"Let the dishes be exquisitely choice, but small in number, and the wines of the first quality, each in its degree. "Let the dishes be served from the more substantial to the lighter; and from the simpler wines to those of finer bouquet. "Let the eating proceed slowly, the dinner being the last business of the day, and let the guests look upon themselves as travellers who journey together towards a common object. "Let the coffee be hot and the liqueurs be specially chosen. "Let the drawing-room to which the guests retire be large enough to permit those who cannot do without it to have a game of cards, while leaving, however, ample scope for post-prandial conversation. "Let the guests be detained by social attraction, and animated with expectation that before the evening is over there will be some further enjoyment. "Let the tea not be too strong, the toast artistically buttered, and the punch made with care. "Let the signal for departure not be given before eleven o'clock. "Let every one be in bed at midnight. "If any man has ever been a guest at a repast uniting all these conditions, he can boast of having been present at his own apotheosis; and he will have enjoyed it the less in proportion as these conditions have been forgotten or neglected." Exception perhaps may be taken to the temperature of the dining-room as given in the above injunctions, 70° to 73° Fahrenheit being a more comfortable atmospheric medium of dining where it is possible. The tea and toast and the punch may also be dispensed with to advantage, and in their stead a liqueur glass of _Curaçoa sec_ be prescribed, one of the best, as it is one of the most agreeable, digestives after a substantial repast. Game has been pronounced a delight of the table by Savarin--a food healthful, warming, savoury, and easy of digestion to young stomachs. Of small game or birds, he accords the highest place to the fig-pecker, saying that if this bird were as large as a pheasant it would be worth an acre of land. Savarin was a true sportsman, who knew his game and its proper preparation, and among the breeziest of his chapters are those relating to field sports, wherein due regard is paid to the luncheon. A portion of the fifteenth Meditation will be sufficient to show the counsellor in his hunting costume at the halt of a shooting party; he is in his happiest vein, his theme being "The Ladies." The morning has been fine, and the birds abundant. Appetite is not wanting, and at a prearranged hour a party of ladies arrive, laden with the treasures of Périgord, the triumphs of Strassburg, and the bubbles of Epernay, to assist in the repast. It is at the close of this that the chancellor becomes most eloquent and pronounces one of his most characteristic monologues: