What causes this curious decomposition of preserved provisions is not known. In tinned meats, at all events, it cannot be ordinary putrefaction, for this cannot occur without air, and the tins are air-tight. It is probably due to organisms, but this is uncertain.
This form of decomposition of meat cannot be told by the flavour of the provisions; and its deleterious effects cannot be destroyed by boiling. There is no way to prevent it save by buying preserved provisions which have not been kept for long.
AN AFTERNOON “BOOK PARTY.”
hough book parties are not very new, they are not, I think, so general but that the idea may be a new one to some readers of The Girl’s Own Paper, and if they have not yet been at one, they may be glad to have some suggestions on the subject. I think these book afternoons certainly give a good deal of amusement to the participants without trouble or appreciable expense to the giver. For the benefit of such as may feel inclined to entertain their friends in this way, here is the account of an afternoon party to which I was invited a few weeks back. These gatherings are, I might say, most suitable for young people; but though it is a long time since I could class myself amongst the young, I really enjoyed the merry afternoon we had. Our invitations were for afternoon tea at 4.30, but in the corner was written, “Book Party.” By this it was understood that every guest should symbolise some book, not necessarily by dress, but by wearing some emblem or motto that would give the name of the book selected.
The hostess provided as many cards and pencils as there were guests. These were plain correspondence cards which had been decorated with pretty or comic designs at the top by the daughter of the house. Each visitor had a card with pencil given to him or to her on arrival which was to have the titles and names of the other “books” present written on it. It need hardly be said that many mistakes are always made, while in some cases the emblems chosen are so remote that it is hardly possible to divine the meaning.
A few of the books represented, and the symbols used, will best explain this, and may also help any girls who are inclined to inaugurate an entertainment of this kind.
On the occasion of which I am writing the host and hostess said they, together, named a book, though they wore no badge or mark. Of course, nearly all guessed that they were Wilkie Collins’s Man and Wife. A young lady came in white to represent The Woman in White, while a lady in a silk dress and hat was meant for Black’s In Silk Attire. Then a gentleman wore the hostess’s visiting-card for Our Mutual Friend. A lady wore the sign “Gemini” in her hat for Sarah Grand’s Heavenly Twins. A lucky penny fastened on the shoulder showing the head with “I win” below it, and a second penny showing the reverse side, and under that “you lose,” stood for Bound to Win. Then 1o0n0e0, written on a card, and worn in a hat, was to be read One in a Thousand, while some coins on a string signified Hard Cash. A bow of orange and green ribbon gave Henty’s book Orange and Green. A neat-looking girl wore a cravat with a piece of the lace hanging from it for Never too Late to Mend, while another young girl had the word “stood” stuck in her hat for Misunderstood. Some large white wings in a hat gave Black’s novel of that name. A little sketch of a child with eyes shut and mouth wide open was for Great Expectations. A lad with N & S on the side of his jacket meant to represent A Tale of Two Cities. The word wedding, written in red ink, was for Jephson’s Pink Wedding, and the musical notation of a chime stood for The Lay of the Bell. The queen of hearts out of a pack of cards was worn by a gentleman to represent Wilkie Collins’s novel of that name, while “no credit,” stuck in a hat, was meant for James Payn’s For Cash Only. A girl wore her mother’s photograph for Grace Aguilar’s Home Influence. Heartsease, yellow aster, and other flowers that name books, also small pictures of “Pair of Blue Eyes,” “Windsor Castle,” “Old St. Paul’s,” and others. There were also some books of more serious character, such as the Times Encyclopædia; the twenty-five volumes were marked on a belt. Sir J. Lubbock’s Ants, Bees, and Wasps also found a representative. It is easy to find an endless variety of book names that one can symbolise in one way or another, but works of fiction lend themselves the most easily.
On the particular afternoon of which I am writing we were all occupied with our cards while tea was being handed. When all seemed to have finished writing, the hostess took all the cards, and amidst much laughter the names of the books were read out from each card, and a prize awarded to the owner of the card with the most correct guesses on it, and a second prize was given to the one who was least successful—the “duffer’s prize” it was called. This was a wooden spoon, which, however, was received with great good humour, the recipient declaring he had never in his life guessed anything!