OVER THE TEACUPS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2565, 13 May 1903, Page 61

OVER THE TEACUPS.

My Denr Read -r>. — The industries of our sex are of pcreunpl interest — whether they be personally applicable or not ; therefore, I make no apology for recording a new byway — if not highway — to modest industry. According to one of my English journals, the ineffable feminine patience and capa-

city for detail has found its latest expression in the repairing of wall papers. After the damage to the plasttr has been filled ia with putty, says the writer, "a sheet of frtsh white paper is pasted over and the damaged pattern painted in by hand." Now, I may as well confess that it gives me a certain amount >f pleasure to transcribe items like this, which show, as no words could do, the ineffable difference between the life and surroundings of the aristocracy of older countries and our own. Why? Because it at once grieves and humiliates one to see the frank and beautiful simplicity of colonial life spoilt by a foolish and unspeakably ridiculous attempt to copy the social habits and fashions of a state of society utterly removed from our own. By keeping strictly within those hounds of fitness and harmony of our simple and unconventional life, which — and mark this well — are most in keeping with our surroundings and traditions, and therefore most harmonious, we preserve our own dignity and the charm of our life intact. All inefficient and unsuitable imitation, in whatever direction it extends, is vulgar and silly. A keen sense of smell, it would appear, may be a marketable commodity in older countries, though in \ simpler state of conditions it is too often but a source of misery to its unhappy possessor — for there is a freedom and pristine freshness about colonial odours and a uniformity about their disagreeableness which testifies to the absence of flower farms and lavender growers in quite a pathetic manner. In Continental and English scent factories, however, an unusually keen sense of smell may qualify its possessor to attain the position of an expert at a salary of £600 a year. Though men are most in evidence as blenders and testers on scent farms and factories, their sense of scent proving keener and less easily deteriorated, yet many women are also well employed and remunerated. Attar of roses is, as we all know, at once the rarest and dearest of perfumes,

reaching the sum of £10 per ounce. Next comes essential oil of jasmine, which is only a pound cheaper ; musk is only £7 an ounce, and aiaber^rj_s, whien is sometimes freely found, I believe, on our New Zealand coasts, is worth £7 10?. Rather a quaint and pleasant little notion, taken from Norwegian State bails, might be utilised in country places — alas! that there are so many sueh — where the supply of dancing men is inadequate and the calls of duty conflicting: "The ladies who intend to dance wear white, ar.d there who are content to look on are expected to appear in black/ What a fine field for self-denial and self-obliteration is opened thus, especially in a large family of girls, who by thus visibly limiting the number who expected (or hoped) to dance might all go without a qualm. To our clothes— topic eternally dear to the heart of the woman the world over — let us devote at least a few moments, and since autumn fades last into winter, tea gowns and dressing gowns present an appropriate branch of our topic. About bought dress- ' ing gowns, I don't much care, I confess, the margin between the value of the material and the cost of the made-up garment seems so disproportionate. Moreover, except in the, case of the really .. high-class | (and expensive) models, there is a decided tendency to shortness and "skimpiness" of cut. The Empire shape — which I may | roughly explain as the fulness set into a j deep yoke, like the Gretchen yokes that I were, so quaint and pretty for little girls' [ smocks — is a new and a very useful shape, I neat, compact, and warm. As to sleeves, ' one feels equally prone to bell sleeves or 1 bishop, the former for ease and the latter for warmth

