in the reign of Henry VIII. it appears, that his family, during winter, fed moftly on falt meat, and falt fish ; and with that view there was an appointment of 160 gallons of muftard. On flefh days through the year, breakfast for my Lord and Lady was a loaf of bread, two mancliets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, half a chine of mutton, or a chine of beef boiled. On meagre days, a loaf of bread, two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, a dish of butter, a piece of falt fifh, or a difh of buttered eggs. During lent, a loaf of bread, two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, two pieces of falt fish, fix baconed herring, four white her. ring, or a dish of fproits.. There was as little variety in the other meals, except on feftival-days. That way of living was at the time high luxury: a lady's waitingwoman at prefent would never have done with grumbling at fuch a table. We learn from the fame book, that the Earl had but two cooks for dreffing victuals to more than two hundred domestics. In those days, hen, chicken, capon, pigeon, plover, partridge, were reckoned fuch delicacies, as to be prohibited except at my Lord's table (c).

But luxury is always creeping on, and delicacies become more familiar. Hollinfhed obferves, that white meats, milk, butter, and cheese, formerly the chief food of his countrymen, were in his time degraded to be the food of the lower fort; and that the wealthy fed upon flesh and fish. By a roll of the King of Scotland's houfe hold expence, anno 1378, we find, that the art of gelding cattle was known. The roll is in Latin, and the gelt hogs are termed porcelli eunuchi. Mention is alfo made of chickens, which were not common on English tables at that time. Olive oil is alfo mentioned.

In this progrefs, cooks, we may believe, came to make a figure. Hollinfhed obferves, that the nobility, rejecting their own cookery, employed as cooks mufical headed Frenchmen and ftrangers, as he terms them. He fays, that even merchants, when they gave a feaft, rejected

(c) Household-book above mentioned.

butcher's meat as unworthy of their tables; having jellies of all colours, and in all figures, reprefenting flowers, trees, beasts, fish, fowl, and fruit. Henry Wardlaw, Archbishop of St. Andrews, obferving the refinements in cookery introduced by James I. of Scotland, who had been eighteen years a prifoner in England, exclaimed against the abufe in a parliament held at Perth 1433: he obtained a law, reftraining fuperfluous diet; and prohibiting the use of baked meat to any under the degree of gentlemen, and permitting it to gentlemen on feftivaldays only; which baked meat, fays the bishop, was never before seen in Scotland. The peafants in Sicily regale themfelves with ice during fummer. They fay, that a fcarcity of fnow would be more grievous to them than a scarcity of corn, or of wine. Such progrefs has luxury made, even among the populace. People of fashion in London and in Paris, who employ their whole thoughts on luxurious living, would be furprised to be told, that they are still deficient in that art. In order to advance luxury of the table to the very ACME of perfection, there ought to be a cook for every dish, as there was in ancient Egypt a phyfician for every disease.

Barbarous nations, being great eaters, are fond of large joints of meat: and love of fhow retains great joints in fashion, even after meals become more moderate: a wild boar was roafted whole for a fupper difh to Antony and Cleopatra; and when ftuffed with poultry and wildfowl, it was a favourite dish at Rome, termed the Trojan boar, in allufion to the Trojan horfe. The hofpitality of the Anglo Saxons was fometimes exerted in roafting an ox whole. Great joints are left off gradually, as people become more delicate in eating. In France, great joints are lefs in ufe than formerly; and in England, the voluminous furloin of roaft beef, formerly the pride of the nation, is now in polite families relegated to the fide-board. In China, where manners are carried to a high degree of refinement, dishes are compofed entirely of minced meat.

In early times, people were no lefs plain in their houfes than in their food. Toward the end of the fix

teenth century, when Hollinfhed wrote, the people of England were beginning to build with brick and tone. Formerly houfes were made of pofts wattled together, and plaiftered with clay to keep out the cold: the roof was ftraw, fedge, or reed. It was an obfervation of a Spaniard in Queen Mary's days, "Thefe English have "their houfes of fticks and dirt, but they fare as well as the King." Hollinfhed mentioning multitudes of chimnies lately erected, obferves, upon the authority of fome old men, that in their younger days there were not above two or three, if fo many, in most uplandish towns of the realm, religious houfes and manor. places of their lords excepted; but that each made his fire against a rere doffe in the hall, where he dined and drefted his meat. From Lord Northumberland's household book, it would feem, that grates were unknown at that time, and that they burnt their coal upon the hearth: a certain fum is allotted for purchafing wood; becaufe, fays the book, coals will not burn without it. There is alfo a certain fum allotted for purchafing charcoal that the fmoke of the fea coal might not hurt the arras. In the fourteenth century, the houfes of private perfons in Paris, as well as in London, were of wood. The streets of Paris, not being paved, were covered with mud; and yet for a woman to travel thofe ftreets in a cart, was held an article of luxury, and as fuch was prohibited by Philip the Fair. Paris is enlarged two thirds dince the death of Henry IV. though at the fame time it was per haps not much less populous than at present.

