The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-04-19
SPIRIT OF TEE PRESS.
Editorial Opinions Of the Leading Journals
upon Current Topios-Compllod Every
Day for the Evening Telegraph.
JENKINS AND THE BRUNErTEs.

JENKINS AND THE BRUNETTES.
From the Chicago Post
Dancing has long been in favor as a semi
religious rite. Miriam worked off her super
fluous piety by frisking and gamboling along
the sands of the Red Sea, and David shuflled
around the ark to the great modification of
Michal, one of his numerous female attaches,
who told him plainly that he ought to be
ashamed of himself for cutting up in that
manner In the old Greek choruses, all the
population of the cities turned out to join in
the breakdown before their particular god;
and even the distinguished Jupiter is said to
have shaken leg, when he felt good, on
moro than one occasion. The monastic
dervishes express their woe by swinging part
ners and crying ''all hands round!" and the
shambling Shakers show their emotion by
motion crooking their elbows, ducking their
heads, and agitating their lower extremities
to prop;tiate the divine wrath.
Our colored brethren are a dreadfully imi-
tative race, and it is natural enough that they
should copy the practice of devout dancing.
In Omaha, Nebraska instead of celebrating
he fifteenth amendment evening by prayer
and praise and solemn genufexions, they en-
ployed "a band consisting Of five pieces, and
whiled the night away in antics saltatory, ro-
fatory, and also, it appears, amatory. In
Chicago they prayed and preached; in Omaha
was bent vertically instead of horizontally.
And the faithful Jenkins was there-he is
always Just where we want him!-with his
eagle eve and his inkstand full of delicious
descriptions.
They met, he says, ''to enjoy such an even
ing as is only to be enjoyed through the me-
dunn of the giddy mazes of Terpsichore.
That is handsomely said. 1t shows learning.
The hall was ''tastily decorated" by "a COM
ofI Iodi nd xpJ,oh had haa
appointed for the purpose, and presented a
fine appearance" At an early hour coaches
brought "the elite of the colored population
of the city to the scene of Joy. Among the
fine turnouts we saw" continues the genial
Jenkins, twas the dashing affair of Mr.. John
son and the stately equipage of Mr.. Smith. u
Jenkins has completely conquered his preju-
dioes, as the great Webster adjured us all to
do-only in just the opposite direction. He
knows his duty, and goes straight at it. "The
scene quite reminded u.s." he confesses, ''of
New York, or pleasant July evening at Long
Branch" And Jenkins is judge. He fire.
quently gets raptured-sometimes ecstatic
but he never loses his self-possession.
cat about the usual no ur, the hall being
well filled. the tuning of instruments was
heard" There seems to have been admirable
order. Everything was done at its proper
time The clarionet and the fantastic fiddle
were not allowed to ''jangle out of tune and
harsh" But we have not yet come to the
interesting part We will hurry past the
brilliant account of the operation of selecting
partners, and the paying ''of thousand
attentions by the gentlemen to their respec-
tive sweethearts," because we consider the
latter not legitimate as feature of q religious
dance.
Jenkins noticed s'several costumes that are
we'll worthy of mention" and he stood in q
corner of the room and took notes as the
sable seraphs fitted by. ''Mrs. Luker was
attired in beautiful white silk Dress finely
fitted to her handsome form with leather
colored gloves-and a beautiful general ap-
pearance." We cannot imagine anything
neater. Leather-c -colored gloves to set off a
white silk dress-a delightful contrast, like
well, say like autumn leaves and snow flutter-
ing down together on a black loan. ''Mrs.
Cash was very similarly attired, and none the
less exquisite in her makeup and figure.
Jenkins is mathematically inclined; he has q
lynx eye for figures. Here he goes again
''Mrs. Withiers wore black pique dress with
white stripe and black kid gloves. Her
hair was nicely dressed, and with her tall,
queenly figure, she looked quite Venus.
The Venus here SO elegantly referred to is moi
the Medicean, who had only one leg and one
arm, and couldn't have swung partners; mol
the planetary Venus, who has no satellites
whereas Mrs. Withiers had several; but Venus
Aphrodite, the wife of Vulcan, who, as she il
known to have been born in the from of the
Black Sea, was undoubtedly colored person
at the very least an octoroon.
Jenkins goes on to declare that Mrs
Frank Burns, "who is of really polished
stamp, was another of the greatly observed;
that several others were "quite stylish an(
dressed in the best of style;" and that ''Mrs
Robinson, very much inclined to enabonpoint
and extremely graceful, with beautiful
mild expression, and fine mould of feature
was, in the abstract, second to no lady in tn
room.
Jenkins is delightful, but we cannot folloy
him entirely through the mazy. His frs
attempt to work up polished ebony is un
doubtedly conspicuous success, and cur nev
citizens are to be congratulated that the fiji
teenth amendment has not only given ther
justice at the ballot-box, but Jenkins in tn
ballroom.