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CALF'S HEAD.

This remove seldom appears at the table of an English gentleman; but I must give a rule for carving it, in case it should make its appearance at the table of any of my readers.

The parts most delicate in the head are the bit under the ears, next the eyes, and the side of the cheek. When you help anybody, always take care to keep the side of the skin uppermost; and put sauce over the meat of those you assist; if they like it, they will dip the meat into it themselves: it is usual to give those whom you may help a small portion of the brain, and a little bit of the tongue.

SUCKING PIG.

This dish seldom appears at table in town, as the manner of feeding pigs all round London has disgusted every body; but a little one, presented by a farmer, may be permitted to shew itself, and will give me an opportunity to describe the manner of cutting it up.

Cut off the head in the first place; then proceed from the neck to the tail, carving neatly; cut the half into quarters (the fore-quarter is the most delicate piece) and divide these quarters into small bits, and be particular in dividing the skin equally with the meat; you may find some difficulty in cutting the skin, but as it is the best part you must never neglect to help it. Never fail to add sauce and gravy.

If you split the head in two, and scatter over it plenty of salt and pepper, and send it to be devilled in the kitchen, you will find it most relishing.

TURKEY.

If you carve a turkey at the table of a nobleman, you must only cut thin slices from the breast; some persons, however, like the wing.-Mind and always give a little

of the stuffing with the meat, a little gravy or sauce, but never put the gravy over the meat; white meat must retain its colour. A turkey well managed will serve a large company.

First cut one wing and then the other, next the two legs, and divide the breast from the back. Carve the breast into several bits according to the size of the bird: in general, ladies should be helped to a smaller piece than the gentlemen, as the latter are for the most part endowed with larger appetites. The leg must be cut first in two, then divided into two pieces again; if the turkey is very large, cut the meat from the bone, as the bits will appear too big in a plate.-Observe that, in roasted fowl, the breast is the best part; in boiled fowl, the leg is preferable.

HARE AND RABBIT.

The first thing to be considered in carving the above animals, is the sharpness of your steel, as nothing appears at table presenting more difficulties in carving than hare; rabbit is not quite so troublesome, because more tender.

Mind that the servant always puts the hare on the table with the head on your left; then thrust in the point of your knife a little above the shoulder, and close to the middle bone; slice down to the bottom so as to detach the flesh from the bone; then cut the shoulder off and divide one side-fillet into about three or four pieces. When you assist your guest, add some of the stuffing, a little gravy, and offer the currant jelly. The legs of hare are in general dry and tough; but if, in consequence of the number of your party, you are necessitated to offer some, cut off some of the outer part, but never give the bone, as it would be vulgar and a breach of good manners.

Rabbit must be carved in the same manner; but as it contains no stuffing, there should be some gravy, and parsley and butter, with the liver chopped in the sauce.

The shoulder of rabbit is very delicate, and the brain is a titbit for a lady. Cut the head, therefore, in two, and help her to it.

FOWL.

In helping ladies, cut first a small bit of the breast, or from a wing, which they sometimes prefer; for as they eat little, they like to pick the bone: then another small part of the breast, as far as you can; if more be wanted, sever the leg from the body, and divide it in two; always offer the thick part first, keeping to the very last the pinion, vulgarly called the drumstick. In case of a scarcity, then divide the breast carcase from the back; cut the back in two, and offer the rump first, keeping a little for the carver if you can.

PHEASANT.

Cut the breast of the pheasant into small slices, which help immediately to the guests, that they may eat them in perfection; add a small drop of gravy, a little bread sauce, and some of the cresses they are garnished with.

PARTRIDGE.

This excellent bird may serve to display the dexterity of a host.

First stick your fork into the breast, then cut one wing close to the back, then the other, and next the two legs. The breast must be divided from the back, making in all six pieces.

Help the wing, in the first place, to the person you esteem most, but always give the leg and back to the amateurs of game. A little gravy, a little bread sauce, and some of the cress, if there be any for garnish, should be added.

GOOSE, DUCK, AND WILD DUCK.

These birds must always be carved from one end to the other. Cut small slices, and open the inside to get at some of the seasoning within; add a little gravy and some of the apple sauce. Wild duck is carved by slicing the breast in the first instance, and pouring over the gashes a few spoonsful of sauce, composed of port wine or claret, lemon juice, salt, and Cayenne pepper; dexterity in preparing which, evinces a gentlemanlike taste.

Little more is to be added on the subject of carving, although one of immense importance, as practice alone can give proficiency. The more company you entertain, the more likely are you to be an adept in the art. Were Ito write a volume on carving, and spend an infinitude of time and money in designing the situation of the bird in the dish, the manner of holding the knife, &c., I could not effect what practice would do. Suffice it, that I repeat in conclusion, that bad carving is alike inconsistent with good manners and economy, and evinces, in those who neglect it, not only a culpable disrespect to the opinion of the world, but carelessness, inaptitude, and indifference to any object of utility.

ADVICE TO COOKS.

"About the same time, he was so much displeased with the performances of a nobleman's cook, that he exclaimed with vehemence, 'I'd throw such a rascal into the river! "—Boswell's Life of Dr. Johnson.

COOKERY is an art which requires much time, intelligence, and activity, to be acquired in its perfection, Every man is not born with the qualifications necessary to constitute a good Cook. The difficulty of attaining to perfection in the art will be best demonstrated by offering a few observations on some others. Music, dancing, fencing, painting, and mechanics in general, possess professors under twenty years of age; whereas, in the first line of cooking, pre-eminence never occurs under thirty. We see daily at Concerts, and Academies, young men and women who display the greatest abilities; but in our line, nothing but the most consummate experience can elevate a man to the rank of Chief Professor. It must be admitted, that there are few good Cooks, though there are many who advance themselves as such. This disproportion of talent among them is the cause of the little respect in which they are held; if they were all provided with the necessary qualities, they would certainly be considered as artists.

What science demands more study than Cookery? You have not only, as in other arts, to satisfy the general eye, but also the individual taste of the persons who employ you; you have to attend to economy, which every one demands; to suit the taste of different persons at the same table; to surmount the difficulty of procuring things which are necessary to your work; to undergo the want of unanimity among the servants of the house; and the mortification of seeing unlimited confidence sometimes reposed in persons who are unqualified to give orders in the kitchen, without assuming a consequence, and giving themselves airs which are almost out of reason, and which frequently discourage the Cook.

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