his own eloquence, "Poor Richard," with "many a gem of purest ray
serene," encased in the homely garb of proverbial truisms. On the
subject of frugality we cannot do better than take the worthy Mentor
for our text, and from it address our remarks. A man may, if he
knows not how to save as he gets, "keep his nose all his life to the
grindstone, and die not worth a groat at last. A fat kitchen makes a
lean will."
"Many estates are spent in getting,
Since women for tea forsook spinning and knitting,
And men for punch forsook hewing and splitting."
ii. If you would be wealthy, think of saving as well as of getting.
The Indies have not made Spain rich, because her out-goes are
greater than her in-comes.
iii. Away with your expensive follies, and you will not have so much
cause to complain of hard times, heavy taxes, and chargeable
families.
iv. "What maintains one vice would bring up two children."
v. You may think, perhaps, that a little tea, or superfluities now
and then, diet a little more costly, clothes a little finer, and a
little entertainment now and then, can be no great matter; but
remember, "Many a little makes a mickle."
vi. Beware of little expenses: "A small leak will sink a great
ship," as Poor Richard says; and again, "Who dainties love, shall
beggars prove;" and moreover, "Fools make feasts and wise men eat
them."
vii. Here you are all got together to this sale of fineries and
nick-nacks. You call them goods; but if you do not take care they
will prove evils to some of you. You expect they will be sold cheap,
and perhaps they may, for less than they cost; but if you have no
occasion for them they must be dear to you.
viii. Remember what Poor Richard says, "Buy what thou hast no need
of, and ere long thou shalt sell thy necessaries."
ix. "At a great pennyworth, pause awhile." He means, perhaps, that
the cheapness is apparent only, and not real; or the bargain, by
straightening thee in thy business, may do thee more harm than good;
for in another place he says, "Many have been ruined by buying good
pennyworths."
x. "It is foolish to lay out money in the purchase of repentance;"
and yet this folly is practised every day at auctions for want of
minding the Almanack.
2612. Cash and Credit.
If you would get rich, don't deal in bill books. Credit is the
"Tempter in a new shape." Buy goods on trust, and you will purchase a
thousand articles that cash would never have dreamed of. A shilling in
the hand looks larger than ten shillings seen through the perspective
of a three months' bill. Cash is practical, while credit takes
horribly to taste and romance. Let cash buy a dinner, and you will
have a beef-steak flanked with onions. Send credit to market, and he
will return with eight pairs of woodcocks and a peck of mushrooms.
Credit believes in diamond pins and champagne suppers. Cash is more
easily satisfied. Give him three meals a day, and he doesn't care much
if two of them are made up of roasted potatoes and a little salt. Cash
is a good adviser, while credit is a good fellow to be on visiting
terms with. If you want double chins and contentment, do business with
cash.
2613. Hints upon Money Matters.
Have a supply of change in hand--shillings, sixpences, halfpence. This
will obviate the various inconveniences of keeping people at the door,
sending out at unreasonable times, and running or calling after any
inmate in the house, supposed to be better provided with "the
needful." The tradespeople with whom you regularly deal will always
give you extra change, _when_ you are making purchases or paying
bills; while those to whom you apply for it, on a sudden emergency,
may neither be willing nor able to do so. Some housekeepers object to
this arrangement, that, "as soon as five-pound notes or sovereigns are
changed, they always seem to go, without their understanding how;" but
to such persons I would humbly intimate, that this is rather the fault
of their _not getting understanding_, than any inevitable consequence
of _getting change_.
The fact is, that it is the necessity of parting with your money which
obliges you to get the larger pieces changed, and not the circumstance
of having smaller coin that _necessitates_ your parting with your
money, though it certainly facilitates your doing so when the
necessity arrives. However, as it is easier to count a few sovereigns
than many shillings, and loose money is most objectionable, it is well
to put up reserve change in small collective packets, and to replenish
the housekeeping purse from these daily or weekly, as may be most
convenient.
[DEATH DOES NOT BLOW A TRUMPET.]
2614. Save Time and Trouble.
If Money for daily expenses has to pass through the hands of a
servant, it is a time-and-trouble-saving plan to settle with her
_every_ night, and to make up her cash in hand to a certain _similar_
sum. This will prevent such puzzling calculations as the
following:
"Let me see: I gave you 10s. on Saturday, and 9d. the day before.
