On the Luxury of the Table. 51 



The peacock was a constant dish at all the great enter tain toentfe. 

 It was the truffled turkey of those days. 



Hirtius Pansa, who had the ill luck to give a feast where this 

 indispensable article did not appear, was reckoned a niggard, a 

 man without taste, and was ever after scorned by delicate feed- 

 ers. In those aviaries thrushes and pigeons were bred. It 

 seems, too, there were then the same fancies as there are at pre- 

 sent. Certain varieties were much sought after. Varro relates 

 that a couple of pigeons brought 2000 sesterces, about £ 19 of 

 our money. Sempronius Lucius first had served on his table 

 young storks. Geese were crammed in the same manner as now 

 to enlarge their livers ; but it was a dish too easily obtained, 

 and soon those who wished to distinguish themselves invented 

 new sorts of meat. They dressed the brains of ostriches, and 

 the tongues of flamingos. Wild geese were sent for from Phry^ 

 gia ; cranes from Melos ; and pheasants from Colchis. 



Fishes. — As to fish, luxury went even farther than in birds and 

 quadrupeds. At one period of the republic, a man eating a fish 

 would have been thought shamefully dainty. But the severity 

 of manners disappeared on the introduction of riches ; and Cato 

 complains, that in his time, a fish sold as dear as an ox. Yet, 

 even then, Gallonius was publicly accused in the senate, and 

 was nearly deprived of his rank, on account of the luxury of 

 his table, having had sturgeons on it. The inventor of fish^ 

 ponds was Lucinius Murcena, and thence came the surname 

 which was afterwards borne by this family. 



Hortensius followed his example, and even went beyond it. 

 Very soon, it was not enough to have fresh-water fish, for salt- 

 water ponds were formed, in which were bred sea-trouts, soles, 

 John Dories, and shell-fish of different kinds. Lucullus, in or- 

 der to let in sea-water to one of his preserves, had a mountain 

 cut through, and from this extravagance was deservedly called 

 Xerxes Togatus. At his death there were so many fish in his 

 ponds, that Cato of Utica, who was trustee on the succession, 

 having ordered them to be sold, received for them the sum of 

 ^32,000 Sterling. The sale of the fish-ponds of Irrius 

 yielded the same price. Caesar wishing on a particular occa- 

 sion to give a feast to the Roman people, applied to this Irrius- 

 for some lampreys, Irrius refused to sell any, but, according 



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