Soyer's Culinary Campaign: Being Historical Reminiscences of the Late War.: With The Plain Art of Cookery for Military and Civil InstitutionsSoyer, Alexis
History
Soyer's Culinary Campaign: Being Historical Reminiscences of the Late War.: With The Plain Art of Cookery for Military and Civil Institutions
Soyer, Alexis
Cooking for military personnel; Crimean War, 1853-1856
We then started, the Pacha taking my hand, preceded by six men, bearing
five large lanterns, and a glass one with three bougies in it. Behind
came his suite, composed of about ten gentlemen; next, the chiboukshis
and the horses. Mason, my man, was of course close to me to interpret
what the Pacha said, which, however, was of no great importance. Our
brilliant _cortége_ slowly wended its way through the dense crowd at
lower Scutari. Every one stopped and bowed respectfully to the Pacha.
Still holding my hand, he presented me to the assembled crowd. My
dragoman here observed, “By seeing the Pacha on foot, and holding you by
the hand, all are aware you must be a high personage, and a respected
friend of his excellency.” Hearing this, and seeing the soldiers at the
various stations go through their military evolutions as we stopped
before them, I really began to fancy I was a great man. Thanks to my
common sense, I recollected the humble part I had to play on life’s
great stage, and could I at the time have obtained possession of my left
hand (which my illustrious friend had retained in his own from his door
to the spot where we were then standing, a distance of more than two
miles), I should have shaken hands with myself, exclaiming, in the words
of Shakespeare, “Richard’s--no! Soyer’s himself again!”
This was indeed a splendid soirée, and could I spare space, the
extraordinary scenes I witnessed while going the rounds of magisterial
duty with the Pacha would of themselves make a very interesting chapter.
Our progress came to an end at a confectioner’s shop, the largest and
principal one in Scutari. Here sherbet, coffee and chibouques, iced
lemonade, sweets, and all kinds of fruit in season, were handed to us,
as we sat upon the divans in open view to the public, a great crowd
having been attracted to the spot.
Numbers entered and saluted the Pacha, and retired. His pachaship having
inquired if I would take anything else, Mr. Mason, replied in the
negative. He then said that he was obliged to remain out all night on
his magisterial duty, and that he wished me the repose of the dead till
morning.
In return for this lively desire, I wished him the night of the living,
and we parted. Two lantern-chibougies preceded us, by his order; our
horses followed; and about an hour after, we dismissed our
Jack-o’-lanterns with rather a comfortable bacshish.
It was striking three, and the sentry refused to let Mason enter the
Barrack Hospital, where he was quartered. I offered him a lodging at my
house, which he accepted. Though very late, we arrived in time to scare
two thieves away over the garden wall; and in stumbling over a basket,
we perceived their booty consisted of only a few cherries and
mulberries, nothing being deranged or stolen from the house.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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