Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1921-06-10
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Iced-Hot Dish
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By Il HOWARD CAwTHoRNE
49, S-~-~te~S-<1>S>SfSe~PSs~f~rSs~r
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!. couyer, whence he was mysterious
/. transported to San Francisco. an
h presently became my cook.
[ During an idle visit to the kitchen
: the sant-eyed worthy mentioned tn
0 battling quest which had caused 81
D many heartburnings and cue-yretch
v lngs in China At first | laughed
4 heartily at the ludicrous tale but my
, laughter ended in gasp of astonish
ment as I suddenly realized that Hung
| Ho had put fortune within my grasp
For numberless centuries. so he told
me In his flowery language, the GU
linary artists of far Cathay had
striven manfully, though In vain, to-
ward the acme of epicurean attain
ment. the iced-hot dish.
Since the unenlightened ages a ira
dition had existed in the East that the
Celestial who shall concoct such a
toothsome delicacy, having an ice-cold
middle part while hot, Odorous, and
steaming without, shall be assured an
exalted place in heaven, as well as
honors, palaces, and retinues of kow-
towing servants during the remainder
Of his stay on earth.
From the lord high purveyor of
gustatory delights to her serene high
ness the dowager empress, down to
the humblest cOOkee in a chop suey
Joint, it had been the sublime goal of
all dreams and efforts among cooks.
When a Chinese cook is found dam
Cling at. the end Of his cue from
bamboo beam in his workroom, it is
commonly remarked that Zi-An, big
joss of the cook cult and jealous
guardian of the secret of the iced-hot
dish, had claimed another victim.
HungHo, crafty descendant of 40
generations of chop suey house cooks,
bad essayed at various times to elabo-
rate a pie or pastry that should at
least approach perfection as nearly as
| bad the productions of his honorable
ancestors.
had recently become interested in
an African development company own
Ing vast tracts of land where grew
valuable woods, notably the tree from
which the well-knOwn material called
vegetable ivory is obtained. From the
inner bark Of this tree 1 had pre-
pared a unique substance which 1
had named vegetable asbestos, a prod
uct that resembled real asbestos as
closely as vegetable ivory does the
tony mass of an elephants tusk.
That is to say. exactly. And, in adj
dition, vegetable asbestos is edible
I was casting about for use to
which the new food product could be
put, and Hung-Ho had given me the
clue to it. Thus, l hastily concluded,
l was fairly on the road to millionaire
dom.
Securing from. the refrigerator a
piece of ice the size of a walnut (as
the cook books say). I quickly rolled
II In dough made with vegetable as
bestos and water, and passed it on to
my prince of pots and pans, who placed
1t in the center Of a preposterous as
semblage of unlike condiments, form
Ing some famous Chinese dish.
Hung-Ho, who was now hopping
about and jabbering in clownish and
display Of emotion, popped
the cake into the oven. ! feared the
usually stolid Aslatic would go into an
ppoplectic fit so excited did he wax.
And really the occasion justified ex-
element. Should success crown NJ
endeavors, l could snap my fingers at
western millionaires and
join the esoteric circle of oriental
wealth and luxury.
Manifestly no trace Of ice could re-
main unmelted within that steaming
oaf and my expectations went up with
the fragrant. appetizing odor of vege-
'nble asbestos that filed our nostrils.
With trembling hands Hung-Ho
'eized the cake and deity broke it in
halves. Nesting within-mirabile
iictu-like a mandarin's diamond in
Is velvet case. lay the bit of glitterlng
&c still the size of a walnut Success {
vas ours Or, rather mine, for did
lot regard the Celestial as other than {
/ means TO an end. {
During the following day l made
to take a long vacation,
'nSdSeu StdIeTOomS on the steamer
soon sailed for the Orient, I
nd obtained from my laboratory am
lie supplies of vegetable asbestos TO
AXE with us.
Arrived at Picking, we found 1t adj {
isable not to attempt to exhibit our 4
discovery there and win the long prom 4
sed reward from the emperor himself, r
or western notions had latterly in 7
ected the imperial court to such an y
xtent that we were laughed at and {,
coffed numerically when we present
d our plea for an audience before r
he Son OF Heaven. Undaunted by r
bis early setback, we departed south n
'ard for the province of Shan-Tung. h
A gloriously bright and serene mid L
morning found US at the y
ate Of the thrice-blessed city Of Chin n
u-Hsien, blessed in being the natal o
pot Of the sage Confucius. the IA n
ored abode of Zi-An, chief loss of tho y