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Turkey, Old, the Best Way of Dressing

Stuff the turkey with veal forcemeat, and truss it for boiling. Cut a pound of lean bacon into dice, and fry these in a quarter of a pound of butter over a clear fire till they are lightly browned. Put in the turkey, breast downwards. Cover the saucepan closely, and steam the bird gently for an hour. Lift it out, dredge two table-spoonfuls of flour into the butter, and stir it briskly with the back of a wooden spoon till it forms a smooth paste. Add gradually three or four pints of boiling stock, put in the turkey, and with it four or five large carrots sliced, four turnips, a dozen button onions, a large bunch of parsley, two bay-leaves, three or four sprigs of thyme, and a little pepper and salt. Let all simmer gently together for four hours. Lift the turkey out, and keep it hot. Put the vegetables and sauce into a clean saucepan, place this by the side of the fire, and carefully remove the grease, etc., as it rises to the surface. When no more appears, boil the sauce quickly for a few minutes. Serve the turkey on a hot dish. Arrange the vegetables round it, and pour the sauce over. Garnish the dish with small boiled potatoes or with roasted chestnuts. Time to dress the turkey, five hours.