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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. With a pastry brush or paper towel, butter an 11-by-17-inch jelly-roll pan and sprinkle the flour over the butter. Tap the edge of the pan on a table to knock out the excess flour.
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2. Melt the chocolate over low heat in a heavy 1-quart saucepan or in the top of a double boiler placed over simmering water. Set the chocolate aside to cool to lukewarm.
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3. Cream the butter and ¼ cup of the sugar by beating them against the side of a mixing bowl with a wooden spoon, continuing to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the melted chocolate and beat in the egg yolks, one at a time.
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4. In another mixing bowl preferably of unlined copper, beat the egg whites and a pinch of salt with a wire whisk or rotary beater until the whites cling to the beater; add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar and beat until the whites form stiff, unwavering peaks.
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5. With a rubber spatula, stir about l/3 of the whites into the chocolate base, then pour the chocolate mixture over the rest of the whites. Sprinkle the flour lightly on top. Gently fold the flour into the mixture until no white streaks are visible.
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6. Pour the batter into the prepared jelly-roll pan, spreading it evenly with a rubber spatula. Bake in the middle of the oven for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the cake shrinks slightly away from the sides of the pan and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.
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7. Remove the cake from the oven, loosen it from the pan by running a sharp knife around the sides, and turn it out on a rack to cool.
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THE FILLING:
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1. In a heavy 1-quart saucepan, combine the cream and chocolate, and stir over medium heat until the chocolate dissolves. Then reduce the heat to very low and simmer, stirring almost constantly, until the mixture thickens into a heavy cream. Pour it into a bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
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2. When the mixture is very cold, pour in the rum and vanilla and beat with a wire whisk or a rotary or electric beater until the filling is smooth and creamy and forms soft peaks when the beater is lifted from the bowl. Do not over beat or the cream will turn to butter.
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3. Cut the cake in half to make two layers, each 8½ inches wide. Over one layer spread the filling, which will be about 2 inches thick. Set the other layer on top. Refrigerate on a rack for about 1 hour.
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THE GLAZE:
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1. While the cake is refrigerating, make the glaze. In a heavy 1- quart saucepan, heat the sugar, water and chocolate over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar and chocolate are dissolved.
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2. Remove the pan from the heat, cover and let the glaze cool for about 20 minutes.
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3. Set the rack holding the cake on a jelly-roll pan and, holding the saucepan with the glaze 2 inches above the cake, pour the glaze over it. Refrigerate the cake on the rack 20 minutes longer, or until the glaze is firm.
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4. Serve by cutting it into 35 small equal pieces, 5 in each row across and 7 in each row down.
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5. Use a sharp knife that has been dipped in warm water. Rinse the knife and dip it again in warm water before each cutting.
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