Large fish are best broiled. Wash the fish, when cleaned, with a cloth wet in salt water, and dry. Split down the back, and if you wish cut off the head and tail; use double broiler, rubbed with salt pork to prevent sticking; broil for 20 minutes, more or less according to thickness of fish, over moderate fire, turning first flesh and then skin side to the fire. Spread with butter, salt and pepper and stand in the oven till ready to serve. Garnish, if possible, with parsley.

To fry fish, clean and drain, then roll in flour or cracker crumbs rolled fine and fry in drippings or butter. Have the fat hot and fry the fish quick to a crisp brown, and serve as soon as fried, hot. Fish weighing more than 2 or 3 lbs. may be cut in large pieces before frying.

Have your fish dressed for baking, then make a stuffing of bread crumbs, 1 teaspoonful of sweet marjoram, 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls salt, 1 slice of fat salt pork chopped fine, pepper and piece of butter size of large egg, 1 small onion. Mix this well together and stuff the fish. Either sew the fish together or sew a piece of cloth over the opening; place in the pan and lay slices of salt pork on the fish. Bake 1 hour.

Soak mackerel over night, boil in water enough to cover, 5 or 10 minutes; pour off water, put mackerel in pan, pour over it 1 cup of sweet cream or rich milk, add a few lumps of butter, a little pepper, put in oven and bake till brown.

Wash the shells clean, and put the clams, the edges downwards, in a kettle; then pour about a quart of boiling water over them; cover the pot and set it over a brisk fire for three quarters of an hour; pouring boiling water on them causes the shells to open quickly and let out the sand which may be in them. Take them up when done; take off the black skin which covers the hard part, trim them clean, and put them into a stew-pan; put to them some of the liquor in which they were boiled; put to it a good bit of butter and pepper and salt to taste; make them hot; serve with cold butter and rolls.

These are very fine if properly prepared. They are good only during cold weather and must be perfectly fresh.

Soft-shelled clams may be boiled from the shells, and served with butter, pepper, and salt over.

Take fifty small or twenty-five large sand clams from their shells; if large, cut each in two, lay them on a thickly folded napkin; put a pint bowl of wheat flour into a basin, add to it two well-beaten eggs, half a pint of sweet milk, and nearly as much of their own liquor; beat the batter until it is smooth and perfectly free from lumps; then stir in the clams. Put plenty of lard or beef fat into a thick-bottomed frying pan, let it become boiling hot; put in the batter by the spoonful; let them fry gently; when one side is a delicate brown, turn the other.

Drain the oysters well and dry them with a napkin. Have ready a griddle hot and well buttered; season the oysters; lay them to griddle and brown them on both sides. Serve them on a hot plate with plenty of butter.

Make some rich puff paste and bake it in very small tin patty pans; when cool, turn them out upon a large dish; stew some large fresh oysters with a few cloves, a little mace and nutmeg; then add the yolk of one egg, boiled hard and grated; add a little butter, and as much of the oyster liquor as will cover them. When they have stewed a little while, take them out of the pan and set them cool. When quite cold, lay two or three oysters in each shell of puff paste.

Take large oysters from their own liquor on to a thickly folded napkin to dry them off; then make a tablespoonful of lard or beef fat hot, in a thick bottomed frying-pan, add to it half a saltspoonful of salt; dip each oyster in wheat flour, or cracker rolled fine, until it will take up no more, then lay them in the pan, hold it over a gentle fire until one side is a delicate brown; turn the other by sliding a fork under it; five minutes will fry them after they are in the pan. Oysters may be fried in butter, but it is not so good; lard and butter half and half is very nice for frying. Some persons like a very little of the oyster liquor poured in the pan after the oysters are done; let it boil up, then put it in the dish with the oysters; when wanted for breakfast, this should be done.

Oysters to be fried, after drying as directed, may be dipped into beaten egg first, then into rolled cracker.