AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
809 
Hints on Setting out a Table—Deportment 
while at Table, &c.III. 
3Y ANNA HOPE. 
[Continued from page 249.] 
“ The Little Folks” in a letter to the editor, re¬ 
ferring to my recent articles, inquire: “ Is it 
proper in helping fowl, to ask if any part is pre¬ 
ferred, and if so, how shall we be able to help to 
certain portions unless ‘the whole fowl is dis¬ 
sected at once and our dish filled with fragments 
heaped up,’if not like a ‘slaughtered’ at least, 
tike a well-disciplined ‘ army,’standing at easel” 
Also, “ if we are not to put our knife into the 
mouth, which hand shall we hold the fork in while 
passing the food 1 and if in the right hand, what 
proportion of our dinner, or of what our plate 
contains, shall be cut and prepared before we 
commence to lift it to our mouths 1” 
Ans .—I do not think that it is as customary 
now, as formerly, to ask what part of a fowl is 
preferred It is taken for granted that every one 
likes a piece of the hreast, and after that is put 
upon the plate, the carver may inquire, “shall I 
send you this, or is there any other part you pre¬ 
fer!” If the question is asked, “what part do 
you prefer 1” it is necessary to carve only a few 
pieces before the choice bit can be reached, un¬ 
less the choice should he a back bone, and that 
I never heard any one mention as desirable for 
the first cut. After the wing and leg of a fowl are 
cut, any piece is accessible at once. As these 
are laid upon the dish, the crisp skin should be 
up and not next the dish. If there is stuffing, it 
should not be scattered carelessly over the meat. 
Neatness is just as desirable on a plate, as it is 
in a parlor. When a slice of fowl is put upon a 
plate the brown side should be up—if there is only 
a brown edge that should be toward the outside 
of the plate, that it may not lose its delicate crisp 
by contact with gravy or vegetables. 
If you are asked what part you like, give a 
definite answer. Do not say “ it is immaterial,” 
nor “ I have no choice.” Such answers only 
embarrass a carver, and well might tempt him to 
pass to another person while you were left in 
your indicision. I well remember the lesson my 
father taught me in my early childhood in regard 
to this matter, and I can not even now think ofa 
person who has “no choice,” but as deficient in 
decision of character in everything else. A lady 
once went to Dr. Mussey to have a tooth ex¬ 
tracted, but she hesitated and hesitated, till he 
quietly put up his instruments, and told her when 
she was ready he would attend to her, but in the 
mean time he must attend to other business. It 
would not do for a gentleman at his own table, to 
treat a guest in this way, but children should cer¬ 
tainly be taught to know their own wishes, and 
when asked, to express them. It is easy enough 
to say, “I will take a piece of the white meat,” 
or “I will lake apiece of the dark meat,” or 
even, as I heard a young lady reply, “ Any piece 
but the wing.” 
Do not remove a part of a fowl from the dish 
to a plate, to complete the carving. To receive 
such a plate might spoil the dinner of a fastidious 
person. 
Vegetables should be put neatly and compactly 
upon the plate, and not scattered over it. Gravy 
should be put on the plate, not on the meat, or 
vegetables. 
The fork, in “ passing the food,” may be held 
in either hand as is most convenient. If used as 
a snoon, it should be held in the right, as for peas. 
tomatoes, squash, &e. If used for a fork , then 
the left hand may hold it. 
Only a few mouthfuls of food—if any—should 
be cut before beginning to eat. 
When the fork is held in the right hand, it is 
often convenient to use a h>t of bread to push 
vegetables like peas or tomatoes, upon the fork, 
I, of course, refer to forks with three or four 
tines, as they are now usually made, when I speak 
of eating peas with a fork. 
BREAKFAST. 
This is not a ceremonious meal, nor a dress 
occasion. Low necks, and short sleeves, laces 
and jewelry are entirely out of place at the break¬ 
fast table. Linen collars, or those of thick cam¬ 
bric, with sleeves or cuffs to correspond, are de¬ 
signed for morning. Neat muslins, or prints, de¬ 
laines, or very simple silks, plainly made, are 
proper, but rich silks and flounces, and heavily 
trimmed dresses are in bad taste at this meal. 
And I may here add that it is decidedly vulgar to 
flounce merino on delaine or any cheap material. 
No lady ever wears such a dress. No morning 
dresses can be prettier than those open in front 
worn over a fine white skirt. On a sewing ma¬ 
chine these skirts can be very neatly tucked in a 
few minutes. It is quite as important that the 
hair should be neatly arranged at breakfast as at 
dinner, hut the head-dress should be very simple. 
For morning work, a dress that can be washed 
is most desirable, although for Winter something 
wanner may he necessary. My fancy was once 
much pleased by a grey cloth basque worn by a 
friend of mine. Such an article can be as easily 
dusted as a gentleman’s coat. 
