and therefore are very disgusting at first to us _Europeans_: on the contrary, our fruits appear insipid to them, for want of odour. There are a thousand instances of things, would we recollect them all, which though disagreeable to taste are commonly assumed into our viands; indeed, _custom_ alone reconciles and adopts sauces which are even nauseous to the palate. _Latinus Latinius_ therefore very rashly and absurdly blames _Apicius_, on account of certain preparations which to him, forsooth, were disrelishing.' [58] In short it is a known maxim, that _de gustibus non est disputandum_; And so Horace to the same purpose: 'Tres mihi convivæ prope dissentire videntur, Poscentes vario multum diversa palato. Quid dem? quid non dem? renuis tu quod jubet alter. Quod petis, id sane est invisum acidumque duobus.' Hor. II. Epist. ii. And our Roll sufficiently verifies the old observation of Martial--_ingeniosa gula est_. [Addenda: after _ingeniosa gula est_, add, 'The _Italians_ now eat many things which we think perfect carrion. _Ray_, Trav. p. 362. 406. The _French_ eat frogs and snails. The _Tartars_ feast on horse-flesh, the _Chinese_ on dogs, and meer _Savages_ eat every thing. _Goldsmith_, Hist. of the Earth, &c. II. p. 347, 348. 395. III. p. 297. IV. p. 112. 121, &c.'] Our Cooks again had great regard to the eye, as well as the taste, in their compositions; _flourishing_ and _strewing_ are not only common, but even leaves of trees gilded, or silvered, are used for ornamenting messes, see No. 175 [59]. As to colours, which perhaps would chiefly take place in suttleties, blood boiled and fried (which seems to be something singular) was used for dying black, 13. 141. saffron for yellow, and sanders for red [60]. Alkenet is also used for colouring [61], and mulberries [62]; amydon makes white, 68; and turnesole [63] _pownas_ there, but what this colour is the Editor professes not to know, unless it be intended for another kind of yellow, and we should read _jownas_, for _jaulnas_, orange-tawney. It was for the purpose of gratifying the sight that _sotiltees_ were introduced at the more solemn feasts. Rabelais has comfits of an hundred colours.