The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-23

and recipes Pliny and other old writ
ers give about 1t may claim therapeu-
tic Value-as enIeties. And yet sorrle-
where in the BAREBACK ages some val
liant world helper was found greatly
to venture, to make a moral '--or at
least meal-"of the devil himself
in frog form, to recognize that IN
those suceulent hind legs there was a
soul of goodness, and to set himself
heroicaIly to ''distil," or stew, or fry
it out. And the result is a dish over
which gour4nets and epicures smack
their lips-or rather would do so were
1t not foolish to waste time when
stich a ''plat" woos active absorption.
The culinary directions in themselves
are appetizing. They are eurried--
that is to say, the hind legs are, which
alone are generally eaten--a1d fried in
bread crumbs, served with cream ana
crisped parsley, stewed with garie,
onions, chives, sweet herbs, and
spicesj fricasseed with savory stock
and a mellowing of winej enriched
with cream and yolk of egg, and gar
nished with lemon. They have been
compared with chicken, but it is gleri-
fed chicken, fit for Olympian tables or
for the Apollo room of Lucullus.
More might be said of their charms
but it is mere charity to forbeaf. They
are not dish for all purses.
That same Apollo, with hair ana
hafpstring of gold,'' may be said to
have a particular connection with
frogs-to be responsible, indeed, In an
indirect way for the existence of at
least one variety of them. According
to the old fable, the gods mother, La
tona, came during her weary wander
ing to Lycia, and begged a dFaught
of water from some peasants. But the
churlish Doors Knocked and refused her,
though She urged her request for the
sake of the babes-Apollo and Diana
whom she carried in her arms In her
anger she cried to Jupiter, the mighty
father of her children, for vengeance,
and the wretched peasants were then
and there changed into frogs, doomed
forever to inhabit the element they had
cruelty denied her. 1t is strange to be
told that an almost identical myth OBJ
tains among the abofigines Of Aus
tralia. A woman with two children
came to q stream, but herdsmen drove
her away that they might water their
cattle. In revenge she nietam0rphosed
them into frogs. From the same au-
thority we learn that there exists In
localities as widely separated as
America, Australia and India legend
of a most divine or demoniacal frog
which in some far back age caused a
universal drought by swallowing all
the seas and rivers in the world, and a
corresponding deluge when he was
forced to disgorge them, The frog,
again, according to some. has yet am
other association with Apollo in his
character as patron general of the
muses, being emblematic of that sort
of poetic inspiration which produces
Aigh-fiown and bombastic effusions
somewhat in the style of Ancient Pts
toll. ......s.
Probably, however, one of the most
familiar appearances of the frog in
phrase or tradition is in connection
with our neighbors across the Channel.
And this connection is undoubtedly Gu
rious, having in a way a duplex origin.
The "froggy" of the GallophUbe Brit
ish street boy is probably abusive to
the supposed prediction of French
men to the dainty dish before referred
to, and corresponds with the "rosbif'