vi INTRODUCTION. head of the kitchen, but coquetted with the idea of qualifying as an actor on the comic stage. But steady promotion and his brother's entreaties taught him that as chef he might com- bine his fancies, tickling the wit of his patrons while he tickled their palate; and so in 1821, he was appointed second-in- command of the Foreign Office Kitchen in Paris, an appoint- ment not without danger, for during the same year the Revolu- tionaries forced their way into the apartment of pots and pans, butchering the staff, and it was only by promptly and ostentatiously chanting the Marseillaise that young Soyer es- caped unhurt though frightened. He discovered that Paris was too warm, even for a chef, so came to London, joining his brother in the kitchens of the Duke of Cambridge, followed by appointments with the Duke of Sutherland and the Marquis of Waterford; after which he took service with Mr. Lloyd, of Aston Hall, Oswestry, a gener- ous patron who was subsequently instrumental in installing the young Frenchman as chef of the Reform Club. The Coronation Breakfast, given at the Club to two thousand notable guests, proved the stuff of which the young chef was made, and from that moment he was famous. The kitchens at the Reform Club — designed by Soyer — excited the wonder of the world, and brought a constant stream of visitors, who departed marveling at the completeness of detail displayed and chuckling over the witticisms of the chef. His fame increased until scarcely any gastronomic function of importance was projected without first consulting him. This is no place to write at length of his romantic marriage with Emma Jones, the young Welsh artist — the " English Murillo," as she was called — although the manner of his woo- ing and the fashionable wedding at St. George's, Hanover Square, are tempting themes ; nor may we dwell on the loss sus- tained by her husband and the artistic world when Madame Soyer died in 1842. It is sufficient to say that while her life was an inspiration to her husband, her death marked the turn- ing-point in his career. He realized that basking in the smiles of high-born dames was not the summum-bonum of existence; and with the idea that the wealthy might well be left to take care of themselves, he began to devote his attention to the cookery methods of the multitudes, and resigned his position at the Reform Club because, said he : — " through the stone walls of that edifice I could not gain the slightest knowledge of cottage life." INTRODUCTION. vii The terrible Irish Potato Famine gave him an opportunity to put his philanthropic ideas into practice, and just when the peasants were dying by hundreds, he went over to Ireland and personally superintended schemes which he had formu- lated for the immediate alleviation of distress and want. Public soup-kitchens were erected — the whole plan of which was the product of Soyer's fertile brain, as was also the elaborate system whereby thousands of the poor were mar- shalled, fed and dismissed in a few hours. At this juncture he published Charitable Cookery, at the price of 6d., part of the proceeds of the sale going to a fund which had been opened for the relief of the poor.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

vi INTRODUCTION. head of the kitchen, but coquetted with the idea of qualifying as an actor on the comic stage. But steady promotion and his brother's entreaties taught him that as chef he might combine his fancies, tickling the wit of his patrons while he tickled their palate; and so in 1821, he was appointed second-in-command of the Foreign Office Kitchen in Paris, an appointment not without danger, for during the same year the Revolutionaries forced their way into the apartment of pots and pans, butchering the staff, and it was only by promptly and ostentatiously chanting the Marseillaise that young Soyer escaped unhurt though frightened. He discovered that Paris was too warm, even for a chef, so came to London, joining his brother in the kitchens of the Duke of Cambridge, followed by appointments with the Duke of Sutherland and the Marquis of Waterford; after which he took service with Mr. Lloyd, of Aston Hall, Oswestry, a generous patron who was subsequently instrumental in installing the young Frenchman as chef of the Reform Club. The Coronation Breakfast, given at the Club to two thousand notable guests, proved the stuff of which the young chef was made, and from that moment he was famous. The kitchens at the Reform Club — designed by Soyer — excited the wonder of the world, and brought a constant stream of visitors, who departed marveling at the completeness of detail displayed and chuckling over the witticisms of the chef. His fame increased until scarcely any gastronomic function of importance was projected without first consulting him. This is no place to write at length of his romantic marriage with Emma Jones, the young Welsh artist — the " English Murillo," as she was called — although the manner of his wooing and the fashionable wedding at St. George's, Hanover Square, are tempting themes ; nor may we dwell on the loss sustained by her husband and the artistic world when Madame Soyer died in 1842. It is sufficient to say that while her life was an inspiration to her husband, her death marked the turning-point in his career. He realized that basking in the smiles of high-born dames was not the summum-bonum of existence; and with the idea that the wealthy might well be left to take care of themselves, he began to devote his attention to the cookery methods of the multitudes, and resigned his position at the Reform Club because, said he : — " through the stone walls of that edifice I could not gain the slightest knowledge of cottage life." INTRODUCTION. vii The terrible Irish Potato Famine gave him an opportunity to put his philanthropic ideas into practice, and just when the peasants were dying by hundreds, he went over to Ireland and personally superintended schemes which he had formulated for the immediate alleviation of distress and want. Public soup-kitchens were erected — the whole plan of which was the product of Soyer's fertile brain, as was also the elaborate system whereby thousands of the poor were marshalled, fed and dismissed in a few hours. At this juncture he published Charitable Cookery, at the price of 6d., part of the proceeds of the sale going to a fund which had been opened for the relief of the poor.

Soyer's standard cookery