A LADY’S LETTER

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19433, 20 October 1925, Page 10

A LADY’S LETTER

LONDON GRAVE AND GAY

HINTS FROM FASHION’S ARBITERS

[Special it 4 'Chronicle.” —All Rights Reserved.]

CHELSEA, Aug. 29. The Red Campaign. There is some slight alarm being felt in England at the very definite and determined efforts on the part of the Communists who have this week quite openly declared their designs to capture the trade unions. The intensive part of the scheme commences to-day, when a two days’ conference is to be held in the Battersea Town Hall. Resolutions to be discussed are admittedly designed to further 1 ‘the revolutionary class struggle.” Next Monday the Young Communist League begins intensive propaganda to enlist the young of the nation, especially the lads of the Army. Navy and Air Force. On September 6 this propaganda is to culminate in the celebration of Youth Day, preparations for which are being kept secret. So the time is apportioned out until October 2, when it is presumed the Communists will allow themselves a rest. Among their various arrangements is a “special red week of agitation, selfdenial and recruiting.” Is It Tactful. Sir Almeric Fitzroy, for twenty-six years Clerk of the Privy Council, has published two of memoirs, tvhich have been hailed by many critics as extremely indiscreet and in rather bad taste, this mainly because the greater number of the people whom he has met and things seen and heard are too nearly connected with the present era, and the people are still living. The Jrook is admittedly an excellent picture of the time, and comparisons have been drawn between Pepys and Sir Almeric, but the most general feeling is it would have been more tactful to have left • the papers to be published in, say, 50 years. Despite the sly digs and sharp things contained in the book, there are some excellent stories told simply and kindly. One deals with an extraordinary act of tact shown by the Prince of Wales in a terribly trying moment. On May 1, Sir Almeric noted, “a very remarkable story is told me of an act of mercy performed at his own inspira-

tion by the Prince of Wales while in Belgium this week. One of his tasks was to visit a hospital for the special treatment of English soldiers suffering from facial disfigurements, the greatest difficulty of which is the extreme sensitiveness of the victims to any suspicion of curiosity or recoil on the part of a visitor. The Prince had seen all the cases produced and noticing there were only twenty-seven cases present out of twenty-eight known to be in the institution, asked for the twenty-eighth. The officer in charge proceeded to explain that his case was of such a frightful. not to say repulsive, character, that it was not thought well to include him with the rest, whereupon the Prince said he had undertaken the job and refused to have anyone deprived of his sympathy who had, it seemed, the highest claim to it. He was at once taken to the patient’s room, went straight up to the man and kissed him.” The memoirs begin as far back .as 1898, so that Sir Almeric’s book gives some new impressions of Queen Victoria and some of the outstanding figures of her later reign. Simple Homage. The funeral took place last Tuesday, in Westminster Abbey, of Dean Kyle, ■ for some years Dean of Westminster. Jhe Abbey laid its Dean to rest during a service as simple as when a country parish pays its last homage to its rector. The Abbey’s own flag, so rarely used as to appear strange, hung fathered and faded at half-mast. The Westminster pall with City and Abbey arms, the Tudor rose and the portcullis worked in gold upon its cream, lay upon the coffin. The Bell, used only for the burial of a Dean of Westminster, one | note lower than the tenor used at a Royal funeral, was tolled. The late Dean was buried at the foot of the .grave of the Unknown Warrior, whose removal from the battlefield to the last resting place of the famous dead was brought about largely by his efforts. It was Dean Ryle, acting on suggestions made to him, who approached the War Office, and then the King and Prime Minister, with the wonderful idea of an Unknown Warrior’s Grave. It was from the spot where he was laid to rest, that he saw the digging of the grave for the Warrior. There stood the King at the unforgettable burial service. There the Dean kept a vigil of many hours while the workmen working by dim lantern light at night filled in the grave with Flanders soil and hid the coffin of the Unknown. Most of the large congregations gathered for the Dean’s funeral service were regular worshippers in the Abbey. But there wore Americans and some French to be seen paying tribute to the Abbey’s Dean. Hobbs’ Refusal. Admirers of Hobbs are rejoicing over the great cricketer’s tact in refusing to appear as a music hall turn giving an exhibition of strokes on the stage. His reasons, most sensibly, are that it would belittle the game, that it would be adversely regarded by people who matter in the world of cricket, and that it would make him look a fool. In applauding his action it must be remembered that Hobbs, who draws far larger audiences than any music hall artist, makes far less out of his popularity, and that the temptation to become a music hall star himself must be severe. A Jolly Princess. Princess Ileana, the youngest daughter of the Queen of Roumania, who is being educated in England, has been spending the holidays at Cromer. One of the jolliest of the younger set, she is well in on every call of fun. She found the “treasure” last week in a treasure hunt organised by her host for the merry young house party and found herself the possessor of £4 in pennies. These treasure hunts arc extremely popular just now and it’s amazing where some “clues” are put. One in the Cromer hunt was attached to a stationary buoy a hundred yards from the shore. Hamlet Up-to-Date. The theatre event of the week, in a very busy week, was Sir Barry Jack-

