Wellington Letter.

Bruce Herald, Volume XXXXIV, Issue 58, 25 June 1908, Page 7

Wellington Letter.

ABOUT PEOPLE.

Miss Kathleen Bcauchamp goes Home next week in the Papanui, probably for a lengthy period. The Misses Pollen have arrived from England.. Last week Miss Waymouth, the Christchurch artist, left to go on with her art studies in London under jEr Stan-hope-Forbes. Miss Waymouth has been doing excellent work, and one of her latest pictures—the painting of. an old-time Christchurch cottage—was bought by the Governor. Dr liyffo, of Wellington, who is a connoisseur, admires her painting, and presented two of her pictures to the iWellesley Club. Miss Maud Sise, from Dunodin, is a guest of Mrs Watson. Miss Elsie Watson goes shortly to Sydney for some months. With Mrs Fulton are Btaying Miss Newman/ from Marton, and Miss Charlie Warbuston, from Palmerston North, and Mrs Elder, from Waikanaei also came to town for Mrs Fulton's dance. Mr and [Mrs Arthur Duncan have gone to Sydney for the Golf Championship meeting. Miss Eosiua Buckman is in Wellington, having come up to sing in "The Golden Legend." The latest engagement is that of Mise Gill, eldest daughter of Mr Gill, of the Alliance Assurance Co., to Mr C. A. Levett, of FeUding, eldest son of the late CapHfffin Levett. Mr and Mrs W. Salmon, of Wellington, leave by the Corinthic early next month. Mrs W. Bunny, of the Wairarapa, has been staying with Mrs Shannon. Miss Eosalind Whitson, who has been in Eotorua for five weeks, stayed in Wellington a few days with Mrs Malcolm ltoss on her way home to Duuedin. .Miss Maeclonald, of JDiuiediu, is a guest of Mrs Munro. Miss Ida Hu-sseli, of J'ai/uaerstou North, is in town. Mrs Costello, from Tiniaru, is a guest of Mrs Chas. Tringham. Mr J. G. Stott has sold his artistic house in Hobson street to Mrs Williams, the benefactress of the Y.M.C.A. and the Seaman's Mission. Mr Stott has bought some land in the Upper Hutt Valley, and intends to build on it. Another house that has changed hands is that of Mr E. M. Simpson, which has been bought by Mr Levvey, the solicitor.

VAEIOUS GAIETIES.

The dance of the week was given by Mrs J. G. Fulton in honour of her daughter's coming of age. It was held at the Masonic Hall, and the chief decoration, most seasonable in this wintry weather, was holly, arranged in largo-handled picturesque baskets, and softened with trails of sinilax. A pretty idea was the reserving of a supper-table for the debutantes and their cavaliers. This was decorated in white, with sheaves of lovely narcissi, grown at Seatoun, near our Heads, and bowls of fragrant violets. Eed and white, too, were the colours of the programmes and pencils, and the general scheme of decoration of the ballroom. Three girls made their debut-Miss Eeid, daughter of Mr Leonard Eeid ; Miss Bulkeley, and Miss Holmes, younger daughter of Mr John Holmes. Mrs Fulton wore a lovely English frock of spotted and embroidered black • gauze hemmed with velvet over white silk. Her daughter's beautiful Empire frock was of white brocade, with satin stripes and trails of tiny flowers. As usual, the Empire-cum-Japanese style was tremenduously in vogue. It is a mode that requires a tall, slim figure and infinite discretion as to cut, material, and colour. I noticed a charm ing notion for a berthe. On the deep lace, blonde and delicately fine, were laid at intervals little wreaths of twists of blue chiffon with tiny purple chiffon violets. Below these wreaths the lace was cut away, and the soft folds of satin showed. Other gaieties were the finals of the. bridge tournament, got up by some Wellington girls, and teas at Mrs Goring Johnston's and Mrs Eankine Brown's. The bridge contest has been entirely successful, and the last three evenings have been finished off with dances. Mrs T. W. Young was the last hostess, and Miss Coates presented the prizes, which were won by (Miss Tolhurst and Miss Stafford and Dr Milsom and Mr T. Young. Mrs Eankine-Browne's "Violet" tea deserves a paragraph to itself, for it was decidedly and charmingly novel.

A VIOLET TEA. About the time appointed numbers of smartly-frocked women might have been seen walking or driving up the steep hill that leads to Mrs Rankine Browne's artistic house. Each wore a cluster of violets on her dress, and some had added another to their muffs. The fragrance of the flowers that decorated the house in profusion floated even out of the hall door. Everywhere were set violets, and on the tea-table they nestled amid soft green moss in silver baskets, lit by a great pale violet silk-shaded lamp. The harmony was continued in the sweets, all tints of violet, in the iced cakes and even in the pencils that were given to the guests with which to write the original four . lines of poetry about the flower of the afternoon. This resulted in much fun, considerable doggerel, and a few good samples of rhyme, the winner, Miss Kathleen Beauchamp, writing a most poetic verse about Cupid's tears that turned into violets. _ The more novel competition was to discover a verse of Browning's "Blue ran the flash across, Violets were born," by means of the iced inscriptions of the cakes. This naturally was to be done promptly before the cakes were eaten. On each, small or large, one word of the sentence was written, and, by dint of gathering up the scattered words, and with a knowledge of Browning, the quotation was discovered. One literary girl found it promptly. The prizes were dainty, sachets scented amd embroidered with violets.

A PAINTER OF CHILDREN. Miss Bendall, who has been in Mapier for some time, has come back, bringing with her some exquisite paintings" on silk of children. These she intends to mount under glass--in sets of threes—and frame in white enamel. Her delicate touch and exceptional sense of colour are shown s to great advantage in .this new departure. She also showed me a study; of ft

baby's head, with touzled yellow, hair, and tearful eyes, .which is to illustrate that pretty song, so much sung now, "Where have you come from, baby dear ?" Miss Bendall hopes shortly to have an exhibition of her art 3

EXCELLENT VAUDEVILLE,

In tho matter of public entertainments, Wellington has not for some time past had anything strikingly original or good. The Julius' Knight Company did wonderful businessmore even than might have been expected from the strength of the Company and the quality of the play produced}—but apart from this combination there has been a general theatrical dulness in the capital city of late. It is not to be wondered at, therefore, that we welcomed the change to highclass Vaudeville that took place towards the end of last week. The success of the variety entertainmentshort turns of high excellence—has been established beyond all question for several years now, und Mr Harry. Eickards, who supplies the Australasian rank in this direction, has already made a fortune, and :.nust at the present time be rapidly mating another. In the present Company performing at the Opera House there are three "star turns." Of these, the most wonderful is the act performed by the Klos sisters. Three ropes with padded loops at the end hang from a stationary trapeze, and the young women with a wrist in the loop and grasping the rope just above it with the one hand do some very extraordinary feats involving great strength, knack, and agility. One young lady hangs by the foot from one of the ropes, and her two sisters do horizontal b:\r exercises on her arms, whieh are extended stillly at right angles to her body. Fach of these girls must weigh about llOlbs, so that tho feat, from a muscular point of view alone, is suttbi-intly astonishing. The nationality of the three sisters, is not stated, but they look as if they ,might be Viennese. In their delicately-coloured tights tbey seemed the embodiment of. classic grace, as they went through the different feats and poses of the act. The Artois brothers perform on three horizontal bars. They are dressed as clowns, and, while they are quito at the top of the tree in this phase of athletics, they are so quaintly funny in their methods that, frora start to finish of the turn, the audience was bubbling over with laughter. The best of the other "turns" is that provided by a quintet of four banjo players and a harpist. The banjoists almost make their instruments sing.