Tancred | Page 3

of the Golden Fleece. The duke's cook is not
equal to the occasion. 'Tis an hereditary chef who gives dinners of the
time of the continental blockade. They have written to Daubuz to send
them the first artist of the age,' said Leander; 'and,' added he, with some
hesitation, 'Daubuz has written to me.'
'And he did quite right, my child,' said Prevost, 'for there is not a man
in Europe that is your equal. What do they say? That Abreu rivals you
in flavour, and that Gaillard has not less invention. But who can
combine goût with new combinations? 'Tis yourself, Leander; and there
is no question, though you have only twenty-five years, that you are the
chef of the age.'
'You are always very good to me, sir,' said Leander, bending his head
with great respect; 'and I will not deny that to be famous when you are
young is the fortune of the gods. But we must never forget that I had an
advantage which Abreu and Gaillard had not, and that I was your
pupil.'
'I hope that I have not injured you,' said Papa Prevost, with an air of
proud self-content. 'What you learned from me came at least from a
good school. It is something to have served under Napoleon,' added
Prevost, with the grand air of the Imperial kitchen. 'Had it not been for
Waterloo, I should have had the cross. But the Bourbons and the cooks
of the Empire never could understand each other: They brought over an
emigrant chef, who did not comprehend the taste of the age. He wished
to bring everything back to the time of the oeil de bouf. When
Monsieur passed my soup of Austerlitz untasted, I knew the old family
was doomed. But we gossip. You wished to consult me?'
'I want not only your advice but your assistance. This affair of the Duke
of Bellamont requires all our energies. I hope you will accompany me;
and, indeed, we must muster all our forces. It is not to be denied that
there is a want, not only of genius, but of men, in our art. The cooks are
like the civil engineers: since the middle class have taken to giving

dinners, the demand exceeds the supply.'
'There is Andrien,' said Papa Prevost; 'you had some hopes of him?'
'He is too young; I took him to Hellingsley, and he lost his head on the
third day. I entrusted the soufflées to him, and, but for the most
desperate personal exertions, all would have been lost. It was an affair
of the bridge of Areola.'
'Ah! mon Dieu! those are moments!' exclaimed Prevost. 'Gaillard and
Abreu will not serve under you, eh? And if they would, they could not
be trusted. They would betray you at the tenth hour.'
'What I want are generals of division, not commanders-in-chief. Abreu
is sufficiently bon garçon, but he has taken an engagement with
Monsieur de Sidonia, and is not permitted to go out.'
'With Monsieur de Sidonia! You once thought of that, my Leander.
And what is his salary?'
'Not too much; four hundred and some perquisites. It would not suit me;
besides, I will take no engagement but with a crowned head. But Abreu
likes travelling, and he has his own carriage, which pleases him.'
'There are Philippon and Dumoreau,' said Prevost; 'they are very safe.'
'I was thinking of them,' said Leander, 'they are safe, under you. And
there is an Englishman, Smit, he is chef at Sir Stanley's, but his master
is away at this moment. He has talent.'
'Yourself, four chefs, with your marmitons; it would do,' said Prevost.
'For the kitchen,' said Leander; 'but who is to dress the tables?'
'A-h!' exclaimed Papa Prevost, shaking his head.
'Daubuz' head man, Trenton, is the only one I could trust; and he wants
fancy, though his style is broad and bold. He made a pyramid of pines
relieved with grapes, without destroying the outline, very good, this last

week, at Hellingsley. But Trenton has been upset on the railroad, and
much injured. Even if he recover, his hand will tremble so for the next
month that! could have no confidence in him.'
'Perhaps you might find some one at the Duke's?'
'Out of the question!' said Leander; 'I make it always a condition that
the head of every department shall be appointed by myself. I take
Pellerini with me for the confectionery. How often have I seen the
effect of a first-rate dinner spoiled by a vulgar dessert! laid flat on the
table, for example, or with ornaments that look as if they had been
hired at a pastrycook's: triumphal arches, and Chinese pagodas, and
solitary pines springing up out of ice-tubs surrounded with peaches, as
if they were