Fra Bonvesino da Riva, who lived in the town of Legnano,
First treated of the Courtesies for the Table.
Of the Fifty Courtesies which should be observed at the board
Fra Bonvesino da Riva now speaks afresh.[14] 4
The first is this: that, when thou art at table,
Thou think first of the poor and needy;
For, when thou feedest the poor, thou feedest thy Lord,
Who will feed thee, after thy death, in the eternal bliss. 8
The second Courtesy. If thou offerest water for the hands,
Offer it neatly: see thou be not rude.
Offer enough water, not too much, when it is summer-time:
In winter, for the cold, in small quantity. 12
The third Courtesy is—Be not too quick
To run without a word to sit down at the board.
If any one invites thee to a wedding,[15] before thou art seated,
Take not for thyself a place from which thou wouldst be turned out. 16
The next is—Before thou takest the food prepared,
See that it be signed [with the cross] by thyself or thy better.
Too greedy and churlish is he, and he offends against Christ,
Who looks about at others, and signs not his dish.[16] 20
The fifth Courtesy. Sit properly at the board,
Courteous, well-dressed, cheerful, and obliging and fresh.
Thou must not sit anxious, nor dismal, nor lolling,
Nor with thy legs crossed, nor awry, nor leaning forward. 24
The sixth Courtesy. When people are at a pause,
Be careful not to lean forward on the laid-out table.
He who uses the table as a prop, that man is not courteous,
When he tilts his legs upon it, or stretches out his arms along it. 28
The seventh Courtesy is—For all people
Not to eat too much nor little, but temperately.
That man, whoever he may be, who eats too much or little,
I see not what good it can be to his soul or his body. 32
The eighth Courtesy is—So may God favour us,
Fill not thy mouth too much, nor eat in too great a hurry.
The glutton who eats in a hurry, and who eats with his mouth stuffed,
If he were addressed, he scarcely answers you. 36
The ninth Courtesy is—To speak little,
And stick to that which one has set-to at doing;
For a man, as long as he is eating, if he has the habit of talking
too much,
Scraps may often spurt out of his mouth. 40
The tenth Courtesy is—When thou art thirsty,
First swallow down thy food, and wipe thy mouth, and drink.
The glutton who drinks in a hurry, before he has emptied his gullet,
Makes himself disagreeable to the other who is drinking in his
company. 44
And the eleventh is this: Do not offer the cup to another
When he can himself reach it, unless he asks thee for it.
Let every man take the cup when he pleases;
And, when he has drunk, he should set it down quietly. 48
The twelfth is this: When thou hast to take the cup,
Hold it with both hands, and wipe thy mouth well.
With one [hand] it cannot well be held properly:
In order that the wine be not spilled, thou must drink using both
hands. 52
The thirteenth is this: If even thou dost not want to drink,
If anybody offers thee the cup, thou must always accept it.
When thou hast accepted it, thou mayst very soon set it down,
Or else offer it to another who is in company with thee. 56
The next that follows is this: When thou art at entertainments
Where there is good wine on the board, see that thou get not drunk.
He who gets mad-drunk offends in three ways:
He harms his body and his soul, and loses the wine which he consumes. 60
The fifteenth is this: If any one arrives,
Rise not up from the board unless there be great reason therefor.
As long as thou eatest at the board, thou shouldst not then move
For the sake of making much of those who may come in to thee. 64
The sixteenth next in good sooth.
Suck not with the mouth when thou eatest with a spoon.[17]
He acts like a beast who sucks with a spoon:
Therefore whoever has this habit does well in ridding himself of it. 68
The seventeenth afterwards is this: When thou dost sneeze,
Or if a cough seizes thee, mind thy lips:
Turn aside, and reflect that that is courtesy,
So that no saliva may get on the table. 72
The eighteenth is this: When a man feels himself quite comfortable,
Let him not leave bread over after the victuals.[18]
He who has a taste for meat, or for eggs, or for cheese,
Even though he should have a residue, he should not on that account
waste it. 76
The nineteenth is this: Blame not the dishes
When thou art at entertainments, but say that they are all good.