Was it 9d.? No, it must have been 11d., for I gave you 1s., and you
gave me 1d. out for the beggar; then there was 6s. 6d. on Monday,
and 8d. you owed me from last money; and then the 1s. 6d. your
master gave you for a parcel--you brought him 2d. back, and 3d-1/2.
out of the butcher's bill; no--_you_ had to give 3-1/2d. to the
butcher, but you came to me for the 1/2d., and I had no coppers, so
we still owe him the 1/2d.; by the way, don't forget to pay him the
next time you go. Then there's the baker--no, I paid the baker
myself, and I _think_ the housemaid paid the butter-man; but you got
in the cheese the day before, and I have a sort of recollection that
I may possibly owe you for _that_, all but a few pence you must have
had left of mine, that I told you to take from off the
chimney-piece. Well, cook, I think that's _nearly_ all! Now how do
your accounts stand?"
This the poor cook, who _is_ a cook, and _not_ a conjuror, finds it no
easy matter to discover; all that she is quite certain of is, that her
disbursements have somewhat exceeded her receipts, and being an honest
woman, though a poor one, she wishes to cheat neither her mistress nor
herself; but what with her memory and her want of it, her involved
payments, and different receipts; what she owed her mistress, and what
her mistress owes her; what she got from her master, and what was
partly settled by the housemaid; the balance from the butcher's bill,
and the intricacies of the cheese account, the poor woman is perfectly
bewildered.
She counts again and again; recapitulates her mistress's data and her
own; sums upwards, backwards, and forwards, and endeavours to explain
the differences between them; then, if she can read and write, she
brings her slate to "explain the explanation," and the united
calculations of maid and mistress, which are after all entirely
unavailing to produce a more correct account, probably consume more
time, and are expressed in more words, than would suffice to fill
another volume like the present. Two minutes' daily reckoning from a
_regular_ sum in hand would do the business effectually, and prevent
either party from being out of pocket or out of temper. Thus, for
instance, the maid has her usual sum of five shillings to account for;
she pays during the day, for:
s. d.
Bread 1 9
Beer 0 6
Vegetables and fruit 0 10
Milk 0 4
Matches 0 1
Parcel 1 0
______
Total 4 6
This is easily reckoned, even by the unlearned; the mistress enters
the items in her day-book, takes the remaining sixpence, and again
gives her servant 5s., in convenient change, to be as readily
accounted for on the succeeding day.
_Home Truths for Home Peace_; or, _Muddle Defeated._
[TIME BRINGS EVERYTHING TO THOSE WHO CAN WAIT.]
2615. Don't Run in Debt.
"Don't run in debt;"--never mind, never mind
If your clothes are faded and torn:
Mend them up, make them do; it is better by far
Than to have the heart weary and worn.
Who'll love you the more for the shape of your hat,
Or your ruff, or the tie of your shoe,
The cut of your vest, or your boots, or cravat,
If they know you're in debt for the new?
There's no comfort, I tell you, in walking the street
In fine clothes, if you know you're in debt,
And feel that, perchance, you some tradesman may meet,
Who will sneer--"They're not paid for yet."
Good friends, let me beg of you, don't run in debt;
If the chairs and the sofas are old,
They will fit your back better than any new set,
Unless they are paid for--with gold;
If the house is too small, draw the closer together,
Keep it warm with a hearty good-will;
A big one unpaid for, in all kinds of weather,
Will send to your warm heart a chill.
Don't run in debt--now, dear girls, take a hint,
if the fashions have changed since last season,
Old Nature is out in the very same tint,
And old Nature, we think, has some reason;
But just say to your friend, that you cannot afford
To spend time to keep up with the fashion;
That your purse is too light and your honour too bright,
To be tarnished with such silly passion.
Men, don't run in debt--let your friends, if they can.
Have fine houses, and feathers, and flowers:
But, unless they are paid for, be more of a man
Than to envy their sunshiny hours.
If you've money to spare, I have nothing to say--
Spend your silver and gold as you please;
But mind you, the man who his bill has to pay
Is the man who is never at ease.
Kind husbands, don't run into debt any more;
'Twill fill your wives' cup full of sorrow
To know that a neighbour may call at your door,
With a claim you must settle to-morrow
Oh! take my advice--it is good, it is true!