Nun's veiling is a material which we do not exploit the many uses of sufficiently |in our wardrobes. Lined with butter muslin, it is quite substantial enough for tea- ! gowns and dressing gowns, its simplicity { removed in the first case by garnitures of chiffon and severely retained in the second by a multiplicity of fine tucks or box pleats of itself and an absence of any i trimming other than a little coarse lace — 1 .string-coloured insertion laid flat looks best. ; For winter nightdresses nothing is more ' charming than nun's veiling, and it looks equally well simply tucked and featherstitched with silk, and finished with silk malte.se lace, or trimmed with fine torchon ! just as you would a longcloth garment; ' only remember that some allowance must be '■ made for a little shrinking. And, by the ! way, while on the subject of nightdresses, ! and in view of those yearly additions to our i lingerie which are best accomplished in winter's long hours of indoor life, a welcome change to the übiquitous yoke back is shown in the new shapes. The back is j box-pleated into shape across the shoulders and lined with a very thin yoke. For those who can afford them, lovely cream cashmere nightdresses, tucked into yoke shape and finished with silk embroidery, are very fascinating. As I want to give you the recipes for two rather quaint dishes be fort we part to-day, we must postpono further ;onsideration of toilette topics The first recipe purports to come from South Africa, and is offered you as an experiment. It is called SAS.VATYKS. Cut all the meat from a small leg of mutton into small pieces ; put it into a deep disb with two red chillies, a few pieces of garlic, and, if convenient, a few slices of fresh pork Slice three onions, fry them brown on an ounce of butter or dripping; add to them a cupful of water, a good squeeze of tamarind, and a tablespoonful of curry powder. When the mixture is cool pour it over the meat, and let it stand nearly a week, turning every day carefully

with a silver fork or spoon. If the weptlicr is cold it may he kept longer. 'When required for use string the meat on wooden; or wire skewers and broil (or grili) over a' clear tire. The garlic and chillies may b< taken from the liquor, which may then btf made into sauce foi serving with the meat. The next recip2 is for humble pie, a dish which I alwaj-s looked upon as simply figurative, perhaps because it was a diet frequently and strongly commended to my ; notice in my childhood by a dear old greataunt, whose views on the bringing up of little girls were singularly distasteful to me then. It would appear, however, that'there was a veritable "humble pie" which was in; feudal times the especial fare of the re-i tamers who sat "below the salt." That' part of the contents which then consisted! of the- meaner parts of the game killed in the chase may now.be taken by veal and* the other proportions of ingredients being preserved, the following recipe for a very appetising dish results. UTMBLE PIE. Mince finely lilb of fillet of veal^; adding one dozen oysters, lib beef suet, parsley, thyme, sweet marjoram, pepper, and salt, a tablespoonful of sherry, and the yolks_ of two eggs, together with one cupof breadcrumbs. Boat and stir to a smootH mixture ; line a dish with pastry dougb, and when it has browned slightly fill with the mixture, covor with strips of pastry,and bake in a slow oven for two hours ;' serve with brown sauce. Shall vou.Jiave the courage to try it? To these two quaint recipes I am tempted to add yet another, merely adding tßati these little cakes are eaten at Moravian "love feasts.." and are appropriately enough called •love cakes. Boil two cupfuls of honey and loz sugar;' add 4oz chopped almonds, and simmer five' minutes longer ; then add 3oz chopped candied pc-el, half a teaspoonful bicarbonate of soda, half a nutmeg (grated), and a.tablespoonful of rum or sherry. Cut into piecesi 4in by 2in, after adding enough flour to stiffen it and rolling it very thin Bales' in a slow oven, ice witli sugar, and eat cold. — Ever your attached EMMELINEL

— Bells are never used in Mohamedan jhosques, for the Moslems believe that their kound conjures iui evil eDirita.

— Certain qualities of wine are so cheap in Spain that they are used instead of water in mixing shoe- blacking.

