The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1880-11-16
An Esthetic Tea.

IOnuun Woflu, 4i1
Let il not be lightly supposed that
an esthctic tea merely means few
friends, little warm water, and some
leacups. II is q far more sacred Affair
"a kind of agape or love-feast.. IL liz
given by the elect 10 the initiated, and
one discorlant element would break
the magic circle, The rooms are al
ways shaded. Sweet scents, also, must
pervade the mir, for smell Is the sense
specially cultivated by esthcticlsm,
the influence Of odors on the nervous
system being branch Of physiology
highly entertaining to those who have
pursued il. Then, again, the touor
must bc low, subducd, and sad harsI
loud laughter aud buoyant spirits al
vulgar. A kind OF suffering melaT
choly hangs over the guests, as if the
were rather assembled 10 mourn u
dead han rejoice over the living
Music, Of coarse, is permitted, but
must be of the modern order passion
ate. soul-siirrins, incompehcnsibl
the rCciting Of Swinburne's or Kos
It's poetry, or even that OF some
spring, loug-haired, taper-dngerd
waxy -complexioned member OF
party may be INDUCED in, but
poetry must never incline to galoty
even to satire; il must be slow, swd
and solemn, ripping over oil u
heart desire.
And the women? What is TO Y
said Of them, with their marvelou'
color combinations and their pic
tulesque appearance, and the virginia. \
downcast style OF look which has come
in with tight-cut flowing garments,
and the pcnIhouse-roof style OF tan
gled cye-larkcning locksl Hero is
girl in q chrouhtic scale of burnt
sienna dApery. Several different tints
blend and minglc and cause her to re-
semblc living, walking cup of rhu-
barb and magncsia, like what the
nurses of our childhood inflicted ON
our shrinking selves, rs we sat up in
bed shivering in our nightgowns, and
listened 10 the gentle tinkiing OF the
teaspoons that heralded the nauscous
draught. This grand creature is the
goddess Juno, with suavcly flowing
robes of grasS-gecn, bordered OF the
edge with golden tracery, and bon
net lis tia bonnet or is il rather the
nimbus OF the godss) all studded with
big ox-eyed daisies. How majes,icai-
| Nv she moves! Who is sheg She was
| once little barefooted model running
nudcly in the mud; now she has mar
ricd q great painter, whose ideal is
Greek, 50 his wife wears Juno's dress,
and looks monstrous well in it too, by
Jovel Here comes, surely, our lady
of despair, who has eaten of Dead
Sea fruit. and has found IL calcined
with bitterness and salt-tasting tears
Her brow is sad, her eyes are wide
and dark-rimmed her face is long and
angular; her garments are sad colorcd,
and might be stained, from her ap-
pearanco, with the dews and tolls OF
lravel--grecn that has turned blue,
pink that has faded into yellow, white
that has merged into pale gray--thesc
are the tints that she affects; her hands
are white and worn--in one she carries
lily, for she is Oh admircr Of Rurnc-
Jones and her husband keeps a large
drapcr's shop in the city. @
To what does all this vapid scnti-
ment tend2 Why do we play q part
and dress TO fit il! Are we really more
unworldly, more spiritual, more up
ward striving9 Or is il not rather o
kind Of unhealthy craving after some
morbid sensations that tho ordinary
grooves OF life cannot give us5