New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-02-19
Asb ORLEANS DaiIp Grtstsnt,
FRIDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 10, 1853.
The NIar,Ii-grns Balls.

The Martii-grns Balls.
Want OF space has prevented us from sooner aliud-
ing TO the different balls of Mard-gras night; at
least the other balls beside that Of the Mstick Krewe
of Comus, (Which we have noticed at lengthy at
which the population combined to "drown dnll care'
as has been customary from time immemorial on
ShroveTuesday. After leaving the festival OF the
Mstick Krewe, we sped around town /; and though it
Mardgras the one night in the year of universal
gaiety, must confess that we were astonished at
the multitudes Of people we found engaged in the
festivities Of the night in the different parts Of the
city.
Odd Fellows Hall was the scene Of an extraordi.
nary assemblage Of gay and beautiful merry-makers
The dancing hall had been considerably enlarged by
the removal Of the stage at the upper end and the
placing Of the orchestra in the gallery yet with all
the additional room the place was crowded from an
early hour in the evening till the early hour Of the
morning at which the adjournment took place. The
spirit Of the carnival y was never splendidly
or joyousy manifest at Odd Fellows Hall. OF the
eddying multitude by far the largest part were in
mask and fancy costume the dresses betraying every
whim Of fancy, and many Of them being tasteful and
richly beautiful Chief among the maskers were the
Celestial Empire Club crowd Of young men i'm
penetrably disguised in scarlet Chinese suits who en-
| lvened the ball with series Of beautiful Chinese
pantommes and drills exquistely expressive of moth
ing, and therefore just the thing for Mardi gras
turnout After remaining awhile and seeing that
the crowds there were getting gorously, we left
and sped to the society ball at the Orleans theater.
We found the thester brilliantly fitted up for the
occasion, and still more brilliantly filed. A larger
assembly Of creole fashion, beauty and gallantry
we never had the pleasure OF seeing at ball. The
floor thickly crowded, whilst the dress circle and
boxes were resplendent with ladies and gentlemen
who came to see and not to dance, and who re
manned, drinking in the music and feasting upon the
fascinating scenes of fhe floor, just as they would
have done had an opera been in progress. 1t was
opera, in fact-the grand annual comic opera ot
" Mardi-gras, or the Death of Night with hun
ireds of citys most cherished sons and bewitch
ngly beautiful daughters in the cast. The masking
here was slim compared with that at the other balls
there was, however, enough to give character to il
as Mardgras ball whilst the queenly beauty, the
general soeaity and the richness and taste of fash
ionabe dress, which were visible in the absence
fancy disguses more than compensated all for thai
absence. A very beautiful and delightful scene in
deed was the ball at the Orleans theater and thos,
who were there for the night had good inducemen
to forget that Mard gras being celebrated in AM
other place.
The next ball we visited was that at Union Hail. il
the Fourth District. Thecrowd there was enormous
and the masquerading altogether intense Anon,
the few ladies who were unmasked we recognized tn
most beautiful of the Garden District and Boulign
bellies, while the pretty shapes and dainty hands o
the maskers spoke of a whole wealth of conceale,
loveliness. The gentlemen maskers were in all pos
sibe DISCUSSES the most conspicuous of them bein
u crowdn burlesque military uniform of big-legget
bobtaed blue, with caps of such extrayagant riI
and crown, that the latter had to rest the forms
for support, and ludicrous masks They poked an
: poked about in the crowd, resembling flock of on
landish birds of the bgbilled kind and were decic
, edly feature This ball, however, was too crowde
for There was no room to dance, no room to prt
menade, no room for anything but scrouging and
jostling from first to last. "The more the merrier
seemed to be the prevailing spirit with all but u
e who always havea weakness for plenty of room an
e when the dense and picturesque crowd got fairly
motion in a waltz or polka it resembled solid mas
quivering and revolving slowly around the hail. Sue
a crowd certainly, never before assembled in Unio
Hall and it was fitting compliment to the mani
gers, Messrs Rice & Butler, who have conducted tn
balls at Union Hall this season with such good tast
and with such general good credit. As we hay
!
jam for us; so we returned to Odd Fellows Hal
where, though the crowd was very great, there wa
still some room, enough to enable one to get aroun
without receiving damage to toes and ribs exten,
ing the same to others. There we concluded to bel
5, use up the remainder of the night; undertaken
e in which we succeeded delightfully."- well.
a The ball at Odd Fellows Hall was the last Of Il
r. Young Mems Society Balls series of festviti,
which have been the prime feature of the town f,
three winters past, and particularly brilliant feau
this winter. They have been so largely and fashio
IL ably attended, and have afforded such general degl
to those attending that it is matter of regret th
s. the managers should think of disbanding for such
!. thing we know is talked Of. They have by their ur
form care and good management in conducting the
h balls, established reputation such other sim
lar body of young men has yet established in tn
city; and the great numbers of our gay populate
who have attended their balls, will not be able to rC
F. ish such thing as their final discontinuance wi
er this saason