of which Jos. Sedley partook so freely at Vauxhall, and which put a temporary stop to the carryings-on of the fascinating Miss Sharp with the susceptible Anglo-Indian. Thackeray does not tell us if this was an abbreviation of Arrack Punch. My own idea is that brandy and rum—of inferior quality—entered into it; although, as mentioned in a previous chapter, “rack” is the “Cheshyre Cheese” synonym for gin. But I should be inclined to back arrack. At all events this is one of the component parts of a _Vauxhall Punch_ of which the recipe is in my possession. A large tumbler, one wine-glass of old brandy, one ditto of old rum, one ditto of arrack, the juice of half a lemon, and a tablespoonful of sugar. Mix, strain into two small tumblers, and fill up each with boiling water. _Uncle Toby._ Here is another encouragement to the bile industry:— Rub the rind of one lemon on two lumps of sugar, put the sugar in a large tumbler with the juice of the lemon, and dissolve in one wine-glass of boiling water; then add one wine-glass of brandy, one ditto of rum, and two dittoes of hot stout; mix well, strain, and add more sugar if necessary. {113} _Victoria Punch._ Throw into a bowl one lemon cut in slices, free from pips, two ounces of sifted sugar, two wine-glasses of boiling water, one wine-glass of hot milk, one wine-glass of old rum, and one ditto of ancient brandy; keep stirring whilst adding the ingredients; strain and serve. _Yorkshire Punch._ I have not yet met this in the North Riding; but it is never too late to copy a good recipe. Rub the rinds of three lemons on a quarter of a pound of lump-sugar, and place the sugar in a bowl with the thin rind of one lemon and of one orange, the juice of four oranges and of ten lemons, six wine-glasses of calves’-feet jelly, and two quarts of boiling water. Mix thoroughly, strain, and add a pint of rum, a pint of brandy, and a bottle of orange shrub. Sweeten to taste. _Champagne Punch._ Pare two lemons very thin, and steep the peel in one pint of rum. Add a wine-glass of sherry, half a pint of brandy, the juice of four lemons, a little capillaire, as much boiling water as you may fancy—play light with the kettle, lads—sweeten to taste, and last thing of all pour in a bottle of champagne. The above will act as a restorative after a hard day’s hunting. Later in the evening the true sportsman may feel ready and willing to tackle a glass or two of the celebrated {114} _Halo Punch_, whose praises continue to be sung throughout the land. With a quarter of a pound of sugar rub off the outer rind of one lemon and two Seville oranges. Put rind and sugar into a large punch bowl with the juice and pulp; mix the sugar well with the juice and one teacupful of boiling water (just enough to melt it) and stir till cold.