Soyer's Culinary Campaign: Being Historical Reminiscences of the Late War.: With The Plain Art of Cookery for Military and Civil Institutions

chicken, mutton, and veal broth, the cooking of fowls, beef and mutton tea, &c. I did not forget the beverages, such as rice water, lemonades, arrow-root, panada ditto, barley water, sago jelly, &c.; rice pudding, sago, bread, vermicelli and macaroni ditto. The receipts will be found in the Addenda, under the head of “Hospital Diets.” A gentleman, Mr. Black, who was a first-class interpreter, was then introduced to me by the Purveyor-in-Chief, and appointed to assist me in any way I might require his aid. He was highly recommended by Miss Nightingale, and a number of first-class doctors, as well as by Lord William Paulet. It is with gratitude that I acknowledge the great assistance I received from that gentleman during his stay with me, and the energy he displayed in procuring everything I required. He spoke French fluently, also the Turkish, Greek, and Armenian languages. This rendered him invaluable to me, as I was obliged to employ people speaking those different languages in my numerous kitchens. And what was more remarkable still, he was the husband of the celebrated Maid of Athens, whose company I had the pleasure of enjoying several times; and although this interesting personage is now in her tenth lustre, some remains of the eulogy of the great Byron seem still engraved on the physiognomy of the once celebrated Greek beauty; and she informed me that when Lord Byron wrote his poem on her, she was but ten years of age, he at the time residing opposite the house of her parents at Athens. CHAPTER XI. FIRST OPERATIONS. Plan of proceeding--Inconveniences--Too many cooks spoil the broth--Supplementary scale--How to make tea--The Scutari Teapot--Soyer House--Kululee Hospital--Beautiful view of the city of Constantine and the Bosphorus--Lady Stratford de Redcliffe’s arrival--Bad cookery--General and Riding-school Hospitals--Miss Stanley--Hit upon an entirely new plan--Temporary indisposition--Depression of spirits--Happy recovery--Opening day--Grand success--Lord W. Paulet’s letter--Take one wing of the hospital--The old system--Dissatisfaction of the patients. In a short time, and without much trouble, I initiated the soldier cooks into my method, and taught the serjeant to see it properly executed. I shall here describe the