son’s experiment of “Hamlet” dressed in modern clothes. There was not a doubt of the success of the effort from the first moment of the play, but it was a little time before the intriguing and ‘interesting settings could be reconciled. For the first few minutes unseen figures moved about and talked. Then a full lighted scene in Royal Court with men in evening dress, two of them wearing monocles, one with miniature medals of the recent war on his chest. Women in frocks of 1925, cigarettes being smoked, and butlers in attendance. There is no doubt it was difficult to reconcile, but as usual the play rose above it all. Also the unconsciousness of the company that there was anything strange overwhelmed the first self-consciousness of the audience. The Hamlet is Mr Colin Keith-Johnstone, who made a very real success, though it is curious to note that Hamlet appears to suffer more by the strange setting than most of the other characters. Ophelia comes out rather weakly also and it is rather difficult to know if the parts really suffer in the change or if the acting is not quite as great as one would wish. On the other hand the two comedy characters are far and away the most modern. The gravedigger might be any country gravedigger talking in 1925, and Polonius is extraordinarily modern. The King and bobbed-haired Queen played by Frank Vosper'and Dorothy Massingham, were really excellent, and though the sight of a soda syphon and whisky decanter in the prayer scene rather upset one for the moment, I have never seen the scene more impressive. All the smaller parts seemed to stand out much more clearly than in the classic dress and an Osric in “Oxford bags” demonstrated how very modern a character Osric is. Altogether one of the most interesting productions. A Musical Success. The same night saw the premiere of a new musical comedy, “Dear Little Billie.” It is very like dozens of other musical comedies, with a plot of small account and music neither better nor worse than the average. And yet it has a way with it, pretty, tuneful, often funny and especially well sung and acted and danced. Everything is done at full speed, and the first night performance went extremely smoothly, thanks to some weeks’ "try out” in the provinces. Adrienne Brune is the singing heroine, and has some very big singing successes. Robert Michaelis is a splendid hero of songs and smiles, and the comedy is supplied by Phyllis Monkman and Laddie Cliff. But the success of the performance as a whole came from the fact that all the cast—not to forget the chorus—seemed to be enjoying themselves. Old Friends Back. Wednesday evening two first nights again clashed. This was the CoOptimists, now in their fifth year, and a very fine play, “The Offence”, given a “try-out” some time since at Barnes Theatre. The Co-Optimists are at His Majesty’s, and have added Betty Chester, to their ranks, one of the original band. Their opening bill was exceedingly good, and the audience hailed the whole audience as old friends come back. A bull chased all these jolly people about at the end of the show. Entering suddenly into a Spanish scene in which Matadors and ‘ ‘ Dont Matadors” were singing and dancing, the bull, played according to the programme by Mr A. N. Other, put the whole company to flight. It was an absurdly comic finale to one of the finest and sunniest programmes the Co-op. have yet given. Wyndham’s And Du Maurier. “The Offence,” played at Wyndham s, which is usually considered the j home of Sir Gerald du Maurier, is an/ extremely interesting play by Mr Mordaunt Shairp. Ho has written one of the most interesting plays seen for some time. Briefly the story concerns a boy who is beaten by his father into insensibility and loses all memory of the beating. The boy grows up with a haunting scuse of injustice. Circumstances bring back to him the memory of the horror of long ago, and the curious nerve trouble set up is eliminated. The writing is reminiscent of Galsworthy and Ibsen, and the play should do very well at Wyndham’s. The reason for Sir Gerald du Maurier’s absence from this theatre is stated to be the difficulty in finding a play. Two plays produced by him early in the year proved bad failures, and though hundreds have been submitted he has found nothing to please him. He is to play opposite to Gladys Cooper in her new play at St. James, “The Last of Mrs Cheney,” by Frederick Lonsdale, author of “Spring Cleaning. ’ ’ A Dramatised Novel. Still another first night on Thursday launched a dramatised version of Mr C. E. Openshaw’s novel “Blessed are the Rich.” The play has been done by James Agate, dramatic critic of the “Sunday Tinies.” Produced at the Vaudeville Theatre under the Greville Collins management, the play had a very good first night reception. The story concerns a young man of literary ambitions who buys a grocer’s shop with his war gratuity. His idea was to write masterpieces while his assistants kept shop, but of course the scheme went wrong, mainly because his pretty assistant stole his money. In the third act the pretty cockney grocer-girl has become a Movie Queen and rescues the writer from his poverty by buying the film rights of his rejected novels. The first acts provide much scope for cockney humour and the third is an excuse for much sumptuousness. Winter Materials. Woollen hand-woven materials destined for winter wear are appearing in many novel varieties. One has the appearance of linen through pure wool. Others are patterned in a graded design of clouds embroidered in silk or with chevron patterns. Vivid bottle green and a rich imperial purple are two new winter colours. Tweed ensembles in both arc seen, and even shoes are being brightened with purple or green toecaps and heels.

