144 
IMITATION OF AN ENGLISH DINNER. 
particular attentions to him by numerous expressions of welcome, 
pointed with his hand to an upper seat in the assembly, to which he 
desired him to move, and which he accordingly did. 
The strong analogy to be discovered here between the manners of 
the Jews, as described by our Saviour in the first of the parables con¬ 
tained in the 14th chapter of St. Luke, and those of the Persians, must 
be my best apology for quoting the whole passage at full length, parti¬ 
cularly as it will more clearly point out the origin, and more strongly 
inculcate the moral of that beautiful antithesis with which it closes. 
When thou art hidden of any man to a u'edding, sit not do'wn in the 
highest place, lest a more honourable man than thou he hidden of him, 
and he that hade thee and him, come and say to thee. Give this man place, 
and thou begin with shame to take the lowest place; but when thou art 
bidden, go and sit down in the lowest place, that when he that bade thee 
cometh, he may say unto thee. Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have 
worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. For whosoever 
exalteth himself shall he abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be 
exalted. 
We sat in the small room until the preliminaries of smoking, coffee, 
&c. had been settled. Fruit in large quantities, attended by sweetmeats 
and ices (which the Persians eat before dinner) were also served up, 
and when all had been cleared away, the dinner was announced. The 
Ameen-ad-Dowlah then got up, and invited the Ambassador and the 
other guests to follow him into another apartment, where we found that 
an attempt had been made to lay out a dinner in the European man¬ 
ner. On a number of rude unpainted tables, some high, some low, 
arranged in the horse-shoe fashion, were heaped all the various dishes 
whicli compose a Persian entertainment, not in symmetrical order, for 
their numbers made that impossible, but positively piled one upon the 
other, so that stewed fowl lay under roasted lamb, omelet under 
stewed fowl, eggs under omelet, and rice under all, and so on. 
Every European was provided with a knife, fork, napkin, and plate ; 
but the poor Persians, alas ! made but rueful work of it. Some were 
seated upon chairs so high that they towered far above the alpine 
