Society in America.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 146, 23 June 1887, Page 6

Society in America.

:• The following casual extract from .'the 'l^^^i^*^^^ Sl^ sotrie idea of how things go in Washington .;— Much complaint has been-made tjiis .year, of the careless dress in which people have gone to White House receptiqhs, and women" in.bbtine^, and men in frock coats and even, cutaways , were coiispicious at the White-House on Thursday evening. - At the Chinese Minister's ball a few frock coats were to be seen, "and Attorney-General Garland was not there either. _'• ,7 'K6t much.can be said by Washington society-women, against the men who violate the conventional rules and wear their afternoon coats in the evening, when one considers the glaring bad taste of the women -who reverse that ■■ order and wear evening dresses in the afternoon.. The great number of young women who. come here to shine in society seem to own but two kinds of .clothes—street suits and full evening dresses with low corsage. When they are asked to assist some hostess at her regular afternoon at home for receiving chance and friendly callers, these girls come out in the full glory of ball dresses attwo o'clock in the afternoon, and in airy •tulles and bare shoulders and 'arms , stand around a parlour all the afternoon andtalk to bonneted and over-coated ' callers. As.a rule the young, women who offend in this way do it throu ?h ignorance, and the best bred and those "accustomed to the ways of the great '■world have the house dresses and afternoon gowns suitable to such occasions, quite as much as they have '' .streets suits and; balls; dresses. In time : ,these women learn better, but every ■year brings its contribution. of the unsophisticated, who have all the conventibiial rules to learn. Nothing is "more chilling and out of place than bare and arms in the cold daylight of a .winter afternoon. Que learns at least how much female lovliness owes to gaslight. . The matter of assistants at afternoon receptions and -teas is a problem. It is an easy compliment for' a hostess ; pf* position to pay to some friend or acquaintance to ask her to assist her in . receiving callers or to pour her tea. ';,,Hostesses', however,' are. not Always allowed to invite them to do so, as these assistants more often volunteer, and it seems to be quite the fashion this jyear •for assistants to offer their services. One womah. who was about to giye a - tea recently, was surprised at the beginning; of the afternoon to have a young girl wilk in and say :•—'', fAs you are such a stranger here, I am sure that I can be of great assistance ■tdyou,as I know every .one. I will : pburtea^for you|' ahdbhe poured it and ; had quite''a domesticated air in the house.* v.' I ■■■ '-' - '-• -S—.y z\-. «)

One. family living here, whose afterh;bdiis for. receiving callers are always so weiK.,'attehded that the .uninitiated

wonder, regularly spend the rest of the of ;the week drumming lip -cust'omeifs . ;foirtTieir- teapot and; punch bowl.; They "seized upon'an^miable foreign Minister

the other-day saying :—,'Be: sure now 1 come this' time!;We:are going to

hay 6 some of that good punch, and that pretty young lady that you admired so much will be there. Oh, do be ■ sure

;■' and,come ■? ''"'■ . ' '•'.'-'-';:'■■*-'. | ' f : :; : !AtMrs. Whitney's:;House!Jasf year, }.«! , and at Mrs. Stanford's lipuse this; year, 5 'fa *a crowd of curious and curious-looking. : ■ people' have/been "seen on receptipri '7\ , afternoons peeping about the rooms and ii- ? ; cdbingi;fuil, justice to. the refreshment* <n\ Stable. In view of the hundreds of ' Ji:7 people who made her and her house*bne, .; ~, of the regular r signs of Washington, Mrs. '.. "A' Whitney wisely had a. very' simple-tea '.hit stable in her dining room, with wafers ; and;sandwiches' to accompany the tea a,nd chocolate. * . '.. ; :. ''MrsStanfbrd being at home for only ki-jjo three afternoons7-this winter;,"made her ' 'table very ; handspmej Offering j t^ea. '"_,';; 7' chocolate,and houiddn,,.witH'salads and iij: ices. :,In consequence] her. house wag ■"■■■a- Mcd, and the young ladies,: according •to one'cynical male j .visitor, like waiter girls at a refreshment .'■' • !.: cpunteiy .tb. be lipspitabie'to^l-en)i;afl. "_. •;.-'•"■ 'The Iwives of- the.'justices s of;the ".:. Court have more of the feeling ;..,',io)f:a-lhbme .and. pejrmanance .ih^WasK r .' 7; ingtpp, than any of* .the.pther. ladies, of -official 'circles. Some; of them' have* ,:' iiiSved' in society here--for more than' -.:: v,tp-.Devwell"Known 'eyrywhere.i-Pne;of .4nem,!iin.ealling.= the?other day. fell into the hands, of a'.vo.luble assistant who poured.-Uppn^.hera,steady stre-jr^of mochihe" cbriWfsatibm The assistant, aftersrattling alongcfof a while, said to ~,.;.--,' the Justice's ;-*-,,, . r „,, 0 ,„, „ I ']/..■■ .■>:•' Have you * been 'here 'long ?-. istliis 7...i'£ij/o_sJsszWl4&io Washington? Don't you like it ?'-'■•-•" ;;- -•"■'• ? ■'•r(: :;.:•-:t..:.r„*l^have-been here twenty.-rr-rr-',...'.';•.'.' VOhl, then. ypu'^e,. a resident;, 7 ana, Kowimuch -you* must-enjoy living /here, —^and hpjvvriiceatinustsbe for you 'jtq' see 7r i:;:r ailithe;high officials ~.andj,'*,hapdsbm, c rl .., : ,houses:;."and,,bfidb^Tsefyj^gatpjWnUe House-on Saturday afternoons-?': _-,-.> .-. as... j.,(. Th%^Justi<ie'-3. wife w£s'fast reddening - •■• i-*-under-this-stream of'misapprehehsionj • o-but after ither glib assistant -had , ~ j(;her : husband^w^ v ncrJustiGe's wife setdown'her'tea cup emphatically and said:— .:. •'. •'.. i ! 7'" , '"" ■■'• **-::i-' ;My• husbahd■ ;hias been: a, .Justice- pf the Supreme Gbiirt for twenty-nveyearsi .:. wott tatttf^S. <-■- <-.-.-*.■.■.- -■ u-. jj j ,__.„,>. Practical Jubilee celebratAojj, Q py* giving the public real bargains in drapery and cloth - ing.this.weel-';oat-:MeMast€r, Shalders,''.and, fl !iU'Co,-'s;-.Queeh-stteet.-:—(ADVT.)7ir'!**-/. j 7.A ,J' reribdicals, 'annuals,'" aricl J music ,bpuhd. f v>-ifMaps- and .plans rriounted' and varnished, :' ' '*-" 'Oraers left' 'with " Murra^';;. and j • Spgncer," ,:,.-. jQueeq r §t?eei?)-r(Adyt.) ?',-.,''," AAZ ',.f! n'i>h;UZ .(: Specjal.v.ali^.in a,.£bod!b-'.O-rian ribbon J < •all shades', one'lri^-hJ^l^d^vfqnel^nd-a-ialf-*----ja:4nch,i2£cl;; -two inch,t3icl; ; 20 dozen iadies' Bilk, handkerchiefs at -l^id. - Special lot of I^3|d per pair, at S&ith^hg.^^ i^..Bi^ekP,v^,la I. Use colonial productions. Try our Portland Cement and Hydraulic Lime. Information free on concrete.—J Wilson & Co,, Cus-tome-street Weat.-(ADVT.)

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