The Evening critic. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1881-1885, 1881-07-19
A London "Crush.-

Jennie June writes rs follows from Lon
don:
"The other evening we attended great
| London "crush " ut one of tho most fash
ionable London houses. The vestibule was
ablaze with lights. which cast many-col-
ored radiance through tinted glass, and
| footmen in olive and cream liverics, silver
mounted, ushered us into the dressing room
on the ground floor where maids were in
readiness to remove the wraps and remedy
any slight disarrangcment Of hair or dress
Passing back through the arched porticos,
we assembled the broad staircase, broken by
q square landing, with deep embrasured
window, filled with flowers and ferns, and
where q silver-laccd footman-a gorgeous
crcature-asked our name and repeated
them to another gorgeous creature Mt the
entrance to the great drawing-room. At
the top of the stairs stood the hostess--a
small, bright, charming lady, with COM
plexion like creym and Strawberries, lovely
hair and eyes and pretty figure, fully shown
in the white evening dress of satin and
lace. She carried an immense bouquet
of pink and white geraniums, and warmly
greeted all her guests The crowd was SO
great that it was difficult to move in the
immense drawing-room, which was moro
like state salon. There were many great
magnates-their wives blazing with dia-
monds-their daughters fresh and sweet
looking, and simply dressed, as English
girls always are. Titled crowds are not
different from other crowds, and Lady This
and Lady That rs kind good-natured and
ready to chat rs Mrs. So-and-So in New
York. From Lady dc B. l learned that our
pretty and young-looking hostess, so small
rs to be not much more than o woman in
miniature, was the mother of ton children,
six of them daughters, and most devoted
wife and mother, as well as society leader
the wOrshiped of her children, the adored
Of her husband, whose father is an earl,
whose elder brother is tho well-known
Lord -. The ld-fashioned "full" even
ing dress, which still prevails to some extent,
though sad inroads have been made upon it,
gives an air of antiquity to the elegance in
toilet of even the most fashionable assem-
blage. The exactions of the Queens draw
ing-room etiquet in regard to dress are
responsible for this as 1t c0mpcls some Ia
dies to have their most elegant dresses made
with bOdiccs in accordance with this absurd
regulation. Apart from these, however,
the custom of wearing the old round low
necks and short sleeves may be said to have
been abandoned. At the most fashionable
evening gathering there are more dresses
cut square or pointed than low, and except
ing for these irruptions, or "reminiscences of
an ancient and obsolete ORDER the toilets
would not differ in any particular from
those of similar gatherings in New York,
except in the greater simplicity of the dress
of the young girls, and tho perhaps more
abundant lace and jewels displayed by
their mammas.
In conversation with one charming young
girl she incidentally disclosed that she had
been a pupil ut the South Kcnsington
schools, but had left them because their
teaching was not thorough enough, and was
now taking lessons of well-known artist.
This girl, i afterwards found was the
daughter of Lady N, an heiress, and
possessed, if not of beauty, of an expressive
and sensitive face, more attractive than
mere regularity of feature.
Supper was served in the dining-room
from long table, set with great taste and
splendor, while down the sides of the room
were small circular tables, decorated with
fruits and flowers, and occupied with small
groups, who came and went the whole
evening, or rather night, for the party did
not really begin till IL u. M