[7] Unmarried officers
generally dine in the evening, because it is a more convenient hour
for the mess; and married civil functionaries do the same, because it
is more convenient for their office work. If you invite those who
dine at that hour to spend the evening with you, you must invite them
to dinner, even in the hot weather; and if they invite you, it is to
dinner. This makes intercourse somewhat heavy at all times, but more
especially so in the hot season, when a table covered with animal
food is sickening to any person without a keen appetite, and
stupefying to those who have it. No one thinks of inviting people to
a dinner and ball--it would be vandalism; and when you invite them,
as is always the case, to come after dinner, the ball never begins
till late at night, and seldom ends till late in the morning. With
all its disadvantages, however, I think dining in the evening much
better for those who are in health, than dining in the afternoon,
provided people can avoid the intermediate meal of tiffin. No person
in India should eat animal food more than once a day; and people who
dine in the evening generally eat less than they would if they dined
in the afternoon.
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