The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1844-02-11

The Grand, Fashionable, Fouricrite, Metro
politan, Frce-and.Easy, Joint-Stosk Fancy
Ball at Miss SmugginS'. i

II
polltan, Ffee-and.Easy, Joint-Stoek Fancy
Ball at Miss SmugginS.
A FANCY Blk n o H.
The highly fashionable boarding house, over
whose affairs the accomplished Miss Smuggnspre-
sides with unequaled tact and dignity, was the
scene of the greatest confusion and excitement for
a fortnight previous to yesterday. A grand free
and-easy Fancy Ball. under the management OF
some half dozen old bloods and young bankers
clerks, the tapis, and in efecting the neces.
sary arrangements, the whole house was necessar-
ly thrown into considerable disorder. 1t was, how
ever, submitted to with the greatest possible good
nature by the "boarders,'' amongst whom are some
Of the very sweetest, incest most fashionable, most
good-natured, and afieconate ladies' in the city
and amongst the gentlemen, several who are proba-
bly, unsurpassed any where for the uxuriance Of
their moustache, and the fertility of their resources
for efiectng that beautiful and very philosophical
process, denomnatsd ''rasing the wind" The
"boarders," then, without murmur, ate in the
basement and kitchen, slept three in bed in the
garnet rooms, and submitted to thousand inconve-
niences rather than hinder in the slightest degree
the progress Of the magnificent. judicious, every
sort-o-shift preparations for the grand "free and
easy joint stock Fancy Ball.
consisting of the dining room, Mrs Green's bed
room, DIR. Epsom's apartment, and the two closets
occupied by Mr.. Seedy and Count Blowmynoseof1
Nothing could have been brilliant than the
tout ensemble Of this elegant suite of rooms just be-
fore the company began to arrive. Five Astral
lamps with only two broken shades amongst them,
had been borrowed for the occasion, and in addl-
ton to the three belonging to the house, half
dozen of Judd's best sperm candles on the mantel
pieces, and six very neat tin 'sconces nailed up
between the folding DOORS illuminated the apart
| ments with brilliancy far exceeding that of the
MONDAY sun. The decorations were remarkably
unique and tasty Tissue paper of all the colors Of
the rainbow had been cut into fantastic shapes and
| hung suspended from the ceiling in graceful fes-
looms The carpets had been taken up, all the old
| tacks carefully nailed down, and after tremen-
dous expenditure of soap and water, the floors had
under the superintendent Of Miss Molly O'Flana-
gan, assumed really clean appearance, and did
not indeed look at all like boarding house floors
A very liberal supply Of lemonade and any quanti-
ty Of delicious dough nuts and ginger bread were
placed one of the large kitchen tables which
had been transferred to the lobby. In the hurry
and hustle before the ball commenced, number Of
children, ostensibly belonging to some OF the
| boarders, made sortie on the gingerbread, but
| were fortunately repulsed by Count Blowmynose-
| off, who was then his way from the kitchen
with shirt collar and wristbands, which Sally, one
| Of the chambermads, had kindly washed for him
| that afternoon.
The third and fourth floors were also thrown
open;" and the attic suite of apartments, three in
number, and usually tenanted by the goddesses OF
| the spit and broom, were fitted up as dressing
rooms. Altogether the arrangements" were in adj
mlrable style, Miss Smuggins declared that every
thing looked charming. Mrs. Green said the same,
and SO did Mrs. Blown, and SO did Mrs. Howl, and
I SO did Mrs Sputter, and SO did Mrs. Everybody,
and all assured Miss Smuggins that she would posi-
| lively 'astonish the Browns" Miss Smuggns and
all the lady boarders were now dressed and waiting
up stairs in the attic, in dreadful state Of nervous
| excitement They were all in a perfect futter.
Mr.. Twitcher, Count Blowmynoseof, Mr. Greens,
| and Mr.. Didder the fashionable bank clerk, who
had been particularly interested in getting up the
ball, were also little fidgetty. Like generals ON
the eve Of decisive battle, they were uneasy till
| they saw how the thing went off.
| AT length the company began to arrive, and in a
very short time, the rooms the second floor were
| all perfect jam. Such motley crowd and such
a various gathering has never been seen in
this city since the celebrated O'Degherty Fancy
Ball, in 1S4O All New York was there that is,
| all the distinguished fashionables Of the present
| refined, elegant, moral respectable regime Ac-
complished drygoods clerks and druggists-genteel
| BARRIERS and bakers-eegant bar-keepers and but
| n-nakers-charning warehousemcn and watch
| stuffers-refned tobacconists and tailors-polite
shoemakers and shlrt-venders were there but the
greatest portion of the males consisted of elegant
men about town, who follow the highly fashion.
able profession OF living by their wits. The ladies'
presented an equally agreeable and fashionable
diversity of social condition Division street, the
Bowery, Waverly Place, and Broadway were
all represented. Every caste and every style Of
to the digniiied lady Of retired green-grocer ui
| town. were there. Ii was charming, republican
interesting, amusing, philosophical adnixture OF
youth and wrinkles. nature and art, verdancy and
| cuteness, downtown and up-town--all seasoned
and spiccd with profuson of New York morality
| decency, virtue and refinement.
| Such a crowd: Turks, Spaniards, Greeks, In
dams, Chinese, Irish, Swiss girls and Jersey girls
queens, processes, peasants, loafers, brigands,
nuns, balet-girls, gypsies, all sorts of character.
which the wardrobes of the Chatham, Olympic and
| Park, and the warehouses Of Chatham street could
furnish. The rooms were so small that the most
| amusing scenes occurred in consequence of the
pressure. One fat, red-haired woman of forty, who
appeared as Queen Victoria, was crushed almost TO
death in corner, where she was driven by an In
dian chief, and fellow who appeared in the very
| appropriate character of jackass Her majesty,
after vainly struggling to escape at last went into
Mysteries, and was carried oil in the arms of the
jackass, who emptled tumbier of lemonade in her
face, effectualiy washing off the chalk and red
paint, and sending her majesty shreking to one OF
| the rooms up stairs, when she again fell into the
arms of MIR. Didder who persopated apckpocket,
| and who was just then embracing tail thin lady
| dressed as Queen Esther Mr.. Diddler immediate
y disappeared, leaving the rival queens to arrange
their regal robes and recover their majestic dgni-
| ty as they could
| There was evidently no squcamish--no affect
| ed-no mock modesty amongst the ladies' Most
of them made most liberal display of their person.
i Il -.