Things not to be forgotten at a Picnic

[pegkerr]

A stick of horseradish, a bottle of mint-sauce well corked, a bottle of salad dressing, a bottle of vinegar, made of mustard, pepper, salt, good oil, and pounded sugar. If it can be managed, take a little ice. It is scarcely necessary to say that plates, tumblers, wine-glasses, knives, forks, and spoons, must not be forgotten; as also teacups and saucers, 3 or 4 teapots, some lump sugar, and milk, if this last-named article cannot be obtained in the neighborhood. Take 3 corkscrews. BEVERAGES - 3 dozen quart bottles of ale, packed in hampers; ginger-beer, soda water, and lemonade, of each 2 dozen bottles; 6 bottles of sherry, 6 bottles of claret, champagne, and any other light wine that may be preferred, and 2 bottles of brandy. Water can usually be obtained; so it is useless to take it.

Isabella Beeton, from "Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management"
(1859-1861)


Got this from the Last Morsel section of my daily e-mail from World Wide Recipes.

Edited to add: And here's the whole book!

Comments

She forgot...

[amandageist.livejournal.com]

Sixteen indentured servants to *carry* all that. *whew*

~Amanda

[averagegirl.livejournal.com]

...A stick of horseradish?

[malinaldarose.livejournal.com]

So this isn't an intimate little picnic between a maid and her suitor?

Or is all of that stuff for the chaperones?

[misia.livejournal.com]

I LOVE Mrs. Beeton. Love her to death. I read the Book of Household Management in the tub sometimes and giggle like a maniac.

[misia.livejournal.com]

It's a root vegetable that has round cylindrical tubers -- sticklike, if you get a small one or break off a smaller chunk from a larger one. You grind it with a grater or grinder (you can also shave it with a knife blade) in order to make the condiment we think of as horseradish.

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

I must have this book. It is now at the top of my list.

This, of course, is why I don't picnic more often...

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Here's the whole book!

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

Oooo! Squeee! I see much giggling in my future!

Just the thing

[chance88088.livejournal.com]

whee! lovely. And perfect for a short story I am working on. Thanks for finding this.

[papersky.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree. Especially about the teapots and the corkscrews.

When I was in Wales a couple of weeks ago, I saw the cutest picnic basket, with plates and cups strapped in at the sides and actual slots for the cutlery. I'd have bought it if only it came with the indentured servants someone mentioned, or possibly a packhorse.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

The English (and I suppose the Welsh) are second to none in charming picnic accoutrement. I am enamoured of picnics, and have put together a respectable kit out of this and that. I don't have the sort of basket (these tend to be in the suitcase style) that one generally sees in English picnic-gear catalogues. That's because I don't trust the implied homeward journey. I don't want to restrap and reslot dirty dishes and cutlery. Far better to shove it all in a plastic bag for washing at home.

K.

[ladylisse.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for the link! This is fantastic. :D

(...a stick of horseradish? a stick?)

[papersky.livejournal.com]

Actually I found that thought a little offputting as well. I suppose they think you'll wash the plates (in a stream?) or not mind...

I used to have a hamper, with a lid and straps, but no plates. It came from Fortnum and Mason, and had "F&M" branded on the wicker at the side. It just arrived one day, full of food, sent by my father in a fit of impulsive and slightly mad generosity when I was an undergraduate. I kept the hamper for years, piling food into it for picnics, and sitting on it when the food was unpacked. Eventually it degraded into being a cat basket, and I think the cat kept it in the divorce.

You know, I'm more enthusiastic about tea than most people short of Jon Singer, and I like picnics too, but I don't think I've ever taken a teapot on one. A corkscrew, yes. Tea in a flask too, but never quite the level of decadence required to take hot water in a flask and a teapot or two.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Hmm. As a tea devotee, do you think a thermos bottle would suffice to provide hot enough water? Or do you begin to suspect that what's really wanted is hot water boiled up fresh on the spot?

There is a School of Picnic Thought that can't make do without silver, crystal, china, and the good linens. These people undoubtedly bring at least one tea pot. Me, I've brought scraps of wood and built fires for cookng hot dogs, and heating saur kraut or cider, but not boiled water. Could, though.

I have admired the F&M picnic baskets on several occasions. I hadn't realized they are sturdy enough to serve as a seat. That's fabulous.

For further reading on a picnic school of thought, I have to recommend "How to Do Things Right : The Revelations of a Fussy Man" by L. Rust Hills.

K. [his bit on eating an ice cream cone is memorable and priceless as well]

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

I'd like to know what she *eats*.

K.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Think "piece," like a piece of ginger.

B