OPSOPHAaY. 483 



to France for their ' kitchen oracles' and 'guides/ so the 

 ancient civilized world confessed here it owed everything 

 to Greece^ and these Greek cooks appear to have sup- 

 plied, not only their own land, but every other civilized 

 community as well. 



Being great talkers, it vnll not be difficult to draw up 

 from the scattered notices they have left us a resume of 

 what was considered either as an indispensable requisite 

 or as ' desirable accomplishments' for the exercise of the 

 savoury calling. The more conveniently to bring this to- 

 gether, we will suppose one of these ancient chatterboxes 

 undergoing a strict cross-examination in his kitchen cate- 

 chism before a wealthy Athenian, who previous to hiring 

 would be ftdly acquainted with the acquirements of a 

 domestic about to cater to the comfort or discomfort of 

 his family. ' You bring, sir, a high character from your 

 last place, yet before we enter into any final agreement, 

 or I venture to trust my own or my friends' stomachs 

 implicitly in your hands, I would know what you look 

 upon as essential points in a cook's education.' ' I have 

 no difficulty in answering your beltistic excellency, hav- 

 ing often thought it over already ; the first thing indis- 

 pensable to entering upon this service creditably to him- 

 self is, for a man to be in the flower of his physical and 

 inteUectual strength, and also that he should be will- 

 ing as well as able to apply himself to its arduous du- 

 ties with an unremitting patience and zeal.' ' Good ; 

 and then ?' ' Then, as his master is to converse with him 

 daily, he should be a man of pleasing address, a polite 

 cityMseson, and not a coarse provincial tettix.'* ' Agreed^ 

 and then ?' ' Next I hold it of equal necessity that he 

 should be perfect ia every organ of perception, and that 

 each sense should have been duly trained and im- 

 proved by constant and careful exercise ; he should have 



* TeTTi^ was the name given to country or provincial cooks. 



Y 3 



