The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1912-11-22

| place were large ovens In which bak.
ing and roasting were done.
There were no tin utensils in those
old days and brass kettles were
worth SIS piece. The utensils were
mostly of iron, wood, pewter or lat
tern ware. Glassware was practically
unknown and bottles were made OF
leather. Wood played great part
in kitchen and tableware. Wooden
trenchers from which two ate were
used on the table for a century after
the settlement at Plymouth. Wood
was also used for pans and bread
troughs and host Of other things
displaced by tin in the modern kitch-
en-. Of wood were made butter pad
dies, salt cellars. noggins, keelers,
rundlets, and many kinds of drinking
bowls which were known under the
names Of mazers, whiskins, pggins,
tankards and kannes, words many of
which have disappeared from use.
The dining table of these old days
was the old Anglo-Saxon board placed
on trestles, and the tabecloth was
known as the board cloth" Thus
we have the origin of the time-worn
phrase: Gather around the festive
board" And the furnishings of the
board were simple, inventories Of
that period mentioning only cups,
chatting dishes, chargers, threnchers,
salt cellars, knives and spoons. The
table fork was an innovation not yet
in general use: the fingers of the
eater were used to thrust the food
into the mouth. The spoons were of
wood and pewter mostly. Silver
spoons were rare There was no
chinaware on the tables Of the early
Thanksgiving feasts; for no china
ware came over on the Mayfower.
That and the lack of glassware and
silver would make a thanksgiving
table of the seventeenth century look
impossible to a housewife of today.
Complete the picture by imagining
large trenchers. square blocks of wood
followed out by hand, placed around
the board" from each of which two
people dig their food out with their
, fingers, and you have an idea of the
manner in which our ancestors cele-
hrated Thanksgiving three centuries
ago.
But II the kitchen and table furni-
ture would appear strange to a house
wife of today some of the dishes
served would appear even stranger.
How many housekeepers of today can
cook "suppawn" and "samp" from
corn meal? Or bake manchet, sim
mels, cracknels, jannacks, cocket
bread, cheat. loaves, or "wasel' bread?
The colonists did not take kindly
at first to the pumpkin, which in the
pie form has become distinctive fea-
ture Of the modern thanksgiving feast.
| They called them "pomions' then,
and this is awe-inspiring recipe from
which the colonial housewife made
"pompion" pie:
Take half pound of Pumpion
and slice 1t, handful of Tyne, lit
tie Rosemary, Parsley and sweet Mar
joram slipped of the stalks then the
cinnamon, nutmeg and pepper. and six
cloves. and beat them. Then mix
them and beat them together and put
In as much sugar as you see fit; then
fry them like a froiz. After 1t Is
fried let 1t stand until 1t be cold. Take
sliced apples, thine rounde ways, and
lay row of the froize and layer OF
apples with currents betwixt the layer
| while your pie is fitted, and put in
good deal of sueet butter before you
close 1t. When the pie Is baked take
six yolks of eggs, some white wine
or Vergis and make caudle Of this,
but not too thick. Cut up the lid and
put 1t in. Stir them we'll together
whilst the eggs and the pomplons be
not perceived and serve 1t up"
Thus saith the old cook book. and
the modern housewife who faithful
ly follows this recipe can have at
least a unique concoction, fearfully
and wonderfully made, to grace heS
Thanksgiving table.