The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1874-04-04

"' "'0 ." SuhuiShf anu Withali 30 inc0h-
venient and burdensome, as to demand
public denunciation. Nobody likes them,
everybody desires to be relieved Of them,
and all seem to be powerless to reform
them. Their burdensomeness forms
serious bar to social intercourse, and their
only tendency is to drive some men and
women out Of society altogether, and to
worry and weary those who remain subject
to them.
A person is invited to an "informal'
reception. Special pains may be, and
often are, taken to impress him with the
idea that such reception is, indeed,
"informal." The idea is very good. The
proposition is to bring together a circle of
friends in familiar way, without cxpen-
sive dress on the part Of the guests, or an
expensive entertainment on the part of the
hostess. 1t is an attractive sort Of invita-
ton, but woe to the man or woman who
accepts it according to its terms. The
man and the woman who attend in any
thing but full evening dress will find them
selves singular, and most uncomfortable.
They have taken their hostess at her word,
and find, instead Of party of familiar
friends, who can sit down and enjoy au
hour Of social intercourse, highly dressed
''jam," which comes late and departs late,
and which finds itself treated to an
elaborate supper. People have, at last,
learned that il there is anything that must
be dressed for elaborately, it is an "infor-
NAL reception, and that there is really no
greater cheat than the invitation which
called them together. The consequence
is that we have no really informal gather
ings Of men and women in what we call
"society."
Again, when we invite guest to dinner
at six, we except him to come at, or before,
that hour. 1t is counted the height Of
impoliteness for guest to keep a dinner
waiting moment. This is just as il
should be; but when we invite guest at
eight O'Clock, to reception or party,
what then 2 Why, we do not expect him
until nine, We do not ordinarily get him
until halfpast nine, and are not surprised
at his entrance at any subsequent hour
before the company breaks up. Why the
rule should be good for the dinner that is
not good for the assembly does not appear,
except that in the case of the dinner it il
a question Of hot or cold soup that is to be
decided. At eight the host and hostess
are in their vacant rooms, be-gioyed and
waiting. They are there for an hour,
wishing their guests would come. At last
one makes his appearance, and with q
guilty look whips up stairs. Then he waits
until another joins him, and another, and
another, and so at last he descends. All
have lost the only opportunity they will
have for pleasant chat with those who
have invited them--lost, indeed, the only
chance they will have of look at the
flowers, at the pictures, and the enjoyment
Of an undisturbed chat, with comfortable
seats, and surroundings. All dread to be
first, and so oil wait, and thus thrust far
into the night their hour of departure.
The company that should be at homo at
eleven, and in bed at half-past eleven, do
not find their beds until one the next
morning.
To the man of business such hours as
mingling in social life imposes are simply
killing. They are the same to women
who have family duties to perform. They
wipe the bloom of youth from the checks
of girls in from one to three seasons and
thus social life in the great cities, instead
of being blessing and a delight, as il
should be, becomes burden and bore.
Many are driven by considerations of
health aud comfort out Of social life
altogether, aud those who remain rely upon
the rest of summer to restore them sufii-
ciently to stand another campaign. We
submit that this is an uncxaggented rep
resentation of the present state of things,
and protest that it demands reform.
Every hour that a man spends out Of
his bed after lfalf-past ten at night is a
violence to nature. They have learned
this in Germany, where, in many towns,
their public amusements terminate at half
past nine, aud, in some cases, oven earlier
than this. 1t is in this direction that a
reform should be effected in America. so
far as every variety Of public and social
assembly is concerned. An invitation at
eight should mean what it says, and be
honored in its terms. In this way social
life would be possible to many to whom il
is now practically denied, and become a
blessing to all.
IL is not hard to institute reform of
this kind. All 1t wants is a leading and
half dozen Of our social queens could do
the work in single season. It used to be
deemed essential to social assembly that
huge, expensive supper be served Mt its
close and this at an hour when no man or
woman could afford to cat hearty meal.
We have measurably outlived this in New
York. Il is "quite the thing" now to serve
light and inexpensive ref shmcnts. The
man who dimes at six needs no heavy
supper before he goes to bed. He not only
does not need Il, but he cannot eat it
without harm. Its expensiveness is a
constant bar to social life and Let us be
thankful that this abuse, at least, is pretty
well reformed already. Other abuses and
I..t. L q