On every part of the tables not occupied by the vases of wine were laid
gold and jewelled ornaments which dazzled the eye by their brilliancy;
while, in extraordinary contrast to the magnificence thus profusely
displayed, there appeared in one of the upper corners of the hall an old
wooden stand covered by a coarse cloth, on which were placed one or two
common earthenware bowls, containing what my be termed a 'mash' of
boiled bran and salted horseflesh. Any repulsive odour which might have
arisen from this strange compound was overpowered by the various
perfumes sprinkled about the room, which, mingling with the hot breezes
wafted through the windows from the street, produced an atmosphere as
oppressive and debilitating, in spite of its artificial allurements to
the sense of smell, as the air of a dungeon or the vapours of a marsh.
Remarkable as was the change in the present appearance of the
banqueting-hall, it was but the feeble reflection of the alteration for
the worse in the aspect of the host and his guests.
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