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Country Family Soup

Procure two quarts fresh green peas, shell them, plunge shells in a gallon boiling water and scald for five minutes, then drain on a sieve. (Keep the peas for Wednesday's dinner.) Heat two tablespoons good lard in a large saucepan, add quarter pound lean salt pork cut in small pieces, two sliced leeks, two sliced medium onions and one bay leaf; gently brown on the fire ten minutes, add the shells, cover pan and let sweat ten minutes; then add four good-sized sound peeled potatoes sliced, one quart broth, and two quarts water; season with one and a half teaspoons salt and half teaspoon pepper. Lightly mix, re-cover pan and gently boil two hours. Remove, pass soup through sieve into a basin, then through a Chinese strainer into a soup tureen, and serve with a plate of bread croutons separately.