me the "symposium" proper, a scene of music,
merriment, and dancing, the two latter being supplied chiefly by young
girls. There was a chairman, or symposiarch, appointed by the company to
regulate the drinking; and it was his duty to mix the wine in the
"mighty bowl." From this bowl the attendants ladled the liquor into
goblets, and, with the goblets, went round and round the tables, filling
the cups of the guests.

1884. The elegance with which a dinner is served is a matter which
depends, of course, partly upon the means, but still more upon the taste
of the master and mistress of the house. It may be observed, in general,
that there should always be flowers on the table, and as they form no
item of expense, there is no reason why they should not be employed
every day.

1885. The variety in the dishes which furnish forth a modern
dinner-table, does not necessarily imply anything unwholesome, or
anything capricious. Food that is not well relished cannot be well
digested; and the appetite of the over-worked man of business, or
statesman, or of any dweller in towns, whose occupations are exciting
and exhausting, is jaded, and requires stimulation. Men and women who
are in rude health, and who have plenty of air and exercise, eat the
simplest food with relish, and consequently digest it well; but those
conditions are out of the reach of many men. They must suit their mode
of dining to their mode of living, if they cannot choose the latter. It
is in serving up food that is at once appetizing and wholesome that the
skill of the modern housewife is severely tasked; and she has scarcely a
more important duty to fulfil. It is, in fact, her particular vocation,
in virtue of which she may be said to hold the health of the family, and
of the friends of the family, in her hands from day to day. It has been
said that "the destiny of nations depends on the manner in which they
are fed;" and a great gastronomist exclaims, "Tell me what kind of food
you eat, and I will tell you what kind of man you are." The same writer
has some sentences of the same kind, which are rather hyperbolical, but
worth quoting:--"The pleasures of the table belong to all ages, to all
conditions, to all countries, and to all eras; they mingle with all
other pleasures, and remain, at last, to console us for their departure.
The discovery of a new dish confers more happiness upon humanity than
the discovery of a new star."

1886. The gastronomist from whom