TEA TABLE TOPICS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1199, 22 February 1895, Page 15

TEA TABLE TOPICS.

Wellington, February 18. On Saturday a very quiet wedding took place at St. Paul's, that of Mr W. S. Eeid, Solicitor-General, and Miss Emma Halae, eldest daughter of the late Judge Halse. The Kev. Mr. Sprott and the Bev. Mr Tuckey officiated, and the bride was given away by her brother-in-law, Mr MacTavish. The bride wore a handsome grey merveilleux gown, trained and trimmed with a collarette and epaulettes of black Spanish lace, the skirt being trhnraed with deep Vandykes of the same, and steel gimp. She also wore a becoming jet bonnet with pale pink flowers, and carried a pretty white bouquet. Miss Eva Halse was bridesmaid, in a white cashmere gown, trained and trimmed with lace, and a cream straw hat with white silk and lace trimming. There were no guests outside the family, as they are in mourning for their mother, Mrs Halse. Mrs MacTavish wore a pretty black rnerveilleux gown with jet trimming, black jet bonnet, and she carried a beautiful bouquet of heliotrope and white flowers; Miss A. Halse wore black, with heliotrope chiffon frills, Mrs Lowe, a brown costume, and Miss Elsie MacTavish a very pretty soft white gown with black I ribbons.

Mr F. Halse was also married on Saturday, to Miss Lawson, the Rev Mr Tuckey officiating. The bride looked exceedingly well in a soft grey veiling gown, trimmed with silk, and a grey hat trimmed with ostrich feathers to match. She was attended by two little bridesmaids, the Misses Medlam, who looked very nice in white hats, and white smock dresses, and tan shoes and stockings. The bride was given away by Mr Cook, and Mr H. Seed was the best man. I have yet another wedding to chronicle, a,n.d, one that took people by surprise, as

the happy couple had only been engaged a few days, that of Miss Edith Brown, daughter of Mr W. R. E. Brown, and Mr Eight of the South British Insurance 1 Company. I hear that Mr Eight was suddenly ordered up to Auckland* so the Wedding Was fixed for Thursday, the day before his departure. The marriage took place at St. Paul's, the Bev Mr Tuckey officiating. The bride looked well in a grey costume, and a pretty white hat, and was given away by her father. Mr Kight was attended by Mr Webster as best man. There were few guests, as the wedding was arranged so quickly, but in the evening about one hundred people were invited to Mr Brown's residence to give their good wishes to the bride and bridegroom. The supper-table was appropriately decorated with lovely white flowers and maiden hair fern. Mr and Mrs Eight's health was drunk, and a very pleasant evening spent.

What a fine looking lot of men the Fijian cricketers are ! I hear that some of them are great " toffs " in their own islands, and I am sure they look like it as they bear themselves with much dignity. I heard an old cricketer, who knows very well what good play is, say ihat the batting of the captain of the team was better style than any he had seen in New Zealand before. For myself I wondered how the Fijians could possibly manage to run in those very circumscribed linen skirts. I know that they ought not to be called skirts, but I have not the least idea what the proper name of them is! They looked very quaint altogether, with their cinnamonbrown mops of hair, with the white bands around them, and their skirts, and bare brown legs. They seemed so comfortable in the hot sun, while Our poor men looked positively broiled.

The Synod is over, and women are not to be allowed to vote at vestry or parish meetings. Well, I never met or even heard of any women who wished to do so, but had the privilege beeti given us, I am sure we should have tried to do our best to deserve it. As it has been withheld, we shall probably go on as we have done before, working cheerfully for love of che work, and getting our own way in the disposal of funds, etc, though we are not present at vestry meetings. Seeing so many clergy about reminds me of a comical old story I saw the other day. A'certain rector w&s giving a dinner party to some brother clergy who were on a short visit to his parish.. «* Are they high or low, sir ?" asked his old butler, who had been with him many years. " Why, Peters ?" asked the rector. " Well, sir, if they are high we shall want more wine, if they are low more wittles 1"

I was charmed with the opera " Paul Jones." The music is tuneful, with seve. ral " catchy " airs, notably Miss Marietta Nash's song " Just- look at my Sabot,'' and the waltz song ; the scenery is so pretty, and some of the dresses are lovely: I thought each one Miss Nellie Stewart appeared in was prettier than the last. The first was a soft pale blue silk, made with the waist under the arms, and angel sleeves of lovely, lace, falling in boxpleats. ,

The second would make a lovely fancy dress ; it was a cream pompadour silk with bunches of pink flowers on it, also made in the short waisted. style, cut square in the front, and the square bordered with i pink silk, which was crossed bracerfashion at the back, and tied in a long bow and ends in front. With this she wore a large white satin Gainsborough hat edged and trimmed with yellow flowers. Her third dress was a very soft yellow spangled gauze evening gown, and in the last act she appeared in a dancing dress of black gauze with the most lovely rainbow skirts underneath. Inoticedthat one of Paul Jones' own costumes was very " up-to-date " in colouring, grey, silver and yellow, a mostfashionable combination which was most effective.

I always wonder who writes the irritable letters one sees so constantly in the daily papers about servants' and mistresses' grievances. It seems to me that those who are so unfortunate as to be always in " hot water" with their servants, or mistresses, as the case may be, would be far wiser to be quiet about it. It is quite certain that there is some serious fault in a mistress who is perpetually changing her servants, or in a girl who is always having to look out for a new place. It has seemed to me, in many cases that. I have known of, that there is one leading fault on both sides. On the part of the mistress it is that she will expect perfection in a mortal as full of fmlts and failings as herself. I have ot.en heard it said, "Sarah is a very ciea.-i, honest, industrious girl, but so slow," or perhaps she is not slow, but quick-ternpsred. Well, you cannot have all the virtues combined in one servant, and mistresses should be prepared for some serious faults in any. girl they may engage. The leading fault on the servants' part appears to me that they will not identify their interests with those of their mistresses. If a lady wishes, or, is obliged to be economical, she is instantly called " mean," if she has special methods of her own she is « faddy " and " fidgety " and so on. There must be forbearance and patience on both sides, and if people would only recognise this, there would be an end of the ill-tempered letters which have been appearing in both our daily papers lately. * v

Though we have occasionally adopted some "Japanese" fashions, and decked ourselves out in soft silks and large patterned brocades, I do not think that we shall find ourselves seized with the craze for topical hairpins which appeals to possess the Japanese young ladies. I see in an English paper, that they have taken to using hairpins illustrative of current events. Just now, as there is war between their country and China, they are adorning their peculiar little knobs of hair with impaled Chinese soldiers, warships, and flags, but, I believe, at other times these hairpins may be theatrical, political, or humorous, as the case may be. Ido not imagine that we shall want to deck our heads with models of ladies' bicycles, Mrs Yates, or even pretty Miss Nellie Stewart !

Are large sleeves doomed, I wonder ? I see in " the account of the marriage of Prince Adolphus of Teck and Lady Margaret Grosvenor that all the bride's sleeves are quite small, in deference to the wishes of the bridegroom, as he and the Duke and Duchess of York and other members of the Royal Family strongly object to " balloons " and " legs of mutton." I hope their objections will spread far and wide. lone.