ing chamber from
pastures more remote than those of Terracina, and the sauce served with
it was simply fried onions. In short, my dish was beefsteak and onions,
and very bad at that. So in despair I fell back upon the trusty British
chop."

As Van der Roet ceased speaking another guest entered the room, and he
and Sir John listened attentively while the new-comer gave his order.
There was no mistaking the Colonel's strident voice. "Now, look here! I
want a chop underdone, underdone, you understand, with a potato, and a
small glass of Scotch whisky, and I'll sit here."

"The Colonel, by Jove," said Sir John; "I expect he's been
restaurant-hunting too."

"Hallo!" said the Colonel, as he recognised the other two, "I never
thought I should meet you here: fact is, I've been reading about
agricultural depression' and how it is the duty of everybody to eat
chops so as to encourage the mutton trade, and that sort of thing."

"Oh, Colonel, Colonel," said Van der Roet. "You know you've been
hungering after the cookery of Italy, and trying to find a genuine
Italian lunch, and have failed, just as Sir John and I failed, and have
come here in despair. But never mind, just wait for a year or so, until
the 'Cook's Decameron' has had a fair run for its money, and then you'll
find you'll fare as well at the ordinary Italian restaurant as you did
at the 'Laurestinas,' and that's saying a good deal."

PART II--RECIPES

Sauces

As the three chief foundation sauces in cookery, Espagnole or brown
sauce, Velute or white sauce, and Bechamel, are alluded to so often in
these pages, it will be well to give simple Italian recipes for them.

Australian wines may be used in all recipes where wine is mentioned:
Harvest Burgundy for red, and Chasselas for Chablis.

No. 1. Espagnole, or Brown Sauce

The chief ingredient of this useful sauce is good stock, to which add
any remnants and bones of fowl or game. Butter the bottom of a stewpan
with at least two ounces of butter, and in it put slices of lean
veal, ham, bacon, cuttings of beef, fowl, or game trimmings, three
peppercorns, mushroom trimmings, a tomato, a carrot and a turnip cut up,
an onion stuck with two cloves, a bay leaf, a sprig of thyme, parsley
and marjoram. Put the lid on the stewpan and braize well for fifteen
minutes, then stir in a tablespoonful of flour, and pour in a quarter
pint of good boiling stock and boil very gently for fifteen minutes,
then st