I have detected many men erewhile in this vile habit,
Saying ‘This is ill cooked,’ or ‘this is ill salted.’ 80
And the twentieth is this: Attend to thine own sops;
Peer not into those of others, unless perchance to apprize
The attendant if anything is wanting. He must look well all round:
Things would go much amiss if he were not to attend.[19] 84
The twenty-first is this: Do not poke about everywhere,
When thou hast meat, or eggs, or some such dish.
He who turns and pokes about on the platter, searching,[20]
Is unpleasant, and annoys his companion at dinner. 88
The twenty-second is this: Do not behave rudely.
If thou art eating from one loaf in common with any one,
Cut the loaf as it comes, do not go cutting all about;
Do not go cutting one part and then another, if thou wouldst not be
uncouth. 92
The twenty-third. Thou must not dip bread into wine
If Fra Bonvesino has to drink out of the same bowl with thee.
He who _will_ fish in the wine, drinking in one bowl with me,
I for my own liking, if so I could, would not drink with him. 96
The twenty-fourth is—Set not down right before thy companion
Either pan or pot, unless there be great reason therefor.
If thou wantest to introduce either pan or pot,
Thou must set it down at thine own side, before thyself. 100
The twenty-fifth is—One who may be eating from a platter with women,
The meat has to be carved for himself and for them.
The man must be more attentive, more prompt in honouring,
Than the woman, in reason, has to reciprocate. 104
The twenty-sixth is this: Count it as a great kindness
When thy good friend eats at thy table.
If thou carvest meat, or fish, or other good viands,
Thou must choose of the best part for him. 108
The twenty-seventh is this: Thou must not overmuch press
Thy friend in thy house to drink or to eat.
Thou must receive thy friend well, and make him welcome,
And heartily give him plenty to eat and enjoy himself with. 112
The twenty-eighth is this: Dining with a great man,
Abstain from eating so long as he is drinking.
Dining with a Bishop, so long as he is drinking from the cup,
Right usage requires thou shouldst not be chewing with the mouth. 116
The twenty-ninth is this: If a great man is beside thee,
Thou must not drink at the same time with him, but give him precedence.
Who may be beside a Bishop, so long as he is drinking
Or pouring out, must not raise his bowl. 120
And the thirtieth is this: He who serves, let him be cleanly.
Let him not make in presence [of the guests] any spitting or nastiness:
To a man as long as he is eating, this is all the more offensive.
He who serves at an entertainment cannot be too nice. 124
Next after the thirtieth is this: Every courteous donzel[21]
Who wants to wipe his nose, let him embellish himself with a cloth.
He who eats, or who is serving, must not blow through the fingers.
Be so obliging as to clean yourselves with the foot-cloths.[22] 128
The next that comes is this: Let thy hands be clean.
Thou must not put either thy fingers into thine ears, or thy hands
on thy head.
The man who is eating must not be cleaning
By scraping with his fingers at any foul part. 132
The third after the thirtieth. Stroke not with hands,
As long as thou eatest at the board, cat or dog.
A courteous man is not warranted in stroking brutes
With the hands with which he touches the dishes. 136
The next is—As long as thou art eating with men of breeding,
Put not thy fingers into thy mouth to pick thy teeth.
He who sticks his fingers in his mouth, before he has done eating,
Eats not, with my good-will, on the platter with me. 140
The fifth after the thirtieth. Thou must not lick thy fingers.
He who thrusts his fingers into his mouth cleans them nastily.
That man who thrusts into his mouth his besmeared fingers,
His fingers are none the cleaner, but rather the nastier. 144
The sixth Courtesy after the thirtieth.
If thou hast occasion to speak, speak not with thy mouth full.
