American Belles in Training.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5617, 13 May 1886, Page 3

American Belles in Training.

+ THE HARDSHIPS OF "SOCIETY" LIFE. " We are most of us in training for the ; winter seasons," said a well-known New j York belle the other day. "No one has ; any idea of the strain upon one's conßtitu- ! tion when so much dancing, late hours, ; and afternoon receptions and teas make up ; one's life for five or six months," she con- '■ tinued. " Generally I rise about 10 o'clock, ! and breakfast while my maid brushes my , hair. Then at 1 o'clock lam off to a ', luncheon, and only leave to attend three or ; four receptions. Home again at half-past j 5 to dress for a dinner party, and then to j the opera, and frequently a ball after the | opera. At two or three in the morning I |am ready to go to bed ; and this is the life j I have led for the last two seasons. What jdo I mean by training P Well, you would | call it training, I think, and every society ; girl has to go through the same regimen if j she wants to keep her complexion and health. Now, all the girls I know are PBKPABINQ FOB THEIB FIRST BALL. They go to bed early, say at nine or ten o'clock, and sleep until seven. Then they are given a bowl of beef tea before arising, and after they are dressed they must take a walk, a ride, or drive in the open air. i Coarw oatmeal forms their chief didh for breakfast, and after that meal they can go to the drossmaker's, shopping, or calling, but must lunch at exactly the same hour every day, and wear a veil to protect their complexions from contact with the cold air. " A low-neck dresa is worn for a while every evening," continued the belle with a sigh, "to accustom the arms and neck to it, because you know a person wearing a decollate bodice for the firat time in a ballroom is apt to catch her death of cold, and then her arms generally get so pink, instead o r f white. OUB GBEATKST TRIAT-S come after a dinner of bouillon, bread and butter, and roast beef. Our maids spend two hours or so polishing our arms and necks with glycerine and ro-sewater, and another hour brushing our hair. It is perfectly delightful, anyhow, with all its drawbacks. The flowers, the music, the dancing, the lovely dresses, and the compliments are perfectly delightful. But I never could understand how the young men keep up so well. Why, do you know, after a ball at throe o'clock in the morning most of them go off to the Club for an hour or two, and aouie of them don't go to bed at all 'i "