They were equally plain in their household furniture. While money was fcarce, fervants got land instead of wages. An old tenure in England binds the vaffal to find ftraw for the King's bed, and hay for his horse. From Lord Northumberland's household book, mentioned above, it appears, that the linen, allowed for a whole year amounted to no more than seventy: ells; of which there were to be eight table cloths (no napkins) for his Lordship's table, and two towels for wathing his face and hands. Pewter veffel was prohibited to be hired, except on Chriftmas, Easter, St. George's day, and

Whitfunday. Hollinfhed mentions his converfing with old men who remarked many alterations in England within their remembrance; that their fathers, and they themfelves formerly, had nothing to fleep on but a ftraw pallet, with a log of timber for a pillow; a pillow, faid they, being thought meet only for a woman in childbed; and that if a man in feven years after marriage could purchase a flock-bed, and a fack of chaff to rest his head upon, he thought himself as well lodged as the lord of the town; who, peradventure, lay feldom on a bed entirely of feathers. Another thing they remarked, was change of household veffel from timber plates into pewter, and from wooden spoons into tin or filver.

Nor were they lefs plain in their drefs. By an act of parliament in Scotland, anno 1429, none were permitted to wear filk or coftly furs, but knights and lords of 200 merks yearly rent. But luxury in drefs advanced fo faft, that by another act, anno 1457, the fame, drefs was permitted to aldermen, bailies, and other good worthy men within burgh. And by a third act. anno 1471, it was permitted to gentlemen of 100l. yearly rent By a fumptuary law in Scotland, anno 1621, cloth of gold and filver, gold and filver lace, velvet, fatin, and other filk ftuffs, were prohibited, except to noblemen, their wives and children, to lords of parliament, prelates, privy counsellors, lords of manors, judges, magiftrates of towns, and to those who have 60co merks of yearly rent. Such diftinctions, with refpect to landed rent efpecially, are invidious; nor can they ever be kept up. James, the firft British monarch. was, during infancy, committed to the care of the Dowager Countess of Mar, who had been educated in France. The King being: feized with a cholic in the night time, his household fervants flew to his bed chamber, men, and women, naked as they were born; the Countefs alone had a fmock.

During the reign of Edward III. the imports into England were not the feventh part of the exports. Our exports at that time were not the feventh part of our prefent exports; and yet our luxury is fuch, that with

all our political regulations, it is with difficulty that the balance of trade is preserved in our favour.

Men in different ages differ widely in their notions of luxury: every new object of fenfual gratification, and every indulgence beyond what is ufual, are commonly termed luxury; and ceafe to be Inxury when they turn habitual. Thus, every hiftorian, ancient and modern, while he inveighs against the luxury of his own times, wonders at former hiftorians for characterifing as luxury what he confiders as conveniencies merely, or rational improvements. Hear the Roman historian, talking of the war that his countrymen carried on fuccessfully against Antiochus King of Syria: "Luxuriæ enim pere

grinæ origo ab exercitu Afiatico invecta urbem eft. "Ii primum lectos æratos, veftem ftragulam pretiofam, "plagulas et alia textilia, et quæ tum magnificæ fupel"lectilis habebantur, monopodia et abacos Romam ad"vexerunt. Tunc pfaltriæ, fambufiftriæque, et convi"valia ludionum oblectamenta addita epulis: epulæ "quoque ipfæ et cura et fumptu majore ad parari cœptæ:

tum coquus, viliffimum antiquis mancipum eftimatione "et ufu, in pretio effe; et, quod minifterium fuerat, ars "haberi cœpta. Vix tamen illa, quæ tum confpicie"bantur, femina erant futuræ luxuriæ * (d)." Household-furniture at Rome must at that period have been exceedingly plain, when a carpet and a one footed table were reckoned articles of luxury. When the gelding of bulls and rams was first practifed, it was probably con

* "For the Afiatic foldiers first introduced into Rome the foreign luxury. They first brought with them beds ornamented with brazen fculptures, painted coverings, curtains and tapestry, and what were then efteemed magnificent furniture, fide-boards, and tables with one foot. Then to the luxury of our feafts, were added finging girls, female players on the lute, and morris-dancers: greater care and expence were beftowed on our entertainments: the cook, whom our forefathers reckoned the meanest flave, became now in high esteem and requeft; and what was formerly a fervile employment was now exalted into a science. All thefe however scarcely deferve to be reckoned the feeds or buds of the luxury of aftertimes."

(d) Tit. lib. 39 cap. 6.