The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1910-06-10
'AQUA|NT OLD TAVERN
The Old Cheshire Cheese, In
the Heart Of London.
SERVES A FAMOUS PUDDING.
A Noble Pastry Il Is, and It Was
Sampled by Such Men as Gladstone,
Dickens, Thackeray, Tennyson, Troll
lope and Whistler.

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Nearly all Americans when they go
to London make it q point to visit, that
quaint old tavern in the heart Of the
newspaper and printing business, the
Old Cheshire Cheese, to partake Of
its famous pudding.
1t is the Londoner's delight when he
gets back to Fleet street to make q
rush for the pudding. and it is almost
the last thing he eats before leaving
1t. Travellers in the Sahara have seen
mirages Of that pudding, and during
the Boer war the men shut up In
Ladysmith and Mafeking dreamed Of
1t at regular intervals.
Precisely at o'clock p m. Tom con-
veys the pudding from the first to the
main floor. 1t Is a big pudding, and
the price Of it is just 2 shillings- that
is to say, feed of it is shillings, as
much as you please, as many shares as
you ask for, cut and come again, all
for IS cents Of American coin. Cheap,
aye and. oh. how good it is! 1t is
worth crossing the Atlantic to get a
sniff Of it, and the aroma fingers in
the memory for many a day.
Big? The dimensions are ,Falstaffian.
It is round earthen vessel something
more than two dozen inches deep, with
diameter of about eighteen inches.
a noble pastry, my masters!
When it is placed upon the service
table an elIiptical white crust meets
the hungry gaze. Tom and his myr-
midons take their places in front fac
ing the host. who, knife and spoon in
hand. poses with gentle dignity and
benignant mien. It is a moment Of
solemn thought when every man hopes
that his portion will be larger than his
friends and that he will be blessed
with an abundance of gravy. But
they ought from years OF acquaintance
with the host to understand that HIS,
hand is as steady as his judgment is
impartial.
No more and nothing better for one
than for another. He waves his weap-
ons. and the first onslaught is made.
The room is full Of q. delicious steam
bearing with It the concentrated es-
sences Of ambrosial substances. The
guests sniff 1t up and murmur choice
blessings on the cook. the original In
ventor, the house and the host. 1t is
time when men feel good, one to-
ward the other.
the whole world kin. This famous
pudding, which has tickled the palates
OF thousands, is thus compounded:
A crust OF -four. water and suet.
Beefsteak.
Sleeps kidneys.
Larks.
Mushrooms tfreshly gathered,. y
Oysters.
Stock.
Pepper and salt.
But it is the boiling that does it.
For at least twelve hours this heaven
sent pudding is kept slowly simmering
In an immense copper specially con-
structed for the purpose. It must not
boil quickly, but the same tempera-
ture be kept up the whole period. The
steak assumes a juicy tenderness; the
Iarks-not sparrows. as some malig-
nant spirit has suggested, although
sparrow pudding is not to be despised
-are seethed to the bone, and you
can chew up each little songster with
out an effort; the kidneys are soft and
mushy and offer no resistance to the
digestive organs, and the oysters, de-
spite their heightened cooking. are not
leathery. The amalgamation and as
similation OF the variety of constitu-
ents are perfect; the result is bliss.
There Is story told of one eminent
1itterateur who had seven helpings Of
the pudding and still yearned for more,
and there is another remarkable mar
rative Of four men who ordered pud-
ding of the regulation size and finished
1t among them.
]. Pierpont Morgan praised the pud-
ding, and Theodore Roosevelt was de-
lighted with It. Lord Beaconsfield be-
slowed his appreciation thereon, and
Gladstone thought 1t far superior to his
famous '.three courses Dickens.
Thackeray, Meredith, Swinburne, Ten
nyson. Trollope. Whistler, Leighton,
Eala, PHI May-all sorts OF the best
Of men Of their day have fed upon the
pudding, and it no doubt helped to
inspire their work.
Apparently any cook can fashion It,
mix 1t. fix it. boil 1t. Let any cook try
1t. Lots OF cooks have tried it. but the
results have not been satisfactory.
Mhere was a man who once ran the
Old Cheshire Cheese. and in his day
the pudding first achieved its great
fame. When he sold the old hostelry
and took house in the financial dis
trict he announced that the same pud-
ding-the same In every respect would
deserved every Saturday.
Many of the Cheese's old patrons
came around to celebrate. There was
the size, but the aroma was wanting;
there were the identical materials. but
the favor was not in them. 1t was not
the same. not bit of it. There was