SUCCESSFUL PARTIES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17348, 20 December 1919, Page 6 (Supplement)

SUCCESSFUL PARTIES.

What a strange, elusive thing the sue- I cess of a party is! I have been at parties j that .were; joyous from the first moment to'the last,* and at others which, with precisely the same ingredients, yet missed-fire to such an extent that people went home yawning dismally, and hadn't -a single incident to recount and gloat over next day—and we all know that the best fun of the best parties is- the talk about it next day. . Of course, even some of the best even'ings begin slow. I*- remember one that promised disastrously. It was one of those trying occasions when people are deteri mined to show the range of their accomplishments, and no one had sufficient strength of mind to atop them. So one woman sang Norwegian folk-songs, and a man with a voice like the clattering of plates recited a poem on Servia, and another even inflicted conjuring tricks on

an audience incongruously grouped, and obviously speculating as. to whether the' khaki-man in the corner was as amusing as he looked, and wondering whether they would get a chance to talk to the girl in the jade-green jumper. Suddenly the host, with an air of determination, seized a stringed instrument, and proceeded, with a notable absence of time or tune, to voice the lament of one Pete or Jake- Apparently, all niggers suffer badly from nostalgia.

The effect was magical - People who "had listened in polite boredom to good music became suddenly human', and sprang to the drink-table. Conversation buzzed; cheery people walked about with glass in hand' and told stories and- talked about themselves—which is, of course, the main object with which humans seek the society of their kind. The household af the Sleeping Beauty did not quicken into life with greater celerity.

Some time about 5 a-m., when the last crumb had been eaten, the last drop drained, a remnant of the party sat on the floor, smoking up the fag-ends, and congratulated the host on the success of his device.

" I didn't do it for that," said he, with characteristic frankness. "I was sleepy, and I thought if I did something verv bad you'd go." * '