Practical gastronomy and culinary dictionary

The grand banquets undertaken and designed by Soyer were very numerous, the details of which are found in print in his books — his Diner Lticidlvsien a la Sampayo was, perhaps, the masterpiece of all, at least, he himself pronounced it to be so. The Bouquet de Gihier, or nosegay of game, which he presented to Louis Philippe, and for which he received such a memorable letter in return, was remarkable. It was about ten feet high and wide in proportion : " The frame was richly covered with Christmas holly, laurel, mistletoe, and evergreen, with a great variety of winter flowers. There were twenty-two dozen head of game, consisting of larks, snipes, woodcocks, teal, P^ench and English partridges, grouse, widgeons, wild ducks, blackcocks, pheasants, a leveret, a hare, and golden plovers. The interstices were lightly filled with wheat and oats, the whole ornamented with tri-coloured ribbon." Most have heard of Soyer's visit to Ireland in February of the year 1847, and of his praiseworthy efforts to relieve the starving peasantry ; also of his model soup-kitchens, and of his relief of 1,147,278 persons, and the publication of his soup receipts, followed by " The Poor Man's Kegenerator." And then of his famous sauces and " Relish," and aerial dish at Slough ; his philanthropic work in the East of London, and in the Crimea, where he so ably assisted Miss Florence Nightingale in her efforts to feed the sick and wounded. And now we come to the last earthly scene, which occurred in his own house at St. John's Wood, on the night of August 5, 1858. He was thus only forty- nine years of age when he died ; but he commenced life so early, and kept it up so intensely, that it may virtually be said he had lived as long again. It was he who described the difference between a gourmet and gourmand as being much the same as that between a gentleman and a common person. 862 PRACTICAL GASTRONOMY CHARLES E. FRANCATELLT, 1805-1876. Chaeles Elme Francatelli is a name familiar to all. He was born in London in 1805, and appears to have been at a very early date destined for the kitchen. His father was of rather more than Italian extraction, and christened him Charles Elm6. At a suitable age the lad was sent to France for his education. Here he was fortunate enough to fall in with Careme, who was becoming a king in his profession. It may be said of Francatelli that he taught the Prince of Wales to eat macaroni, and Her Gracious Majesty the Queen to value the flavour of pistachio in sweets and confectionery. It was this culinary artist who first in this country advocated the diner a la Russe, of which he thus writes : — " Few there are who are not apt to look with a pleasurable anticipation on the culinary delicacies before them ; but when appetite is appeased, to continue inhaling the now no longer agreeable fumes of hacked fragments of even the most perfect dishes is little calculated to promote enjoyment ; whereas the absence from table of the more substantial fare is fully compen- sated by the refreshing elegance of an artistic display of orna- mental confectionery, gorgeous fruit, and lovely flowers, which form the chief elements of a fashionable dessert." Of cooking itself he says: —