Pies should never be eaten at breakfast; but it 
is now the style to have fruit on the breakfast 
table. 
In pouring coffee, the sugar and cream should 
first be put into the cup, and the coffee poured on. 
If milk is used for coffee, it should he brought to 
the table scalding hot. I like the “ Old Dominion 
Coffee Pot,” as with good materials it is impossi¬ 
ble to make poor coffee in it, if the directions are 
followed. If 1 lived in the country, as I do not 
chance to do just now, I would have cream very 
rich and thick for coffee, and the coffee made 
strong, and weakened with scalded milk ; but as 
it is, I am compelled to be content with only the 
milk. For tea the sugar and cream should be put 
in the cup after it is filled. I do not like brown 
sugar in coffee, any better than in tea; it injures 
its delicate purity. 
It is not customary, in good society, to load a 
tea table with all that can be placed upon it; one 
or two kinds of cake and sweetmeats, with biead 
and butter or biscuit, are sufficient for most occa¬ 
sions. A little dried beef, or thinly sliced tongue, 
is not out of place after an early dinner, but 
where a family dines late it is wholly unneces¬ 
sary. 
Bread for tea should be cut in very thin slices. 
In many families the loaf is placed upon the table 
and cut from as is needed. This prevents the 
waste of bread or the accumulation of dry pieces. 
It is convenient to have a bread board for this 
purpose. A bread knife is much like a carving- 
knife, but the thinner the blade, the better. 
Cup-plates are out of date. Coffee and tea are 
drank from the cup, not from the saucer*. The 
spoon should be placed in the saucer while drink¬ 
ing. Do not drink with a “schloop,” nor cat with 
open lips. 
* Remark. —We are fully aware that the writer 
states what is the custom in good society—and 
this is all that is intended—but we must quarrel 
with the custom. There is no doubt that hot 
liquids of any kind are decidedly injurious to the 
teeth. If one has abundant time to sip tea or 
coffee from a spoon, cooling each spoonful before 
taking into the mouth, it may do to follow cus 
tom, but unless one can wait for this, or until the 
whole liquid in the cup can cool, we would advise 
to save the teeth and health by pursuing the 
“ old fashioned ” mode of pouring the t_ea or coffee 
into the saucer to cool, setting the cup into a 
cup-plate, or if none were provided, then put it on 
the table.—E d. 
■-^ 4 -» 1- --- 
Masticator, or Tooth Helper—A Hint to 
Inventors. 
In previous articles we have shown (he irnpor 
tance of having food of all kinds thoroughly mas¬ 
ticated or ground before it goes to the stomach, 
and this not only for children, hut for grown up 
people. The stomach is not provided by nature 
to do the work appointed to the teeth, and it can 
not do it, though the faithful organ will do its best, 
but the result will be, aches, pains, dullness, 
headache, languor, and finally disease will surely 
follow sooner or later. Any lumps of food going 
into the stomach to he pulverized or ground there, 
are entirely out of place. 
“ But,” asks an old reader, “ what is a body to 
do who has lost his teeth 1 Shall he stop eating, 
like Cuffee, whose advice in cholera times was : 
‘ The best way is to eat nu(Ten at all, and then 
you no ’spose yourself.’ ” 
By no means, aged friend. Take plenty ot 
nourishing food of various kinds, but cut or mash 
it very finely upon the plate before carrying it to 
the mouth. 
Stop a minute ! Here, we have it! Looking 
over an English Journal we see an advertisement 
ofa small implement made ‘on purpose’ to carry 
round with you to do the work of the teeth. We 
have made a sketch of it above, though its inter¬ 
nal arrangement is not very clear. It is described 
as being suited to make hash, pulverize potatoes, 
and grind food for aged or toothless persons. It 
is said to be of any size from a pocket edition, 
upward. You will see that it is provided with 
clamps and a thumb screw to fasten it upon the 
edge of the table. The food is to -he put into the 
hopper and turning the crank throws it from the 
spout upon the plate. 
Now, this is a capital idea, we think, and a 
practicable one too. What’s to hinder getting up 
a small masticator, trimmed in silver or gold, if 
you like and can afford it. It need not be too 
large to carry in a lady’s work-bag or reticule, or 
in a gentleman’s overcoat pocket. Fashion would 
soon allow you to take out your masticator, even 
at a friend’s or stranger’s, fasten it upon the side 
of the table and turn away. You will thus be in¬ 
dependent of tough beef, false teeth, the dentist, 
and—bad digestion. A first rate silver or gold 
mounted instrument would cost less than a new 
set of teeth, and be far more effective. 
We say, here is a splendid field for inventors 
and they should not let it go unoccupied. Tn 
further the enterprise, we wi)J nromise the first 
