House and Garden 
The furniture gener¬ 
ally consists of a side¬ 
board, table, chairs 
and a decanpoir, a 
small side table upon 
which the meat is sup¬ 
posed to be carved by 
the butler before serv¬ 
ing it, when it is not 
done in the kitchen, 
as meat is never served 
from the table in 
France. The table it¬ 
self is often of carved 
oak, but in dining¬ 
rooms where the Eng¬ 
lish influence has been 
felt the modern Chip¬ 
pendale of maple or 
m a h oga n y is much 
used. Candles or 
lamps are seldom used .. ,, 
{ j. T? l THE USUAL CLOCK AND CANDFI.ABRA ADORN THE MANTEL 
on the ordinary k rench 
dining-table, but there 
is a drop light with candles surrounding it, giving a 
very hard and unbecoming light to those seated about 
the table. I must here add that in my opinion the 
French have not yet solved the problem of lighting a 
room or dining-table, so that people and things appear 
to advantage, a most important factor in interior 
decoration, nor do the French approve of decorating 
the dining-table very much. One will often find 
only a chanfferette in the middle of the table. - With 
people of taste this is often of old silver or bronze 
of good design. It used to be customary to place the 
viands on the chaufferette after they had once been 
passed, to keep them warm for a second helping, hut I 
believe this is rathei 'bourgeois nowand out of date 
and the chaufferette has become merely an object of 
decoration. Bonbons, cakes and fruit are placed on 
the four corners of the table on cotnpotiers ,- -low 
porcelain stands,—the absence of silver on the French 
table being conspicuous. In place of the chaufferette 
a basket of flowers stiffly arranged by a florist is 
sometimes placed on a mirror in the center of the 
table. The almost unfailing excellency of the food, 
however, makes up for any deficiency in charm of 
table decoration. 
The bedroom is rarely without the canopied or the 
Empire bed; the crucifix at the head, the table 
beside it with the candlestick, the heavy window 
curtains to draw at night. One never sees a pillow 
on a French bed in the daytime; there is a bolster 
which is rolled into a cover forming part of a spread 
which covers the entire bed, generally made of the 
same material as the canopy and window curtains. 
Everything seems put away the moment it is taken 
off, nothing is individual or characteristic of the perfect example of i.ouis XV. wall treatment 
