A soldier cook, willing, and a very good waiter, but only a
plain everyday cook; certainly not a maker of dainty dishes for a
dinner party. And my own experiences in housekeeping had been limited
to log huts in outlandish places.
Every little thing for that dinner had to be prepared in our own
house. There was no obliging caterer around the corner where a salad,
an ice, and other things could be hurriedly ordered; not even one
little market to go to for fish, flesh, or fowl; only the sutler's
store, where their greatest dainty is "cove" oysters! Fortunately
there were some young grouse in the house which I had saved for Mrs.
Rae and which were just right for the table, and those West could cook
perfectly.
So with a head buzzing from quinine I went down in the morning, and
with stubborn determination that the dinner should be a success, I
proceeded to carry out the plans I had decided upon during the night.
The house was put in splendid order and the dinner prepared, and
Colonel Knight was invited to join us. I attempted only the dishes
that could be served well - nothing fancy or difficult - and the
sergeant's wife remained to assist West in the kitchen. It all passed
off pleasantly and most satisfactorily, and Colonel Fitz-James could
not have been more agreeable, although he looked long and sharply at
the soldier when he first appeared in the dining room.
