This he does to insinuate, that he looks upon those he is with to be of superior merit; and that there is not one whom he does not love better than himself. Custom and general practice make this modish deceit familiar to us, without being shocked at the absurdity of it.
“If people had been used to speak from the sincerity of their hearts, and act according to the natural sentiments they felt within, till they were three or four and forty, it would be impossible for them to assist at this comedy of manners without either loud laughter or indigestion; and yet it is certain, that such a behaviour makes us more tolerable to one another, than we could be otherwise.”
The master or mistress of the table should appear to continue eating as long as any of the company; and should, accordingly, help themselves in a way that will enable them to give this specimen of good manners without being particularly observed.
“It belongs to the master and mistress, and to no one else, to desire their guests to eat, and, indeed, carving belongs to nobody but the master and mistress, and those whom they think fit to desire, who are to deliver what they cut to the master or mistress, to be by them distributed at their pleasure.”
A seat should be placed for the carver sufficiently elevated to give him a command of the table, as the act of rising to perform this duty is considered ungraceful.
The carving-knife should be light and sharp; and it should be firmly grasped; although in using it, strength is not as essential as skill, particularly if the butcher has properly divided the bones of such joints as the neck, loin, and breast of veal or of mutton.
The dish should not be far from the carver; for when it is too distant, by occasioning the arms to be too much extended, it gives an awkward appearance to the person, and renders the task more difficult.
In carving fish, care should be taken not to break the flakes, and this is best avoided by the use of a fish trowel, which not being sharp, divides it better than a steel knife. Examine this little drawing, and you will see how a cod’s head and shoulders should be carved. The head and shoulders of a cod contain the richest and best part of this excellent fish.
