Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-08-12
LETTER FROM SARATOGA.
Life at the Springs-Duii Times. and Growing
Duller-Who are There, &c, &c.
Special Correspondence of THE EVENING srAn.

|
| Duller-Nho are There, &c, &c.
Special Correspondence of THE EVENING STAR.
| SARATOGA, August 10, 1882.
| sLET's TALK SPOUT THE wgATHERn
| Much needed rains the first part of this week
have greatly contributed 20 the enjoyment of the
| visitors here, whose numbers have largely aug
mented since Saturday last There had been no
rain IF any consequence here, am told for four
weeks past As the rains came up after the races
were over each day, and late enough for most
! people to have returned from excursions they
were douhly welcome, since they tnterfered with
| nothing but the afternoon drives, which can be
! taken one day as well as another
EVENING ENTERTAINMENTS.
Among the amusementS promised for this week
Is Miss kellogg's concert tomorrow evening, and
Oscar Wilde's lecture this evening. The latter
Will have rival entertainment In the fireworks in
| Congress Park. Being himself also OF the pyro-
| technic type achieving a blaze OF sudden and
| temporary glory, the two should not have been
| fixed for the same evening. They have a custom
| OF representing noted persons and symbols in the
park Gen; Washington and the American Eagle,
the Star or independence and Cross OF Malta fire.
| quently appear there. and last week. when Jumbo
was expected with Barnum'5 circus, the close OF
| the program OF Thursdays pyrotechnic display in
| Congress Park Was an Illuminated elephant OF
huge dimensions, who proved himself to be the
genuine Jumbo, whose bad temper Is proverblal by
, showing himself a regular "Spif,e.n l have no
| doubt that Oscar Wilde and the lily will also be
depicted there. The sun1owers, of which the
park has had for several years many OF the largest
and most perfect type, are already in gorgeous
bloom to greet their apostle On looking over the
program find Oscar has already been advertised
| there among the fireworks under the guiSe of O
windmill. When saw 1t at the last exhibition
In full blaze or glory, 1 at once called my COM
panions attention to the likeness to certain very
rosy-vsaged rotund leader of the House of Rep
resentatives, when violently gestculating, as lie
always does, during his constant addresses when
the. House is In session. The resemblance was
really so striking that any one who had ever
observed the above-described orator could not
have failed to see the Slmilitude.
| THEY PAY THE PIPER, YET DANCE NOT
AS l wrote last week, the spirit of enjoyment
seems altogether lacking at the hops here,
| though why no one can say. Surely nowhere
are more temptations offered in the way of beau
t1ful ball rooms perfect dancing floors, and entic-
ing music. There are so few dancers. and espec-
tally so few gentlemen that it is said there are to
be only two hops at the Grand Union per week,
instead OF three as now, and at the United States
| only one each week is now given. and two at Con-
| gress Hall. l should not be surprised IL by an
other season no hotel here would give hons offener
than once per week, since there are few who live
at the hotels where hops are given who attend
them, or If they do they do not dance. The master
of ceremonies at one OF the largest hotels has said
TO me more than once that he wished comment
would be made in print on the behavior OF the
people living In that hotel in regard to the hops,
or going very late end then complaining that the
seats are filled up by residents of the village or
those boarding in private houses The two latter
and do most OF the dancing at them
THEY ALSO PLAY DOG IN THE MANGER
But the boarders at the hotels not only decline
to dance themselves, but apparently don't want
any one else to dose, and request the proprietors
OF the hotels to limit the hops to the guests OF the
hotel at which they occur, and their personal
friends So tickets are issued for the ball rooms,
ana no one Is allowed to enter without one Yet
| the "stuck-up" rich boarders at hotels turn TN
their noses, and proclaim that dancing is out Of
fashion for summer, and that nothing Will tenn
| q q
place AS it is obvious that hop without dancing
! would be paradoxical. 1t naturally follows that
| oftener than once week. Only few years ago
there We're six hops per week at each of the hotels
| here which have ball rOOmS,-COngreSs Hall the
| Grand Union, and the United States.