But, lest you may some of you doubt it,
I'll whisper a secret now, seeing 'tis you--
I have tried it, and know all about it,
_The chain of a debtor is heavy and cold.
Its links all corrosion and rust;
Gild it o'er as you will, it is never of gold,
Then spurn it aside with disgust_.
2616. Carving, Ceremonies of the Table, &c.
A dinner-table should be well laid, well lighted, and always afford a
little spare room. It is better to invite one friend less in number,
than to destroy the comfort of the whole party.
2617. The Laying out of a Table.
The laying out of a table must greatly depend upon the nature of the
dinner or supper, the taste of the host, the description of the
company, and the appliances possessed. It would be useless, therefore,
to lay down specific rules. The whiteness of the table-cloth, the
clearness of glass, the polish of plate, and the judicious
distribution of ornamental groups of fruits and flowers, are matters
deserving the utmost attention.
2618. A Sideboard.
A sideboard will greatly relieve a crowded table, upon which may be
placed many things incidental to the successive courses, until they
are required.
2619. Menu.
A bill of fare or Menu at large dinner parties, where there are
several courses, should be provided neatly inscribed upon small
tablets, and distributed about the table, that the diners may know
what there is to come.
2620. Napkins.
Napkins should be folded neatly. The French method, which is very
easy, of folding the napkin like a fan, placing it in a glass, and
spreading out the upper part, is very pleasing. But the English method
of folding is like a slipper, and placing the bread inside its folds
is convenient as well as neat.
[AS THE VIRTUE IS IN THE TREE, SUCH IS THE FRUIT.]
2621. Bread.
Bread should be cut into thick squares, the last thing after the table
is laid. If cut too early it becomes dry. A tray should he provided,
in which there should be a further supply of bread, new, stale, and
brown. For cheese, pulled bread should be provided.
2622. Carving-knives.
Carving-knives should be "put in edge" before the dinner commences,
for nothing irritates a good carver, or perplexes a bad one, more than
a knife which refuses to perform its office; and there is nothing more
annoying to the company than to see the carving-knife gliding to and
fro over the steel while the dinner is getting cold, and their
appetites are being exhausted by delay.
2623. Joints.
Joints that require carving should be set upon dishes sufficiently
large. The space of the table may be economised by setting upon small
dishes those things that do not require carving.
2624. The Carver.
The carver should have plenty of room, however closely the diners are
compelled to sit together.
2625. The Vegetables.
The vegetables, if the table is very crowded, may be placed upon the
sideboard, and handed round by those who wait upon the guests.
2626. Smaller Joints.
Geese, Turkeys, Poultry, Sucking-pigs, &c., should be CARVED BEFORE
BEING SET ON TABLE; especially in those cases where the whole or the
principal part of such dishes is likely to be consumed.
2627. Handing Round.
The carver should supply the plates, and the waiter hand them round,
instead of putting the question to each guest as to which part he
prefers, and then striving to serve him with it, to the prejudice of
others present.
2628. Ladies.
Ladies should be helped before gentlemen.
2629. Waiters.
Waiters should present dishes on the left hand; so that the diner may
help himself with his right.
2630. Wine.
Wine should be taken after the first course; and it will be found more
convenient to let the waiter serve it, than to hand the decanters
round, or to allow the guests to fill for themselves.
2631. Removal.
Waiters should be instructed to remove whatever articles upon the
table are thrown into disuse by the progress of the dinner, as soon as
they are at liberty.
2632. Finger-Bowls.
Finger-glasses, or glass bowls, filled with water, slightly scented or
not, as may be preferred, and slightly warm in winter, and iced in
summer, should be handed round.
2633. Dessert.
When the dessert is served, the wine should be set upon the table, and
the decanters passed round by the company.
2634. Fried Fish.
Fried fish should be divided into suitable slices, before the fire, as
soon as it leaves the frying-pan.
2635. Cod's Head and Shoulders.
The thick part of the back is best. It should be carved in unbroken
slices, and each solid slice should be accompanied by a bit of the
sound, from under the back-bone, or from the cheek, jaws, tongue, &c.,
of the head.
2636. Hake.
Hake, if sent to table, simply boiled, is served as cod. The better
way of dressing hake is to cut it transversely to the length into
slices about one inch in thickness. These should be fried and sent to
table garnished with parsley.
