This fish is seldom sent to the table whole, being _too_ large for any
ordinary sized family; the middle cut is considered the choicest to
boil. To carve it, first run the knife down and along the upper side
of the fish from 1 to 2, then again on the lower side from 3 to 4.
Serve the thick part, cutting it lengthwise in slices in the direction
of the line from 1 to 2, and the thin part breadthwise, or in the
direction from 5 to 6. A slice of the thick with one of the thin,
where lies the fat, should be served to each guest. Care should be
taken when carving not to break the flakes of the fish, as that
impairs its appearance. The flesh of the salmon is rich and delicious
in flavor. Salmon is in season from the first of February to the end
of August.




SOUPS.

Consommé, or Stock, forms the basis of all meat soups, and also of all
principal sauces. It is, therefore, essential to the success of these
culinary operations to know the most complete and economical method of
extracting from a certain quantity of meat the best possible stock or
broth. Fresh, uncooked beef makes the best stock, with the addition of
cracked bones, as the glutinous matter contained in them renders it
important that they should be boiled with the meat, which adds to the
strength and thickness of the soup. They are composed of an earthy
substance--to which they owe their solidity--of gelatine, and a fatty
fluid, something like marrow. _Two ounces_ of them contain as much
gelatine as _one pound_ of meat; but, in them, this is so encased in
the earthy substance, that boiling water can dissolve only the surface