The New York herald., 1878-12-01
THE LADIES WALKING CLUB.
LIVELY TRAMP over THE HILLS AND FAR
AwAY~-DoISG FORT LEE, THE PALISADES


A LIVELY TRAMP ''ovER rHE HILLS AND FAR
AwAY--DoISG FORT LEE, THE PALISADES
AND THE HAcKENsAcK VALLEY.
The ladies Saturday Morning Walking Club repre-
sents some Of the most exclusive circles of New York
society, and the precautions which its members
Obliged to take in order to guard their doings from
vulgar publicity s evidence of the OF their
new idea. With peryersity. however which the
proyerbal philosophers persist in ascribing thor
they had until yesterday confined their itincrant
exercise every other day but that whose they
had borrowed. As the FOR walking is nearly
over they discreetly determined upon turning
leaf before the old year dead and doing something
which old Saturn himself would benignly smile upon.
thus making amends for their previous eccentric
reading of the calendar. Quite early i'll the morning
a half dozen demure looking persons Of the
gcnter order OF creation approached the wharf at
the foot of Twenty fourth street the North River
and the moment that their feet touched tho deck and
they felt certain of having far escaped the obser-
walton of the average metropolitan reporter. they
partly threw od the mask of and merry rip
pies of laughter broke from their scarlet ips The
mornings Keen breath had already kiniled glow
their velvey cheeks and their eyes sparkled with the
excitement OF anticipation. .Such lovely day"
the comment. uttered in many differ
voices. They looked scrutinzingly about them but
whose appearance bespoke the spy. With
the fate OF Actcon before his eyes. the HERALD
porter read his doom in those pitlcss though
lovely eyes and he swore his so to silence over the
forbidden secrets that he might hear.
The boat blew its shrill whistle and moved slowly
out FROM the dock, heading up tho river.
Past the Elysian Fields, which have long
since ceased to be like the Hesperan gar
dens Of peace past the Weehaykcn brewery
imp,sinr blt structure ~ pnst Forty Wash
inston and under tho frown of the Palisades. they
sailed across the crisp and dancing until at last
she swung round to the landing at Fort Lee where the
bare woods shyer in the blast and the tall obscrya
tory stands gaunt and skclctonike against the sky
Ii about O'Clock when they discmbarked.
Tho hii which had seemed SO formidable to the
British infantry during the Revolution soped almost
as stecply before the lady pedestrians. but they
finched not With a resolution and vim worthy Of
the Anazons who stormcd the citadel Of Athens when
Thescus was king they went at it with firm and de-
tcrnined tread. They were strongly shod and wore
skirts of moderate length light upper and
jaunty hats Had they been bent on the capture of
a battery and had thus advanced live
betting man might have laid five to one
on their winning an easy victory. That
warlike thoughts, however, were far from
their minds was paipabc enough They avoided the
site OF the old carthworks, aud turning to the left
penetrated the gorge into the town. Their until
they reached this point necessarily slow but
when they through the woods rop Of the
Palisades. and had entered Palisade avenue. they
speed and action since their last stroll. The
wind blow brskly and played all sorts OF pranks
with their hair, which. when il had incontincntly
tumblcd down. they conld not then stop to
range in its accustomed shape. Their appearance
proved that beauty loses nothing by becoming pic
turesque Flushed with exercise and careless Of
their attire they seemed fitting complement of the
landscape.
HUNGRY nut CHEERFUL.
Two and half miles brought the walkers to the
Palisadc Mountain House, and they marched up to
its front with joyous step Were not their appettes
wonderfully sharpencd, and their imagination intent
upon viands more substantial than ambrosia? But
behold! How gloomy appeareth the castle, and does
not mine host or his deputies equally fail to
make appearance? The girls not
to be foiled, however. They boldly pushed
open the door. All was solitude and
yacuty and desolaton. Not A,ul was to be seen or
heard And these charming creatures, who had walked
two miles and half independently and in the
pride of their sex. would have given great
deal for glimpse of head waiter, u hotel clerk
any other Masculine individual whose presence would
have suggested the possibility Of luncheon. They
forgot that they tired, and remembered only
that they were hungry. They imagined that some
where in the great castle the cowardly giant who
owned it must be in hiding. So they from cellar
to garret and from garret to ccllsrup stairs. down
stairs aud in my lady chaniher'-bit not vestge
Of what they sought could bc found. Accepting the
inevitable, they finally sat down the rustic bench
outside to rest and laughed certify at their dscon,-
future. still they terribly hungry and they did
not stop long but soon started down tho Hackensack
Valley at a lively The road is macadamzcd and
it presented disadvantages. At the End OF
mile and half they reached the Engle-
wood Hotel. The scenery al the way down
was magnificent. They especially admired tho
bold and rugged profile OF the mountains
and the green hoows Of the river bottom. At
Englcw ood they spent hours. chatting efisivey
comfortable dinner. -Four of them then sepa-
rated from the rest and walked to Walton. sta
tion on the Northern Railroad of New Jersey. The
others took train ut Englewood and arrived in New
York about Ave O'Clock. The ladies who went to
Walton covered distance of seven miles in all.
Those who returned from Englewood had walked six
miles All were thoroughly delighted with their
perience.