This is the menu:
| Clear Tomato Soup, |
| Baked Shad, Bermuda Potatoes, |
| Roast Spring Lamb, Creamed Onions, |
| Orange Halves, |
| Chicken Croquettes, Celery Salad, |
| Neapolitan Ice Cream, Sponge Cake, |
| Chocolate. |
Cap and Bells Luncheon for April First.
For an April fool luncheon write your invitations in red ink on dunce caps, cut out of yellow paper and seal with red seal. Call your luncheon a "Cap and Bells" or "Harlequin" luncheon, as you prefer. Use bowls of red and yellow tulips, or red carnations, in yellow bowls. Rustic wall pockets with pussy willows, tied with pale green ribbon, are delightful April decorations. When the guests assemble give them snapping bon bons which make paper caps. Let them wear these caps to the dining-room. Do not put names on the guest cards; let each draw a card from a dunce cap. Have the card clowns cut from water-color paper and a suitable quotation and a number on each one. This number marks the order of procedure to the dining-room and the privilege of choosing seats. In this way no one can regard the card quotation as offensively personal. If you wish an "April Fool" menu, serve it as a buffet luncheon before going to the table. You can find imitation dishes of every sort at the caterer's.
Over the round dining table suspend a hoop wound with smilax or red and yellow ribbon. From this hoop hang tiny bells by invisible wires. A Japanese "windbell" is especially suitable. It consists of pieces of metal of odd shapes so suspended that they strike in the wind. Light your table by red candles with yellow dunce cap shades. In the center of the table have a clown or "Pierrot" in costume of red with large yellow dots, driving toy geese by red and yellow ribbons. These geese may be made of water-color paper and filled with salted almonds and bon bons. At each plate have a "fool's stick" or wand. This is made by winding a short stick with red and yellow ribbon, the ends of which are fastened at the top with a gilt-headed tack, and tiny bells are fastened to the ends of the ribbons. Use maidenhair ferns at the base of the center piece and the candlesticks to give a touch of green. Serve:
| Clam Bouillon with Alphabet Crackers, |
| Celery Curls, Radishes, |
| Salted Almonds, Lobster Patties, |
| Bread and Butter Sandwiches, |
| Cucumber Jelly, Creamed Peas, |
| Squab on Squares of Hominy in Wreath of Cress, |
| New Potatoes with Parsley, |
| Wild Grape Jelly, Mint Ice, |
| Spring Salad of Sliced Cucumbers, |
| Tomatoes, Radishes in Lettuce Cups, |
| Cheese Straws, |
| Vanilla Ice Cream in Cone Shape with Large Strawberry |
| Tipped with Whipped Cream on Top and Ring |
| of Fresh Strawberries at the Base. |
Decoration Day Luncheon.
This pretty luncheon combines two features—it can be given on Decoration Day, and also as a bon voyage luncheon. Have bands of red, white and blue ribbon radiate from the center of the table to each plate, and a large cutglass bowl filled with white flowers, roses, hyacinths and narcissi and ferns stand in the center. Before each plate have a tiny ship in full sail, the name of the guest written in gilt on the silk sail. The favor for the guest of honor might be a bon bon box made in imitation of a shawl strap. Inside have a tiny silk flag.
Red and white should be carried out in the menu. Have a white soup with whipped cream. The salmon salad served in white paper boats with tiny American flags sticking in the prow. The ices frozen in form of flags. The cakes red, white and violet icing.