Whatever may be the opinion the reader may form of this garum, of which mention has so frequently been made, and which has been alternately praised and despised by the moderns, it is certain that the most fastidious persons were madly fond of it, and that in the time of Pliny, it was so much esteemed, that its price equalled that of the most precious perfumes. “At the present day this celebrated seasoning is forgotten in Italy, but in Turkey it is still in use. The inn-keepers of Constantinople preserve in garum the cooked fish not consumed in the day.”--BOSC. HONEY. What is sweeter than honey?[XXIII-43] what is more pure,[XXIII-44] or more nourishing?[XXIII-45] It is the milk of the aged, it prolongs their existence,[XXIII-46] and when they descend into the tomb, it still serves to embalm them.[XXIII-47] Pagan antiquity ascribed the honour of the discovery of this useful substance to the Athenian Aristæus, who taught mankind to feed on it. This valuable service procured him a patent of nobility. He was made a descendant of Bacchus or Apollo.[XXIII-48] It is not necessary to say that honey was known in the east long before the rise of Athens; it is already mentioned in the first book of the holy writings.[XXIII-49] It is said that Spain owed its knowledge of this delicious aliment to Gorgor, King of the Curetes, who was polite enough to take some on the occasion of a journey which he made into that country.[XXIII-50] The Peninsula could afterwards furnish this delicacy for the tables of Rome and Italy. The Greeks esteemed honey most highly;[XXIII-51] they employed it in pastry, and in _ragoûts_;[XXIII-52] their philosopher, Pythagoras, eat nothing else with his bread, and, as he lived to be ninety years old, he recommended his disciples to follow the same _régime_.[XXIII-53] They profited by th sage’s counsel, and found themselves all the better for it.[XXIII-54] A benevolent goddess protected bees, hives, and the honeycomb. She was called Mellona, and a grateful piety offered her honey every new-year’s day.[XXIII-55] Theophrastus distinguished three kinds of honey: that which the bees extract from flowers, that which comes from the air, and lastly, the honey from reeds.[XXIII-16] We clearly perceive that he means honey, manna, and sugar. Virgil thought that a gentle dew falls on the flowers, and became immediately the prey of bees, which deposited it in their cells.[XXIII-17] Pliny has adopted the same graceful error,[XXIII-18] and even Galen himself partakes of it.[XXIII-19] The ancients caused honey to be served at the beginning of a repast;[XXIII-60] it was used in lieu of sugar in the preparation of preserves and some kinds of beverages, which will hereafter claim our attention. They preferred that of Attica,[XXIII-61] and insisted on its being thick, clear, granulated, transparent, fresh, and aromatic, with a somewhat sharp flavour.[XXIII-62] The faculty attributed to it great virtues.[XXIII-63]