Thursday 22 August 2013

1894: The Silver Lining - A Guernsey Story

From the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Silver Lining - A Guernsey Story, by John Roussel, 1894:
"This is indeed very quaint and certainly primitive furniture. I must explain the use of——, that is if——."
"I should be greatly obliged," said Frank, "but it really is giving yourself too much trouble."
"On the contrary, it gives me pleasure. This"—pointing to a low kind of bedstead—"was the sofa of our forefathers. We call it a jonquière. It was formerly stuffed with a weed which still grows near the coast; called jonquier—hence its name. These rods were used to hang the craséaux on them. A crasé, the singular of craséaux, is a lamp of the most primitive type."
"A vessel with a beak in which some oil is poured, and in the beak is placed a wick, while underneath the vessel another one is suspended as a receptacle for the oil which falls from the upper one. Only ten years ago we still used them. I remember it quite well."
"And these are what we call 'lattes,'" she said, pointing to a wooden rack which hung suspended from the ceiling and parallel to it. "As you see, the bacon is kept there."
She stopped here, and looked anxiously at her father. He was pale and trembling. "Are you ill, father?" questioned his daughter.
"No, I'm not ill, although I do not feel quite well. Make me a totaïe," he said, "then I'll go to bed and try to sleep off my indisposition."
His daughter did as her father requested.
When she was out of the room, Frank asked Mr. Rougeant what he meant by a totaïe.
"Oh, it's a capital thing," responded the latter, "toasted bread soaked in warm cider. You swallow cider and all; if that does not drive a cold away, nothing will."

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