cloth taken away

Question

In the book The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the author uses a expression 'as soon as the cloth was taken away' in  the second chapter . What does it mean?

Answer 1

Davis is correct: probably the tablecloth. Further, there is a reference to the cloth later in the book that makes it symbolic in the paragraph that begins "There comes an end to all things . . . " in the section called "Henry Jekyll's Full Statement of the Case."

Answer 2

Since he has just finished supper, perhaps 'the cloth' is a napkin or the table cloth.