LADIES COLUMN.

Evening Post, Volume LXXI, Issue 142, 16 June 1906, Page 15

LADIES COLUMN.

Girls' Gossip, (Contributions to this column addressed "Priscilla" will be welcomed. They should be concise, and must be signed ■with the writer's full name and address, not for publication, but us a guurauten of authenticity. j Mi Deab Ekzia— All topics are so trivial beside the great loss New Zealand has sustained ir the sudden death of our Premier. It seems incredible to think that we shall never again see him walking slowly to the House, often with absorbed look, and yet ever quick to note a familiar face And ever ready with a hearty hand-grasp and a welcome, and often — after a late Bight's sitting — it must have been very ■wearisome to be intercepted by two or three men, all wanting a word with lho Premier, and, in all probability, something else beside. Parliament without him is empty and uninteresting, and politics has lost its savour now that that impressive figure will never again be seen in its accustomed place. The country has suffered a. bitter loss, and it is iinpossibie to guess the blank his death ha.s jlelt in his horde: It must be some little 'comiort for bis family to know thai there is not a heart in New Zealand that does not feel for them in their sorrow. It is difficult to realise our country without Mr. Seddon, and quite impossitilo to picture Parliament. The signs ol mourning are general. Even the frivolous chiffons of the drapers' shops are set. - aside for more sober-tinted stuffs, «nd the flower shops are beautiful with memdrial wreaths and devices. Mr. and Mrs. Lemare left last Satur day night - for Christchurch, where oiu Tuesday tho great organist played to a splendid audience. They have gone away charmed with Wellington and-Wel-lington people, and hope to come h«re some day. A number of people — including the Mayor, the Town (jtak, and Mr. Mauehan Barnett — went down to see them on. By the way, Sirs. Lemare ia herself a* fine organist, and her lessons with Mr. "Lemare led to thb marriage. They have a little girl o/ three, who stays with Mrs. Lemare's mother in England. The last recital drew a magnificent audience, and the Town Hall was absolutely overflowing. The Governor and Captain x>raithw»ite ■were in the gallery, -with Captain and Mrs. Porritt, the Alayor and Miss Hislop, and Mrs. Lemare. The storm was most realistic. Indeed, had it not been for attracting notice, I should have wrapped my scarf about me, for I felt t^e atmosphere getting distinctly chilliei 03 the peals of thunder rolled out. Mr.. Waterfield's marriage to Miss Cresswell, of England, who is related to .Mr. Helmore, of Christchurch, took place on Thursday last week in the College viiapel, a tiny but most picturesque building. The Rev. Mr. Morefand officiated. It was a quiet wedding, and tha first ever held in the chapel. The Hon. Kathleen Plunket and Mrs. Walli-s . went from Wellington to be present. A reception was held later at Mra. G. Helmore's house, after which Mr. and Mrs. Waterfield left fdr Kowai Mr. R Sinclair ia to be married to Miss Hoadlev, in Napier, on the 21st of this month. A rery pleasant evening was given by Mrs. James Hislop for hu. guest, Mies Darling, of Dunedin. A competition — guessing the names of portraits when only part of the picture is given — was won by Miss Putnam and Air. Rex. Bridge. Afterwards the guesfs danced with' great enjoyment till one o'clock. The Miss Hislops wore pretty white frocks. A Surprise danee — got up by Mrs. W. H. Rose— was held at Mrs. Foster's, ft delightful house for any entertainment!. The supper table was decorated with chrysanthemums. The guest* — nearly a hnndred — had a charming time. One comes away from the Nautical i Bazaar impressed with the idea that Mr. Moore is » marvellous man with a wonderful way with sailors. He is doing a great work in the brightest and happiest manner, and Wellington ought to be proud of him. The bazaar promises to be a great success, and has been crowded with & cheerful, orderly throng. The sideshows are quaintly original, and one hesitates betfween the merits of the diver, clumping about in semi-darkness among the wonders of the mighty deep, and con«oled by ft rest and a "soft" drink at timely intervals, or the touching little dialogue between Nell and her grandlather, seated in their curiosity shop, where the many interesting things made you long to linger, notwithstanding the impatient ones waiting outside. There wae a fadedy sampler, a curir»« hundreds of years old, found in a cathedral, some charmine njin:<>t.Tes, an old j musket dredged up irom Wellington Harbour, some books whose readers must have been dost and ashes a century ago, and many other fascinating relics oi the part; music, bright and lively; and most inberesting and exciting cutlass iiAi and singlestick exercises by some finelooking tars from the Pioneer. In the tatter Mr. Moore himself took a notable hand, and proved himself a worthy and most agile opponent. The English, papers declare that gowns are getffing shorter, and that a train savours of middle-age. And there are bo few middle-aged women nowadays. A lovely evening gown of pale rose taffetas, made with the many-gored skirt, had the latter slightly wadded at the hem. About half o. foot from the edge large bows of rose red velvet! ribbon, tied with ailver braid, were set at intervals round the skirt, and the delicate lace draperies i>n the bodice were secured by a similar bow, catching a cluster of full-blown pink voses. One of the latest ideas for fancytfork is straw-plait embroidery, which is *sed for photograph frames, and said to be both durable and effective. Canvas, v. single mesh, is used, and worked with mercerised thread in basket-work patterns, the ground entirely covered. To jet the corners right, run a diagonal line with black thread across, and stop each stitch as it reaches that line. Green and cream or orange and black are delightful combinations, and a blot- , ter, covered in this work in tones of brown, makes a pretty present. A new tea-room hjs been started on Lambton-quay. The rooms are most commodious and pleasant, and an *xtra Attraction, besides the excellent tea and •ccompinimentfi, are the big chesterfields where weary women, waiting for unpunctual husbands, or tired from much Aopping, may reet. The friends of Miss Oiga Morgan, now Mrs. Lawrence Bradbury, will be interested to hear she has a little son. Mr tnd Mrs. Bradbury are now living at Cheyne Row, Chelsea. Miss Arndt leaves to-aay for Auckland where «he has been enguged by the Shakespeare Club to read the part of Lady Macbeth in their entcrl-inment. She also intends, with Mr J. M. Clark, to give a recital. It ought to prove a most happy and successful combination. Mrs. Beetham, of Brancepsth, and Mrs. Fred. Riddiford, of Palmeriton North, were in town la«t week for a few days Miss Webb haa been visiting Mrs Davidson, of Dunedin. Mrs. Deans, of Christchnrch, is a guest of Mra. A. Brandon; and Mrs. G. Harper has been staytag with Mrs. Loughnan. Miss Wat«on has returned to Wellington after her » Southern visit. Everjr one will be glad

to. hear that Ladj; Plunket is better, and was able to get up for a little while on i Wednesday. Miss Nora Cong, who has Bo' many friends-h ere, ai)d who is described in the Sydney papers as thin, . dnrkhnired, and with dimples, has a ' three years' engagement by the Moody-Manners Opera Company.-- 1 am, etc.,' PRIS_CILLA. A fashionable wedding took place recently in Copenhagen, when Miss Sophie Blaiunr, daughter of Dirk Blaauw, Esq., Tacoma, United States, was married to Count Robert Douglas. Miss Sophie Blaauw is niece of Mr. Emil Blaauw, of Wellington.