DOGS AT A DINNER PARTY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 11248, 11 April 1908, Page 2 (Supplement)

DOGS AT A DINNER PARTY.

millionaire's extraordinary entertainment;. ' NEW YORK, Feb. 14. A new "splash" dinner record was achieved last night by a member of the "progressive" millionaire clique. Mr Robert Collier, described m the newspapers as, a "society leader," . gave one of the most elaborate and undoubtedly the most expensive dinners ever served m, New York, at Sherry's Restaurant last night Two ballrooms were transformed at enormous expense to represent scenes from Spain, the first being a replica of a room m the house of a Spanish grandee, and the second representing the courtyard m front of the royal palace at Madrid. > ' ■ , «.'•-, The guests were seated at eight tables surrounding the courtyard, which was decorated with ti'ees. The branches of some of the trees touched the ceiling of the ballroom, which was specially painted to represent the sky, while realistic lighting effects were secured by means of shaded electric lamps suspended from posts. , In the centre of the -courtyard a stage was erected, where scenes from the entertainments? now running at three theatres were given by the original-per-formers. The dinner did not begin until midnight, because of the 'necessity of waiting for the arrival"' of the chorus girls from the Casino Theatre, with the dogs which a*ppea r m the "collie ballet," which is a -feature of the, Casino entertainment. The. dogs were fed at a separate table. The other guests included Mrs John Jacob Astor, Mr and Mrs William K. Vanderbilt, and. Mark Twain. Mr Collier endeavored! to keep the affair secret, but the gathering of so many well-known people at so late an hour attracted great attention.