Meantime at White Sulphur Springs hops occur,
and every young person dances six times per week
| that there are also germans given three times per
| week in the mornings Here they find 1t hard to
get up one or two such ia a season. The Grand
Union Is, however, to have one next week, and
| possibly garden party Also The latter may
occur on the 18th, but the date is not yet fixed.
NEW ATTRACTIONS.
1t Is announced in one OF the papers here that
an esthetic breakfast was given this morning to
Oscar Wilde The feast took place on the top Of
Mt McGregor, and the repast consisted OF pond
lilies and field daisies. Sun-fowers were eschewed
as too substantial The breakfast came off at II
O'clock The spot selected by the esthetes is a
rebuke from nature to all that is puerile and hn-
with boulders and the stumps of trees which have
| been recently felled. In March last the Mt Nc
Gregor Improvement Company began narrow
| gauge railroad from Saratoga to Lake George via
| the mountain. On the 18th Of July trains began
| to run to the Mount and in less than month
since then there have been several hundred visit
orS every day. Extensive landscape views are
spread out to delight the tourist during the ride of
forty minutes. Already there is perfectly equip
ped restaurant on the mountain, a small hotel
and many facilities for amusement and enjoy
menf BY next summer hotel to accommodate
600 Y ! be opened and the pleasure grounds now
enJprDrStnU
| pany have already spent 100000 Mt McGregor
is thousand feet higher than Saratoga. The air
is pure and dry, and h"y fever sufferers find per-
feet relief there The views are very beautiful
| and the mountain is one OF the most attractive
places In this ne1ghhOrhOOd. The road to Lake
George will be finished this summer.
PERSONAL NOTES.
| The meeting OF the Bar Association this week
has assembled here many noted lawyers. Ex-
Senator Stevenson came On from White Sulphur
Springs to attend and will return there at the be-
| ginning OF next week.
Among the Washington people here recently
are Mr.. and Mrs Seaton Perry, Assistant Secretary
| Hunter, OF the State department.; eX-Secretary
Blaine, Viscount Las Nogueiras, the Portuguese
minister; j. j. Norton, P: Barton, Mrs. Mills and
vey. Ex-Representative Willis, OF New
York, Is here with his wife; also, x-Representa-
| tives Sayler, OF Cincinnati, and Poland, OF Yer
mont, and ex-SenatorS Stevenson, of Kentucky,
and Keenan, of New York; District Attorney Keas-
hey, of New Jersey, and wife, Cyrus W. Field and
wife; Gov. Long, OF Mass; ex-Gov Ingersoll, OF
Conn. and family, and Bishop Cheney, Of the Re-
! formed Episcopal church.
Among others who have been at Saratoga lately
| are William Allan Butler, Of New York: Truman
p Handy, OF Cleveland; Hon. H. s. Little presi-
| dent New Jersey Central r. r. Representatives
| Morse, OF Boston, and Beach, OF New York; Gov.
| Cornell and family; Hon. Andrew d. White ex-
| minister to Germany; Mr.. w. A. Croffut, of New
York, the distinguished journalist, and wife; John
G. Moore, president of the Mutual Union Telegraph
! company, and wife; Dr. Green, president OF the
western Union Telegraph company, wife, daugh-
| ter and son.
Saratoga has way of claiming all the dignt-
tarles In the land as visitors, and because gen.
| tleman named Chandler was registered at the
Grand Union Hotel last week the local press an
nounced that "the Secretary OF the Navy is en-
scOnced at the Grand Union" I read In THE STAR
OF his being seen in Washington at that very time.
| MI Hurlburt, OF the New York World, after re-
slsting for years all overtures Of the miSchfevous
little gOd has at last succumbed, and will be mar
| rled In the early autumn to Mrs. Sherwood, OF
| Baltimore The lady Is noted as translator. and
Is highly regarded in Baltimore Her three attrac-
| tive daughters are very accomplished, each one
with special gift The eldest Is married, and the
Other two are to wed gentlemen OF high position
prior to the marriage OF their mother These three
weddings are OF an unusual character, and excite
much interest where the parties are known.
| MISS GRUMPY.
WashingtOn's Historical Houses.