ditions affecting the women's health in dangerous industries. Her training in chemistry includes a knowledge of the detection of poisonous metals used in manufactures and the estimation of the impurities in air. In conclusion, &he must be a thoroughly practical and well-educated woman, for on her success as a factory inspector depends the health and well-being of hundreds of her sex. — Glasgow Lady Reporter, in the Weekly Citizen. — The Dowager Queen Margaret of Italy, who shares the superstition common to so many royal personages, always wears, night and day, an amulet, which tabes the form of a tiny figure of tli3 Virgin Mary, carved in coral. It was a present from the peasant woman who acted as her foster-mother, and to whom Queen Margaret was most devotedly attached — Princess Alice of Albany is working hard at pleasure; ihere is scarcely an evening when she and her royal mother are not at a dinner party or ball — the latter for preference — or both. The charming Princess is much coveted for the smart entertainments, for she is, with her fair, soft complexion, sweet eyes, and fine figure, nearly always the acknowledged belle of the evening. It is very pretty reading in English ladies' papers that Princess Alic3 is so devoted to England — so "heart-and-soul Eng- ' lish" — but I know for a fact (says a correspondent in a Home paper) that her Royal Highness is enjoying her Berlin season as ; she has never done a London one, and that the ardour of several German cavaliers is more acceptable than the cool repose of ! the Vere de Vere caste. Those of the "inner circle" would not be snrprisel at the announcement of a betrothal between Princess Alice and a Prince of the Hohenzollern House any day. As to the Duchess of Albany, she is a German, and feels very comfortable on her native soil, despite all the ladies' papers and her English marriage. — The smartest of forthcoming weddings will be that of the widowed peeress, Lady Howard de Waldsn, and Lord Ludlow. It rarely happens that the widow of a peer retains her rank on re-marriage, but that will, of course, be the casfi with the pretty and popular mother of the present Lord Howard de Walden. Lord Ludlow, the good-looking son of the eminent lawyer so long known as Mr Justice Lopes, is a keen sportsman, a first-rate shot, and an enthusiastic rider to hounds, so it is probable that the future Lady Ludlow's life will much of it be spent in the country. During the last two or three years she has acted as hostess of Seaford House, her son's splendid London mansion. Lord Howard de W?lden, who came of age a couple of years ago, is very wealthy, being the owner of the valuable Portland estates in the West End of London, which came into his family through his grandmother, a daughter of the fourth Duke of Portland. — The Duke of Portland is the proud possessor of a blotting book which is both interesting and unique. It is a present from his wife, and on its rich silver mountings are engraven the names of all the races won by his historic racehorse Donovan. It will be remembered that Donovan's winnings, amounting in one memorable year to over £70,000, were given to the Duchess, and spent by her in building almshouses for widows of the Duke's tenants. — The Empress Eugenic has the true Southerner's love of flowers, and those of the richest and heaviest scent are her favourites. In this she differs widely from her late friend, Queen Victoria, who could not bear the odour of hyacinths, lilies, or Cape jessamine. Indeed, one of the reasons which made the Queen so shy of holding drawing rooms in her latar years was that the perfume of the ladies' bouquets often almost overpowered her In the Empress Eugenie's own particular sanctum at Cap Martin are water-colour sketches of the many places she has loved — views of Scotland, Pierrefonds, Switzerland, and her own Andalusia. ■ And Ihera is here a curious carved cabinet with many drawers, all of them locked, although their contents are only precious to their owner. Here also is the last gift of Queen Victoria. Tt is a folding screen worked thickly with nlken violets — the badge of the Bnnapartes. The Queen bought it at the Windsor Town Hall at the sale of needle york done by Irish ladies a few weeks before she died. That sale was the last time the venerated Queen ever appeared in public ; and the ; Windsor folk noticed with anxious hearts ■ how feeble their dear liege lady had be 1 - ! come, how low was the once clear voice, how dim and distressed the once bright glance. Princess Beatrice accompanied her, and it was she who noticed that "violet" screen, and spoke of it to the Queon. "Buy it for me," was the order, , given with a flash of the old energy. "It j is exa-ctly the thing for my Cliristmas-box ' for the dear Empress Eugenic." The let- i ter which accompanied the gift was not written by the Queen. For years sKe had | never omitted to send autograph missives to those she loved on all days of remembrance and congratulation ; but this first Christmas in the twentieth century was live j first, as it indeed it proved to be the last, when the old task of love had to be laid down. Before that screen wn^ unnack^'l the Queen had passed away. The Empres? j j Tp.enrds it with eyes that would w<*ep hud she yet tears to shed : for very close and faithful was the friendship between tlio'-e , two women, whose fate had been sr> widely ( i d^fferpiit, and yet po strangely linked. | 1 — The German Empress cares less about i i finery than most of her rrowned sisters. ■' : She holds that lack of adornment become attractive women, and li-er own personal appearance owes little or nothine to Court ■ tailors or jewellpTs. But her private taste« ] must yield to Court traditions, and otip of i these demands the use of costir tpw^Wv at all State ceremonies. TTenpe at Court \ balls the Empress Trioves in nn ntmosphrpp ' t aglow with Ftar-like gems — her diamonds ; { are most mncrn'fieent. and she lias sudi j qnanti las of them. But with thp eseep- \ tion of those special occasions, the Empress scarcely ever touches any of her jewels, r and sometimes for a whole month phe never * once wears any jewellery whatever. •