust
ers clean the chairs in the boxes and
on the main floor. and make the car
pets and canopies and curtains look
spick and span.
The Day of the Feast.
Early in the morning Of the day set
for the dinner the tables are carried to
the ball room, and twoscore OF walters
are busy all day setting them, polish
ing W the silver and redusting the
chairs. In the afternoon about three
hours before the hour Of the dinner,
the rest of the extra walters make
their appearance. They are assigned
to their places, one table man to
every eight guests and one wine man"
to every twelve. Some are stationed
at the carving tables. each with mis-
particular duty. Oscar and his head
assistants scurry about this way and
that. seeing to IL that there is no place
uncovered, no detail unprepared, no
dish or piece Of silverware lacking.
lust before ) o'clock the flower men
come. They have had to wait until
late for their share in the arrange
ments because the roses must look
fresh and the leaves wildly green. The
tracing of delicate blossoms and ever
greens along the cloth of the guests
table must not have time 10 wither.
and the specially decorative bouquet in
front of the guest of honor, whether he
be the Prince or some other distin-
guished man, must seem to have come
straight from the greenhouse.
Meanwhile the kitchen has been a
scene of great activity. There are no
duty have to move around much more
rapidly than on other days. They get
the food ready between rushes" in
the morning and afternoon, leaving the
most delicate viands to the last. BY
the time 6 o'clock has come everything
is ready, and a squad Of men-cooks
or waiters-are in their places near the
ovens, all on the alert for the signal
that means they are to transfer the
food to a special elevator and send it
up stairs to Oscar. The grand ball
room Is on the second floor. the kitch
ems in the basement.
Guests Ready to Sit Down.
1t is announced to the chef that the
guests are ready to sit down. Through
a tube he transfers the Information
down stairs. Then he rings a bell
and in two minutes the oysters are
on the tables, having been prepared at
the carving tables. The walters stand
like statues, each at his post. The
guests file into the imitation fairyland.
perhaps cheer the honored visitor,
stand until he is seated and then pro-
coed to make way with the first course.
Meanwhile the wine men have
placed on each table the beverage pre-
scribed for this stage of the feast, and
the diners find their glasses filled be-
fore they hsve had time to unfold
their napkins.
The bell that Oscar rings is just out
side the door between the hall of
carving tables and the ballroom. He
himself never goes into the dining
room. He walks up and down the long,
canvas-covered tables, and every time
he gets to the. end nearest the ball
room he pokes his head about two
inches inside the door to see how far
the eating of the course has advanced.
At the right moment, when all or
majority of the diners seem to have
finished their oysters, he touches an
electric button. The bell rings-so
loudly that everybody on the floor can
hear it, On the instant the walters be-
gin to take away the oyster plates,
with which they file out, and the
wine men" replace the first wine with
the second.
In less than four minutes after the
ringing of the bell the same walters
who carried out the oyster plates re-
turn with the soup. The oyster dishes
have been deposited in ships" and
hustled down to the kitchen on the
elevator. At this point the guests
begin to wonder, if they have never
had the question answered for them.
why the soup is hot. how more than
l,200 plates can possibly be brought to
the tables steaming as though they
were transferred from a stove a dozen
feet away.
How Soup Is Kept Hot.
"Of course it's hot" says Oscar.
Just before they finish their oysters
I call down to the kitchen. Up comes
the soup. Into the heaters on the
carving tables it goes. 1t stays there
until IL is very hot. Then the oysters
come out. While they. are coming
the soup is being poured into plates,
and just as soon as it's in the walters
are ready to take it to the guests"
In this way the dinner proceeds.
Each course is brought from the
kitchen just in time then heated I'M
til the diners are ready to consume it,
There is no colliding of waiters-ex-
one he must follow in and out of the
where his place is, and who is the
'mooIUsq
cept very rarely. They march in
regular lines. Each one knows
For 1920 diners-the number served
to-night-the quantity of champagne
used is approximately $50 quarts. OF
ssuternss and clarets and other side