places.[1] In the latter circumstances no admixture of wine or spirit counteracts the poison in tainted water, and makes it safe to drink, as people often delight to believe; but the simple process of boiling it renders it perfectly harmless; and this result is readily attained in any locality by making weak tea, to be taken hot or cold; or in making toast-water, barley-water, lemonade, etc. The table-waters now so largely imported into this country from Germany and France contain a considerable proportion of mineral matter in solution, and, while they are wholesome as regards freedom from organic impurities, are, of course, less perfect for daily use than absolutely pure waters, such as those above referred to. Vaunted frequently as possessing certain medicinal properties, this very fact ought to prohibit their constant use as dietetic agents for habitual consumption, inasmuch as we do not require drugs as diet, but only as occasional correctives. Among them, the natural Selters, Apollinaris, Gieshübel, and St. Galmier—but of this latter some of the sources are inferior to others, the best appearing now to be chiefly retained for Paris—are perhaps among the most satisfactory within our reach. A dash of lemon-juice and a thin cutting of the peel form sometimes an agreeable addition. I am compelled to say that the sweet compounds and fruity juices which have of late been produced as dinner-drinks, and apparently in competition with wine, are rarely wholesome adjuncts to a dinner. Such liquids rapidly develop indigestible acid products in the stomachs of many persons; while, for all, the sipping of sweet fluids during a meal tends to diminish appetite, as well as the faculty of appreciating good cookery. If wine is refused, let the drink be of pure water—with a sparkle of gas in it, or a slight acid in it if you will—but in obedience both to gastronomic and dietetic laws let it be free from sugar. No doubt there are exceptional circumstances in which fruity juices, if not very sweet, can be taken freely. Thus I have rarely quaffed more delicious liquor at dinner in the warm autumn of southern Europe, notably in Spain, than that afforded by ample slices of a watermelon, which fill the mouth with cool, fragrant liquid; so slight is the amount of solid matter, that it only just serves to contain the abundant, delicate juices of the fruit grown in those climates. Here the saccharine matter is present only in small proportion.
Before concluding, a remark or two may be permitted in reference to that great British institution, the public dinner. Its utility must, I suppose, be conceded, since, for a vast number of charitable and other interests, the condition of commanding once a year the ear of the British public for an exposition of their claims seems in no other way at
- ↑ Throughout France, St. Galmier; in Germany, Selters; in Austria and Bohemia, Gieshübel, are always obtainable, being the table-water of most repute, in each case respectively, of the country itself. In all chief places in Italy, either Selters or St. Galmier, often both, are supplied by the hotels. In Spain, these are not at present to be had, but the alternatives recommended are easily obtained.
