490 PROSE HALIEUTICS. 



the savour of a good name to be quoted by those who 

 shall succeed to our spirit and our spit. With this view, 

 we pass many a sleepless, many a thoughtful night, lean- 

 ing over our blinking lamps when all other eyes are 

 closed, and philosophy itself snoring ; then (the moon 

 and mice our only witnesses) we ponder well, as we turn 

 over in slow succession the unctuous pages of Achides 

 the Chian, of the Sidonian Tyndaris, or those of that 

 equal sage, the profound Zophyrinus, too happy if the 

 morning finds us with some of our nocturnal lucubra- 

 tions disposed of, thought out, and settled.' ' Pray tell 

 me anything else touching a cook's duty that may oc- 

 cur to you.' ' He should be versed in general literature, 

 as weU as in that connected with the profession. One of 

 our poets says, he never knew a cook worth his salt who 

 had not got up his Democritus, a sentiment in which I 

 entirely coincide : — 



Aionep [jMyecpov orav 'i^rjs dypdfifiaTov 



firj ArjfiQKpLTOv re jrdvra diaveyvojKOTa 



KoX Tov ''ETTiKovpov Kavova, fitfrdoitras a(pes, 



' What next ?' ' He of whom I would speak, and such a 

 one as you would wish to hire, must know his place, and 

 be able to teach others theirs. As head of the kitchen, 

 he wiU see, as I do, that every member, each in his de- 

 partment, is attentive to catch, and prompt to execute, 

 the instructions conveyed to him. ' Holloa there ! Alexis, 

 tortoise ! is that fire to go out ? You dog Philip, keep 

 your eyes on those cutlets ! Ha ! Philemon, wiU you 

 never learn to truss a fowl? Ulysses, botcher, ar'n't 

 you ashamed to stew me up a pig like that? You lazy 

 lout! give over whistling, and skim the grease off the 

 mattyas I entrusted to your care. Creon, you scum of 

 a scidlion, do you expect the conger to put himself down 

 to roast ? Such commands issued from our sanctum gene- 

 rally suffice : the varlets know my voice, .and fear it like 