2637. Turbot.
Strike the fish-slice along the back-bone, which runs from head to
tail, and then serve square slices from the thick part, accompanying
each slice with some of the gelatinous skin of the fins and thin part,
which may be raised by laying the fish-slice flat.
2638. Brill.
Brill is served in the same manner.
2639. John Dory.
John Dory is also served in the same way. This fish has a favourite
piece on the cheek.
2640. Plaice and Flat-fish.
Plaice and flat-fish generally, are served in the same manner.
2641. Soles.
Soles, when large, may be served as turbot; but when small they should
be sliced across.
2642. Salmon.
Serve a slice of the thick with a smaller slice of the thin part.
Keep the flakes of the thick part as unbroken as possible.
2643. Mackerel.
Mackerel should be served in pieces cut through the side when they are
large. It small, they may be divided through the back-bone, and served
in halves. The shoulder part is considered the best.
2644. Haddock and Gurnet.
Haddock and Gurnet are served as directed for mackerel.
2645. Whiting.
Whiting are usually fried and curled; they should be cut in halves
down the back, and served. The shoulder-part is best.
2646. Eels.
Eels are usually cut into several pieces, either for stewing or
frying. The thick parts are considered best.
2647. Trout.
Trout, if small, are served whole; if large, they may be divided
through the back-bone and served in halves. The same applies to perch
and other smaller fresh-water fish.
2648. Pike and Jack.
Pike and Jack should be served in thick unbroken pieces taken from the
side or shoulder of the fish accompanied by a piece of the stuffing
with which these fish are usually filled.
2649. Remarks.
The _roes_ of mackerel, the _sound_ of cod, the _head_ of carp, the
_cheek_ of John Dory, the _liver_ of cod, &c., are severally
considered delicacies, though not by all persons.
2650. Saddle of Mutton.
Cut thin slices parallel with the back-bone; or slice it obliquely
from the bone to the edge.
2651. Haunch of Mutton or Venison.
Make an incision across the knuckle-end, right into the bone, and set
free the gravy. Then cut thin slices the whole length of the haunch.
Serve pieces of fat with slices of lean.
2652. Rump or Sirloin of Beef.
The undercut, called the "fillet," is exceedingly tender, and some
carvers will turn the joint and serve the fillet first, reserving the
meat on the upper part to be eaten cold. From the upper part, whether
hot or cold, the slices should be cut lengthways from top to bottom,
so that the fat and lean may be distributed in fair proportions.
2653. Ribs of Beef.
Ribs of beef are carved in the same way as the sirloin; but there is
no fillet.
2654. Round of Beef.
First cut away the irregular outside pieces, to obtain a good surface,
and then serve thin and broad slices. Serve bits of the udder fat with
the lean.
2655. Brisket of Beef.
Cut off the outside, and then serve long slices, cut the whole length
of the bones.
2656. Shoulder of Mutton.
Make a cross incision on the fore-part of the shoulder, and serve
slices from both sides of the incision; then cut slices lengthways
along the shoulder-blade. Cut fat slices from the round corner.
Another and more economical way, is to cut slices from the under part
when first brought to table. The joint then presents a better
appearance when cold.
2657. Leg of Mutton.
Make an incision across the centre, and serve from the knuckle-side,
or the opposite, according to choice. The knuckle-side will be
generally found well done, and the opposite side underdone, for those
who prefer it.
2658. Loin of Mutton.
Cut down between the bones, into chops.
2659. Quarter of Lamb.
Lay the knife flat, and cut off the shoulder. The proper point for
incision will be indicated by the position of the shoulder. A little
lemon juice may be squeezed over the divided part, and a little
Cayenne pepper, and the shoulder transferred to another dish, for the
opposite end of the table. Next separate the _brisket_, or short
bones, by cutting lengthways along the breast. Then serve from either
part as desired.
[TRAVEL NORTH, OR SOUTH, OR EAST, OR WEST...]
2660. Loin of Veal.
Loin of veal may be cut across through the thick part; or slices may
be taken in the direction of the bones. Serve pieces of kidney and fat
with each plate.
2601. Fillet of Veal.
Fillet of veal is carved as a round of beef. The browned bits of the
outside are esteemed, and should be shared among the company, with
bits of fat, and of forcemeat from the centre.
