ANCIENT FOLLIES OF THE TABLE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2118, 27 September 1894, Page 42

ANCIENT FOLLIES OF THE TABLE.

M b.as ueen said in explanation of the bills 61 |firfi of the ancient Romans that they were prescribed by the family physicians, it being difficult to understand otherwise the Mpglingof ordinary articles of food with substances cow considered as medicines, except on the supposition that the latter were" intended to correct the possible ill effects of the former. The following is one of the singular recipes that have come down to n» through the dark ages : " Bruise in a mortar parsley seed, dried pennyroyal, dried mint, gfpger, coriander, stoned raisins, with honey, viuegar, oil, and wine. Put in a stewpan with three crußts of bread, the flesh of a pullet, yegtlne, cheese, pine kernels, small onions nJificod fine, and cucumbers. Four soup $9* the mixture and serve in a stewpan, with wow." It ie to be presumed '.tfofc the ingredients required for it had been prerlouily cooked. Dormice, a delicacy Jjfyjbly appreciated in ancient Rome, were ;££rved with poppies and honey, • A favourite •^Jlsh of Adrian and Alexander Servius was jflMJide of pheaeant and woodcock cooked with , j* frtfA spw'« hock and adder, a bread pud[Sitisfiuajxtt carved ovar it- Earns sacnliaji

facts are gleaned from anoipnt writer* who treat of cooking and of eatables. From these sources we learn that saucepans were tinned before the time of Pliny; that it wa* the habit of certain persons to take a glass of bitter before breakfast; that bran wfts eaten with mustard and honey, and that soused pig's feet asd he?d were kaown to the Romans, though it is uacertain whether they carried a knowledge of this dish icto Britain, or learned it there. Asparagus was so sufl.cessfully cultivated in anolent Italy, it appears, that three stalki weighed a pound. We are also informed that the Bomans always insisted on having their fish fresh — an exoellent quality — and when it was possible threw them alive into boiling water. 4.8 soon as drawn from the sea they were taken to Rome by swift couriers, before whose galloping horses everybody was compelled to get out of the way. Citizens of the United States living inland and off the lines of railroad would probably be delighted to have this ancient custom revived.

That the Egyptians drank hard because their first dish at supper was bailed cabbage, served probably with salt meat, is perhaps not more singular than that the Germans drink hard because they indulge freely in raw ham, boiled sausages, and sauerkraut, their eating being a stimulant to their drinking and vice versa. In cold countries and in the tropics food and drink are generally accommodated to the peculiarities of the climate, which dees not, however, explain why the Romans, liviag in a semi-tropical region, indulged in *uoh a heavy diet and drank such heady wine*. A slight knowledge o£ Sygiene would *eem to have prescribed a moderate use ef pork, but this wai one of their standard dishes, quantity of food served was something astonishing. Jullub Caesar, when he gave his triumphal feast, had three tons of lampreys served at his table, and when Hortensluß passed away to a world where gourmandising is unknown, he left behind, as being inconvenient to take along with him, iO.OOO pipes of those strong wines, seasoned with asafetida and other abominations, a single glass of which would drive a modern wine-drinker crazy. Daring the dark ages, as regards eating, there was a return to the habits of the primitive man. Food was scarce and supplied by chance, and men gorged as gorges the anaconda, lying dormant after an excess of uourish ment often eaten without cooking. For 1000 years the recipes of Apicius remained hidden in a musty manusoript, unknown except to a few monks, whose business it was to copy 'and illuminate ancient documents. With the Renaissance came a revival *oi the spirit of ancient Rome, and there was disseminated a knowledge of its history, its art, its literature, and also of its follies and extravagance*. The former were imitated and served as an inspiration to modern genius. The latter were less followed, the taste of rich and poor alike being somewhat less extravagant, and the means of luxurious living not always easily attainable. In the seventeenth century cooking had arrived at nearly the perfection it has in these days, at least in France, but neither there nor elsewhere did it occur then, nor has it occurred since, to mix medicines with food, that they might serve at the same time as seasoning and as remedies for excesses of the table. If it was desired that food should be hygienic, this obj6ot has been accomplished usually by more reasonable methods.