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Calf's Head, Hashed

Cut the remains of a cold calf's head into nice slices about a quarter of an inch thick and three or four inches long, and set them aside until wanted. Take the remains of the brains and beat them up with a dessert-spoonful of chopped parsley, a salt-spoonful of finely-shredded lemon-rind, and a little salt and pepper. Make this into cakes, and fry them in hot fat till they are nicely browned. Put a piece of butter the size of a large egg into a saucepan; melt it, then mix with it very smoothly a table-spoonful of flour, half a pint of well-flavoured stock, a little pepper and salt, and cayenne, and the liquor from a score of oysters, or, what will be very good, though not as good, a table-spoonful of the liquor from a tin of oysters; let this boil up, add the pieces of head, a table-spoonful of mushroom ketchup, and a score of oysters, fresh or tinned. Let all simmer until quite hot, but the preparation must not boil again. Serve the meat in the middle. Pour the gravy over, and arrange, alternately, fried bacon and the brain cakes round it. Time altogether, half an hour. Probable cost, exclusive of the meat, with fresh oysters, 2s. 6d.; with tinned oysters, 1s. 4d. Sufficient for four or five persons.