"Soon at five o'clock Please you I'll meet you."

-Comedy of Errors.

" Strong tea and scandal-Bless me how refreshing,"

-School for Scandal.

The live-o'clock function may be four of your dear friends in for a chat and a cosy cup of tea, or the four hundred of your set to whom you wish to give social recognition, this taking the place of the ceremonial visit, the inviter conveying the idea to the invited that she wishes to continue the acquaintance. For the small reunion of friends the tea should be made and served by the hostess in the drawing-room or in any living-room but the dining-room, and in country houses out of doors, if possible. For this delightful occasion only the simplest and daintiest sandwiches and cakes are served, with hot tea, coffee, or chocolate, or in hot weather, iced coffee, tea, or punch. No service or assistance is necessary, except to bring in the required articles; the hostess or a friend makes the tea or pours the beverage, and the guests help each other and themselves. For the more pretentious affair, the affair of the four hundred, the refreshments should be served in the dining-room. A very pretty table may be arranged with flowers and lights, a friend of the hostess seated at each end of the table to serve tea, coffee, bouillon, or ices. At very large entertainments the ices and cakes are served in another room, another pretty table and more friends being called into requisition. The refreshments for a large afternoon function, besides the drinks already mentioned, should consist of dainty plates of small sandwiches, olives, fancy cakes, and bonbons, all served from the table by waitresses, or young ladies, also friends of the hostess. Napkins are not always necessary, though they are a protection to the gloves and dresses ; the tiny sandwiches and the cakes are usually placed on the saucer or a plate under it, and are partaken of sparingly. The servants needed for this affair are, one at the door, two in the kitchen, one in the butler's pantry, and two or three in the dining-room, a maid for each dressing-room, and perhaps a man to open the carriage-door. Here is another opportunity for the artist in entertaining to show her best work. A fastidious arrangement of flowers all over the house to culminate on the dining-room table, all of one color, or a harmonious blending of colors, gives a fine opportunity for one's love of ornamentation to run riot, but here again is a note of warning. The simplest entertainment, when accompanied by a charming hospitality, is better appreciated by one's dear four hundred friends, than any amount of ostentatious display. The following list includes almost everything required for the live-o'clock reception or the ordinary afternoon tea, the recipes for which can be found in this book under their respective numbers: Bouillon No. 22 (Bouillon), either hot or cold, Coffee No. 712 (Coffee, Boiled), Chocolate No. 711 (Chocolate), Russian Tea No. 716 (Russian Tea), Iced Tea Punch No. 717 (Iced-tea Punch), Sandwiches, Afternoon Tea Cakes, Some Accessories, Ices, Frappes, or Punches.