New Jewellery. Tortoise-shell and ivory arc a new combination in jewellery. Some delightful bracelets have recently made their appearance consisting of alternate plaques of ivory and tortoiseshell united by filigree work in ivory. Flat Hair. The latest style of hai rd resing is even more flat than ever; hair, whether waved or not, being drawn very\ tightly to the head and kept burnished with brilliantine. In the evening curls at either side or at the back are pinned on, and sometimes a straight puff of hair is pulled down on the centre of the forehead. Really Up-To-Date. The really up-to-date pyjamas are cut in one piece from neck to ankle, with no sleeves, or very brief ones. Checked or striped washing silks are new materials for these, and a smart finish is given by a breast pocket and a dashing looking sash. Motion Frocks. The latest decree for autumn tells that women will look “kinetic,” especially in the dance room. For the initiated “kinetic” denotes movent, and the ne-fv motion frocks are a study in speed, a swirl of short skirts with fluttering draperies in soft silky materials that help the illusion of movement by their design. Little Details. Coloured gauntlets are being worn on short white gloves. Turquoise blue, roseate pinks adorned with embroideries in gold and silver make these new gauntlets very decorative affairs indeed. Another quaint conceit for dressy gloves is to have a little motto or monogram embroidered or beaded on the cuff of your glove. Indeed monograms are much used on all sorts of wearing apparel now. Quite the newest thing is to have the monogram on the hem of the skirt, at one side, concealed by a panel or hollow' pleat so that the letters only show when the wearer walks. A dainty fashion being set in the dance room is a new place for the coloured handkerchief. Girls with pretty ankles carry it neatly folded tucked through the instep strap of their dance shoes. A most effective place, especially if it makes a tiny vivid dash of lovely colour. Some of the newest frocks revive a feature which we have T»ot seen for many years —the yoke. These are cut square, I round, or pointed, and the bodice front is pleated or scantily gathered into the yoke. ' Handsome Is—i An American beauty specialist has been telling of strange treatment and 1

declares that all the beauty culture in the world will not help a woman to be handsome if she does not help herself and she advises the best way to do this is to exercise the facial muscles; a Cheshire cat 's grin lifts up the corners of the mouth, which age and flabby muscles pull down. Opening the eyes as wide as possible banishes the frown between them and making any sort of face in the mirror tends to keep the expression mobile and not fixed in hardness, as it so often becomes in middle age. This same beauty specialist advocates standing on the head to reverse the pull on the facial muscles and move the sluggish blood by an influx of arterial blood. The methods sound drastic, but ’tis said that American women are practising them all the same. Fickle Paris. Paris has changed her scents again and from such romantic names as “Un Nuit de Juin’’ and “Fleurs de Chine’’ she has veered round to “Chick Chick’’ in a ridiculous bottle with an idiotic-looking chicken as its stopper and “Gollywog” in a bottle like a gollywog. A Table Dainty. Fruit salad served in a melon is a pretty notion just now with melons at their best. The salad is made with erpial quantities of peaches, pears, skinned grapes and sliced bananas. The fruit is cut into small pieces, mixed slightly together with a little lemon juice and sugar sprinkled over. Placed in the halves of a melon, the salad is decorated with blobs of whipped cream before it is served.