are now said to
number upwards of 1,500. It is peculiar to the temperate zone,
being found neither in Lapland, nor within the tropics. The best
baking apples for early use are the Colvilles; the best for
autumn are the rennets and pearmains; and the best for winter
and spring are russets. The best table, or eating apples, are
the Margarets for early use; the Kentish codlin and summer
pearmain for summer; and for autumn, winter, or spring, the
Dowton, golden and other pippins, as the ribstone, with small
russets. As a food, the apple cannot be considered to rank high,
as more than the half of it consists of water, and the rest of
its properties are not the most nourishing. It is, however, a
useful adjunct to other kinds of food, and, when cooked, is
esteemed as slightly laxative.

ARTICHOKE (JERUSALEM) SOUP.

(_A White Soup_.)

112. INGREDIENTS.--3 slices of lean bacon or ham, 1/2 a head of celery,
1 turnip, 1 onion, 3 oz. of butter, 4 lbs. of artichokes, 1 pint of
boiling milk, or 1/2 pint of boiling cream, salt and cayenne to taste, 2
lumps of sugar, 2-1/2 quarts of white stock.

_Mode_.--Put the bacon and vegetables, which should be cut into thin
slices, into the stewpan with the butter. Braise these for 1/4 of an
hour, keeping them well stirred. Wash and pare the artichokes, and after
cutting them into thin slices, add them, with a pint of stock, to the
other ingredients. When these have gently stewed down to a smooth pulp,
put in the remainder of the stock. Stir it well, adding the seasoning,
and when it has simmered for five minutes, pass it through a strainer.
Now pour it back into the stewpan, let it again simmer five minutes,
taking care to skim it well, and stir it to the boiling milk or cream.
Serve with small sippets of bread fried in butter.

_Time_.--1 hour. _Average cost_ per quart, 1s. 2d.

_Seasonable_ from June to October.

_Sufficient_ for 8 persons.

ASPARAGUS SOUP.

I.

113. INGREDIENTS.--5 lbs. of lean beef, 3 slices of bacon, 1/2 pint of
pale ale, a few leaves of white beet, spinach, 1 cabbage lettuce, a
little mint, sorrel, and marjoram, a pint of asparagus-tops cut small,
the crust of 1 French roll, seasoning to taste, 2 quarts of water.

_Mode_.--Put the beef, cut in pieces and rolled in flour, into a
stewpan, with the bacon at the bottom; cover it close, and set it on a
slow fire, stirring it now and then till the gravy is dra