OUR SENTIMENTAL GARDEN 



if fitful conversation) came about six o'clock journeymen 

 without a menagere at home, on their way to their day's 

 task/ or night- workers in the Halles, on their way to 

 morning sleep. The next one would begin soonclerks, 

 ( workgirls, and small employes who have to be at their 

 post about eight. Then the demand for the penny bowl 

 would rise afresh about noon. 



To one who was even then tasting the full value of the 

 finished product the method of production had the interest 

 of actuality, and was otherwise enlightening. And, pardi I 

 it is worth recording, as an instance of what could be 

 done with raw material to the value of twelve sous 

 less than sixpence to provide twenty people with a 

 savoury dishful of broth and leave a distinct turnover of 

 profit. 



These as far as I could judge were about a score of 

 medium-sized onions of the more pungent kind (twopence, 

 four sous or four cents) / half a pound or thereabouts of 

 butter, salt butter it is true, but your Parisian insists 

 wherever he can upon cuisine au beurre <six sous) / a ladle-full 

 of flour <say one farthing, half a cent),- something like two 

 sous' worth of stale bread, baker's shop remnants. Leav- 

 ing the cost of firing out of consideration and in thrifty 

 ingenious French hands it would be small the return 

 would be like thirty per cent, on the outlay. 

 As for the technique of the brewing, it was simple but 

 elegant. The sliced onions, fried in the butter at the 

 bottom of the iron pot to a pleasing sunset colour under 

 the watchful eye of the matron, were at the right moment 

 powdered with the allowance of flour and stirred until 

 the suitable appetizing brown was achieved" The flour is 

 100 



