elightfully to her friends and how satisfactorily to herself, there
comes a time when for the moment she can think of nothing she has not
had. All flowers seem ordinary, all food wearisome. It is for such a
day as this that this little book has been prepared. Not that new dishes
are offered in a long, fascinating series, for all startling novelties
or elaborate concoctions have been purposely eschewed: this is not a
cook-book; it makes no such ambitious claim; the possession of a good
cook-book, a supply of cooking utensils, a few canned goods and
flavouring extracts, and access to a market of ordinary capacities, have
all been taken for granted. But the ideas are intended to be practical,
the food given in season and within reasonable price, and the recipes,
whether given, as is sometimes the case, or merely alluded to as easily
to be found, are all sufficiently simple to be undertaken by a very
ordinary and inexperienced cook.

It is assumed that all hostesses are in possession of that priceless
commodity which our grandmothers called "faculty," that common-sense
which more than anything else helps one over domestic boulders; this
will suggest that if whitebait is not to be had, canned salmon is quite
within reach, and from that useful fish a toothsome dish may easily be
prepared. If pim-olas are an unheard-of relish, home-made pickles are by
no means to be despised. If ice-cream in rose forms is entirely out of
the question, raspberry ice made from one's own preserves or from the
fresh fruit in the garden is fully as delicious. To assist one who is
willing to take the second choice if she cannot have the first, a
substitute has been offered for any course which it is suspected may
prove difficult to procure in different parts of the country; an
intelligent hostess will easily be able to think of one that is even
better than the one named.

Rather elaborate menus are given that they may be adapted to one's need.
It is easier to shorten a menu than to lengthen one, and two or three
courses dropped from a company luncheon will transform it into one
suitable for home use with very little trouble. If one menu is not quite
what one wants, she can take another; if something more elaborate still
is desired than what is given already, she can take a course from some
luncheon farther on in the book; as much variety as possible has been
sought on purpose, that there may be opportunity for just this choice of
dishes.

The ide