I was obliged, however, to demand an empty room, for even during my interpretations the Pre- sident's patience would evaporate, and the walls would ring with language that was fashionable when George the Third was King. There are two ways of imparting the details of a menu to your native cook : — one through the medium of your butler, the other by conversation with the man himself. For many reasons I advocate the latter plan. Some cooks do not care for the butler's interference, and in many establishments, the cook and butler do not pull. Butlers, again, are prone to conceit, and often pretend to under- stand what you want done, rather than confess their ignorance. You may perhaps remember the same failing in your munshi who never admitted himself to be puzzled by the most intricate passage in English that you could place before him. So I prefer to get the cook alone, and talk to him very * I do not mean to insinuate by this that iced asparagus is not a delicions entremets; in the case in point, however, the mistake made by the cook is obvious. — W. THE COOK AND HIS MANAGEMENT. 15 gently in his own patois. I encourage him by a bland demeanour, and if obliged to speak retrospectively of a failure, I strive to do so with a smile. You will soon get i-ound Ramasamy when he finds that you never indulge in " very bad ' busing :" he then gains confidence in you and learns rapidly. Between ourselves too, surely an artist who can actually compose a ^^ petit pctte a la financiere,'' a " hramoushj mix huUres," or a " supreme de volaille,'' deserves some consideration at our hands. The patois is easily acquired, and you will soon find yourself interpret- ing the cherished mysteries of Francatelli or Gouffe in the pigeon English of Madras with marvellous fluency. You will even talk of " putting that troople," " mashing bones all," " minching," " chimmering," &c., &c., with- out a blush. There can be no doubt that in our Ramasamy we possess admirable materials out of which to form a good cook. The work comes to him, as it were, of its own accord. But we should take heed lest he grow up at random, cling- ing affectionately to the ancient barbarisms of his fore- fathers. "We should watch for his besetting sins, and root them out whenever they manifest themselves. We should, moreover, remember that a dish once success- fully presented will not necessarily appear so again unless the artist be reminded de novo of the secrets of its compo- sition. Mint, as a flavouring agent, save with green peas, in certain wine " cups," and in bond fide mint sauce, is one of the banes of the cook-room ; its use, and that of any parsley except the curled English variety, should be considered absolutely penal. The very smell of " country" parsley is assuredly sufficient to warn the unwary, and yet many native cooks bring it home daily. The weed has been called " parsley" ever since they can remember, and they 16 CULINARY JOTTINGS FOR MADRAS. fail to appreciate the wide difference between it, and the real herb.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

I was obliged, however, to demand an empty room, for even during my interpretations the President's patience would evaporate, and the walls would ring with language that was fashionable when George the Third was King. There are two ways of imparting the details of a menu to your native cook : — one through the medium of your butler, the other by conversation with the man himself. For many reasons I advocate the latter plan. Some cooks do not care for the butler's interference, and in many establishments, the cook and butler do not pull. Butlers, again, are prone to conceit, and often pretend to understand what you want done, rather than confess their ignorance. You may perhaps remember the same failing in your munshi who never admitted himself to be puzzled by the most intricate passage in English that you could place before him. So I prefer to get the cook alone, and talk to him very * I do not mean to insinuate by this that iced asparagus is not a delicions entremets; in the case in point, however, the mistake made by the cook is obvious. — W. THE COOK AND HIS MANAGEMENT. 15 gently in his own patois. I encourage him by a bland demeanour, and if obliged to speak retrospectively of a failure, I strive to do so with a smile. You will soon get i-ound Ramasamy when he finds that you never indulge in " very bad ' busing :" he then gains confidence in you and learns rapidly. Between ourselves too, surely an artist who can actually compose a "petit patte a la financiere," a "bremousshe aux huitres," or a "supreme de volaille," deserves some consideration at our hands. The patois is easily acquired, and you will soon find yourself interpreting the cherished mysteries of Francatelli or Gouffe in the pigeon English of Madras with marvellous fluency. You will even talk of "putting that troople," "mashing bones all," "minching," "shimmering," &c., &c., without a blush. There can be no doubt that in our Ramasamy we possess admirable materials out of which to form a good cook. The work comes to him, as it were, of its own accord. But we should take heed lest he grow up at random, clinging affectionately to the ancient barbarisms of his forefathers. "We should watch for his besetting sins, and root them out whenever they manifest themselves. We should, moreover, remember that a dish once successfully presented will not necessarily appear so again unless the artist be reminded de novo of the secrets of its composition. Mint, as a flavouring agent, save with green peas, in certain wine " cups," and in bond fide mint sauce, is one of the banes of the cook-room ; its use, and that of any parsley except the curled English variety, should be considered absolutely penal. The very smell of " country" parsley is assuredly sufficient to warn the unwary, and yet many native cooks bring it home daily. The weed has been called " parsley" ever since they can remember, and they fail to appreciate the wide difference between it, and the real herb.

Culinary jottings