Wherever there is any doubt as to the best way to do a thing, it is wise
to follow that which is the most rational, and that will almost invariably
be found to be proper etiquette. To be at ease is a great step towards en-
joying your own dinner, and making yourself agreeable to the company.
There is a reason for everything in polite usage; thus the reason why one
does not blow a thing to cool it, is not only that it is an inelegant and vul-
gar action intrinsically, but because it maybe offensive to others — can-
not help being so, indeed; and it, moreover implies, haste, which, whether
from greediness or a desire to get away, is equally objectionable. Every-
thing else may be as easily traced to its origin in the fit and becoming.
If, to conclude, one seats one’s self properly at table and takes reason
into account, one will do tolerably well. One must not pull one’s chair
too closely to the table, for the natural result of that is the inability to use
one’s knife and fork without inconveniencing one’s neighbors ; the elbows
are to be held well in and close to one’s side, which cannot be done if the
chair is too near the board. One must not lie or lean along the table, nor
rest one’s arms upon it. Nor is one to touch any of the dishes ; if a mem-
ber of the family, one can exercise all the duties of hospitality through
servants, and wherever there are servants, neither family nor guests are to
pass or help from apy dish. Finally, when rising from your chair leave it
where it stands.
DINNER GIVING.
THE lAYIHG OF THE TABLE AND THE TEEATMENT OF GUESTS.
In giving “ dinners,” the apparently trifling details are of great im-
portance when taken as a whole.
We gather around our board agreeable persons, and they pay us
and our dinner the courtesy of dressing for the occasion, and this re-
union should be a time of profit as well as pleasure. There are certain es-
tablished laws by which “ dinner giving ” is regulated in polite society ;
and it may not be amiss to give a few observances in relation to them.
One of the first is that an invited guest should arrive at the house of his
host at least a quarter of an hour before the time appointed for dinner.
In laying the table for dinner all the linen should be a spotless white
throughout, and pnderneath the linen tablecloth should be spread one of
thick cotton-flannel or baize, which gives the linen a heavier and finer
572
MIBCELLANEO US.
appearance, also deadening the sound of moving dishes. Large and neatly
folded napkins (ironed without starch),' with pieces of bread three or four
inches long, placed between the folds, but not to completely conceal it,
are laid on each plate. An ornamental centre-piece, or a vase filled with
a few rare flowers, is put on the centre of the table, in place of the large
table-castor, which has gone into disuse, and is rarely seen now on well-
appointed tables. A few choice flowers make a charming variety in the
appearance of even the most simply laid table, and a pleasing variety at
table is quite as essential to the enjoyment of the repast as is a good
choice of dishes, for the eye in fact should be gratified as much as the
palate.
Page 381
Presented as published in 1887. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Wherever there is any doubt as to the best way to do a thing, it is wise to follow that which is the most rational, and that will almost invariably be found to be proper etiquette. To be at ease is a great step towards enjoying your own dinner, and making yourself agreeable to the company. There is a reason for everything in polite usage; thus the reason why one does not blow a thing to cool it, is not only that it is an inelegant and vulgar action intrinsically, but because it maybe offensive to others — cannot help being so, indeed; and it, moreover implies, haste, which, whether from greediness or a desire to get away, is equally objectionable. Everything else may be as easily traced to its origin in the fit and becoming.
If, to conclude, one seats one’s self properly at table and takes reason into account, one will do tolerably well. One must not pull one’s chair too closely to the table, for the natural result of that is the inability to use one’s knife and fork without inconveniencing one’s neighbors ; the elbows are to be held well in and close to one’s side, which cannot be done if the chair is too near the board. One must not lie or lean along the table, nor rest one’s arms upon it. Nor is one to touch any of the dishes ; if a member of the family, one can exercise all the duties of hospitality through servants, and wherever there are servants, neither family nor guests are to pass or help from apy dish. Finally, when rising from your chair leave it where it stands.
DINNER GIVING.
THE LAYING OF THE TABLE AND THE TEEATMENT OF GUESTS.
In giving “ dinners,” the apparently trifling details are of great importance when taken as a whole.
We gather around our board agreeable persons, and they pay us and our dinner the courtesy of dressing for the occasion, and this reunion should be a time of profit as well as pleasure. There are certain established laws by which “ dinner giving ” is regulated in polite society ; and it may not be amiss to give a few observances in relation to them. One of the first is that an invited guest should arrive at the house of his host at least a quarter of an hour before the time appointed for dinner. In laying the table for dinner all the linen should be a spotless white throughout, and underneath the linen tablecloth should be spread one of thick cotton-flannel or baize, which gives the linen a heavier and finer
appearance, also deadening the sound of moving dishes. Large and neatly folded napkins (ironed without starch),' with pieces of bread three or four inches long, placed between the folds, but not to completely conceal it, are laid on each plate. An ornamental centre-piece, or a vase filled with a few rare flowers, is put on the centre of the table, in place of the large table-castor, which has gone into disuse, and is rarely seen now on wellappointed tables. A few choice flowers make a charming variety in the appearance of even the most simply laid table, and a pleasing variety at table is quite as essential to the enjoyment of the repast as is a good choice of dishes, for the eye in fact should be gratified as much as the palate.