He who speaks, and he who answers, if he has his mouth full,
Scarcely can he chop out a word. 148
After this comes this other: As long as thy companion
Has the bowl to his mouth, ask him no questions
If thou wouldst address him: of this I give thee notice.
Disturb him not: pause until he has drunk. 152
The thirty-eighth is this: Tell no bad news,
In order that those who are with thee may not eat out of spirits.
As long as the others are eating, give no painful news;
But keep silence, or else speak in cheerful terms. 156
The next that follows is this: If thou art eating with others,
Make no uproar or disturbance, even though thou shouldst have
reason therefor.
If any of thy companions should transgress, pass it by till the
time comes,
So that those who are with thee may not be put out. 160
The next is—If the pain of any ill-health seizes thee,
Keep down thy distress as much as thou canst.
If thou feelest ill at the board, show not the pain,
That thou mayst not cause discomfort to those who are eating along
with thee. 164
After that comes this other: Shouldst thou see in the viands
Any disagreeable thing, tell it not to the others.
Seeing in the viands either a fly or any uncleanliness,
Keep silence, that they may not feel disgust, eating at the board. 168
The next is—If thou bringest dishes to the board in serving,
Thou must keep thy thumbs on the rim of the dish.
If thou takest hold with the thumb on the rim of the dishes,
Thou canst set them down in their place without any one else to
help thee. 172
The third after the fortieth is—If thou offerest the cup,
Never touch with the thumb the upper edge of the bowl.
Hold the bowl at the under end, and present it with one hand:
He who holds it otherwise may be called boorish. 176
The fourth after the fortieth is—hear who will—
Neither frying-pan nor dishes nor bowl should be overfilled.
Measure and moderation should be in all things that are:
He who should transcend this will not have done courtesy. 180
The next which follows is this: Keep thy spoon,
If thy plate is removed for the adding of some viands.
If the spoon is in the plate, it puts out the helper.
In all courtesies he does well who is heedful.[23] 184
The next is this: If thou art eating with a spoon,
Thou must not stuff too much bread into the victuals.
He who lays it on thick upon the cooked meats,
Is distasteful to those who are eating beside him. 188
The next that follows is this: If thy friend is with thee,
As long as he eats at the board, always keep up with him.
If thou perchance wert to leave off, and he were not yet satisfied,
Maybe he also would then leave off through bashfulness. 192
The next is—Dining with others by some invitation,
Put not back thy knife into the sheath before the time:
Deposit not thy knife ere thy companion.
Perhaps something else is coming to table which thou dost not
reckon for. 196
The succeeding Courtesy is—When thou hast eaten,
So do as that Jesus Christ be glorified therein.
He who receives service from any that obeys,[24]
If he thanks him not, is too ungrateful. 200
The fiftieth for the last.
Wash hands, then drink of the good and choice wine.[25]
After the meal, the hands may be a little washed,
And cleansed from grease and impurity. 204
[Sidenote: SUMMARY OF BONVICINO.]
As far as I know (though I cannot affect to speak with authority) this
poem by Fra Bonvicino, and those by Francesco da Barberino of which we
shall next take cognisance, are considerably the oldest still extant
Courtesy-Books (expressly to be so termed) of Christianized Europe;[26]
except one, partly coming under the same definition, which has been
mentioned to me by a well-read friend, Dr Heimann (of University
College), but of which I have no direct personal knowledge.[27] This
also, though written in the German language, is the production of an
Italian. It is entitled _Der Wälsche Gast_ (_the Italian Guest_), and
dates about 1210. The author’s name is given as Tomasin von Zirclaria,
born in Friuli. The book supplies various rules of etiquette, in a very
serious and well-intentioned tone, as I am informed.—Fra Bonvicino would,
on the ground of his antiquity alone, be well deserving of study. His
precepts moreover (with comparatively few exceptions) cannot even yet be
called obsolete, though some of them are unsophisticated to the extent of
being superfluous. In order that the reader may see in one _coup d’œil_
the whole of this curious old monument I subjoin a classified abridgment
of the injunctions:—