The Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, Ohio) 1853-1861, 1858-05-20
Masked Balls in Paris.

Masked Balls ian Paris.
The new York Courier and Enquirer gives the
following description of these celebrated affairs;
Were you ever, reader, spectator of one OF
those Partisan exhibitions?--we mean, oil course,
the better class of them, those which take place
twice week during the winter, commencing at
the hour of midnight at the Grand Opera or the
Opera Comidue If so, and il you looked upon 1t
with purged American eyes--as we take it for
granted you did--you have no need to be told that
the masquerade is no entertainment for the vrtuouS
daughters of America--the voluptuous music on
the stage, the floor swarming with men and women
IN extravagant costumes, dancing swearing, laugh
ing, quarrelling speaking words that should DIS
ter human lips, the foyer more elegant and recher
che humming with double entendres and every
style of intrigue and in the boxes and Saloons n-
decences that beggar description and almost ex-
ceed belief. To AID the imagination OF those who
have seen nothing of this, we will cite few pas
sages from the pages of an American writer, whose
only fault is that he under-coors:
IA lame man could hardly help dancing to such
music, but the French shouted aud danced; they
danced with their feet; they danced with their leg
they danced with their arms; and their eyes danced
most of ALL Now the locks of a marquis brush
your face, and now the toe of countess comes
within an inch of your nose, though you be taller
than she. A Pierrett6 whirls you completely round
while perhaps real danseuSe from the opera, III
performing one Of her entreChats carried away by
her enthusiasm for the dance falls into your arms.
The scene was indeed brilliant, for no lady is allow
ed to enter unlesss masked and domnoed in trav3s-
try, and no gentleman unless in trayeStry CIR iuli
dress; SO, whatever might have been the character
and standing Of the individuals of the assembly,
their exteriors were certainly always elegant ard
snIendid X As the night
wears on, and the blood grows warm, the excite
ment and noise increases; everybody talks with ev-
erybody, tutoyGrs everybody and rldicules every
body. They laugh at one another, and tread on
each others toes, or those they had never seen.
y n At three o'clock in the morning, the ex-
citement reaches its height, the musicians have
caught the general spirit, and play with redouo-
led energy, the demand is for noise as well as for
music One of them seems occasionally to strike
a barrel. another tin-pan and another gong,
which certainly gives wdness to the instrument
tation in perfect keeping with the whole scene r.
A fine dust arises and fills the whole theatre 1t Is
just enough to dim little the blaze OF light ana
.impart hazy look to the splendid array OF beauty
spread out on all sides The noise is deafeuingi
shouts of laughter in every key of the diapason
rises from five hundred voices at once; blaze
of wit and repartee, stale enough in Paris
when one knows it, but brilliant to the stranger
flies about ones ear like the popping OF squIoS -
The third sex (for grisette must belong to thai
sex as she eau hardly be ranked Us masculine ol
feminine) is now all animation; she claps her lttlt
hands and dashes in, performing the evolution;
with surprising dexterity. And now what clat
ter of feet and flashing OF eyes, aud tossing o
heads How the tall plumes wave in the air an(
how the snowy white locks Of the marquis dance
to the music, and what shaking OF gaudy dresse
and laces and spanges and epaulets! What beau
tiful shoulders and bosoms fit under your eye--
What tnner forms or? hon9dng sn ahont v"S reg 1n
they ore all intoxicated with pleasure, and per
haps q few thimbles full of cognac.
Here fin the buffet a scene presented itself sucl
sas can never be witnessed elsewhere. The table
were strewn with champagne bottles, smoking ho
punches, bavaroises, segar stumps, broken cigar
ettes coffee cups, liquor glasses, and In short ev
sery imaginable drink or untensil that could be ser
,viceable in Bachanalian rout; while around tn
table, and on the table sometimes, we're closel.
grouped hundred fantashcal forms and shapes o
every color, twisted into every possible position
land all talking or rather shouting, at the sam
time. The air was filed with dense smoke fron
the cigarettes Of fifty pretty lips and the cigars
their companions, and if there was anything the,
did harder than drinking and smoking, 1t was th
jingling OF glasses, banging OF chairs, and genera
efforts to see who could make the most noise.
For an instant was completely lost in rehec
tions Never had been present at scene c
greater apparent gaiety--never were appearance
more deceptive Nearly all of these gaudy glide
'exteriorS concealed hearts that WERE or ought t
have been miserable; but a short life and a merr
one seemed to be the universal aim, and so the
danced themselves into misery and death-dance
themselves so far away from true happiness as tn
quiet of family freside is removed from the boiS
ferrous mrth of masked ball