2662. Breast of Veal.
Breast of veal should be divided by cutting the BRISKET, or soft
bones, the same as the basket of lamb. When the sweetbread comes to
table with the breast, a small piece should be served on each plate.
2663. Sucking-Pig.
Sucking-pig should be sent to table in two halves, the head divided,
and one half laid at each end of the dish. The shoulders and legs
should be taken off by the obvious method of laying the knife under
them, and lifting the joint out. They may be served whole, or divided.
The ribs are easily divided, and are considered choice.
2664. Tongues.
Tongues are cut across in tolerably thick slices.
2665. Calves' Heads.
Calves' heads are carved across the cheek, and pieces taken from any
part that is come-at-able. The tongue and brain sauce are served
separate.
2666. Knuckle of Veal.
Knuckle of veal is carved by cutting off the outside pieces, and then
obtaining good slices, and apportioning the fat to the lean, adding
bits of the sinew that lie around the joint.
2667. Leg of Pork.
Leg of pork is carved as a ham, but in thicker slices; when stuffed,
the stuffing must be sought for under the skin at the large end.
2668. Loin of Pork.
Loin of pork is carved the same as a loin of mutton.
2669. Spare-rib of Pork.
Spare-rib of pork is carved by separating the chops, which should
previously have been jointed. Cut as far as the joint, then return the
knife to the point of the bones, and press over, to disclose the
joint, which may then be relieved with the point of the knife.
2670. Hams.
Hams are cut in very thin slices from the knuckle to the blade.
2671. Pheasants.
Carve the breast in slices. Then take off the legs and wings.
2672. Fowls.
Fix the fork firmly into the breast, then slip the knife under the
legs, and lay it over and dis-joint; detach the wings in the same
manner. Do the same on both sides, The smaller bones require a little
practice, and it would be well to watch the operations of a good
carver. When the merry-thought has been removed (which it may be by
slipping the knife through at the point of the breast), and the
neck-bones drawn out, the trunk may be turned over, and the knife
thrust through the back-bone.
2673. Partridges.
Partridges are best carved by cutting off the breast, and then
dividing it. But for more economical carving, the wings may be cut
with a small breast slice attached.
2674. Woodcocks.
Woodcocks may be cut right through the centre, from head to tail.
Serve with each portion a piece of the toast upon which they come to
table.
2675. Pigeons.
Pigeons may be carved as woodcocks, or as partridges.
2676. Snipes.
Snipes may be carved the same as woodcocks.
2677. Turkey.
Cut slices from each side of the breast down, to the ribs; the legs
may then be removed, and the thighs divided from the drumsticks, which
are generally tough; but the pinions of the wing are very good, and
the white part of the wing is preferred by many to the breast. The
stuffing is usually put in the breast; but when truffles, mushrooms,
or oysters are put into the body, an opening must be made into it by
cutting through the apron.
2678. Goose.
The apron must be cut off in a circular direction, when a glass of
port wine, mixed with a teaspoonful of mustard, may be poured into the
body or not. Some of the stuffing should then be drawn out, and, the
neck of the goose being turned a little towards the carver, the flesh
of the breast should be sliced on each side of the bone. The wings may
then be taken off, then the legs. The other parts are carved the same
as a fowl.
[A MAN'S OWN HOSE IS STILL THE BEST.]
2679. Ducks.
Ducks may be carved, when large, the same as geese; but when young,
like chickens. The thigh joints, however, lie much closer into the
trunk than those of fowls.
2680. Hares.
Hares should be placed with their heads to the left of the carver.
Slices may be taken down the whole length of the back; the legs,
which, next to the back, are considered the best eating, may then be
taken off, and the flesh divided from or served upon them, after the
small bones have been parted from the thighs. The shoulders, which are
not much esteemed, though sometimes liked by sportsmen, may be taken
off by passing the knife between the joint and the trunk. When a hare
is young, the back is sometimes divided at the joints into three or
four parts, after being freed from the ribs and under-skin.
2681. Remarks.
Sufficient general instructions are here given to enable the carver,
by observation and practice, to acquit himself well. The art of
carving does not consist merely in dissecting the joints sent to
table, but in the judicious and economical distribution of them, and
the grace and neatness with which this distribution is effected. Every
dish ahould be sent to table properly garnished (where needed), and
the carver should preserve the neatness of the arrangement as much as
possible.
2682. Dyeing.