Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-14
SOCIETY RETRENCHING.
PLENTY OF GAYETY, BUT A
TENDENCY TO ECONOMIC.

BeIes Takes a step in the Right Direc-
tIon-Eva Mackay not to Marry
Prinoe-Mark Twain's Lecture Tour
and MISUNDERSTANDING Huls-
Ramps Ambition.
Correspondence Of the Morning Nelcs.
NEW YORK, Dec. 12.-SOciety is not at
all slow just now, nor, on the contrary,
can it he said to be extremely lively.
There is enough going on, however, to
furnish moderate amount Of amusement,
dancing and fiirtatiOns for those who are
not too exacting in their demands and
expectations. The city has been sur
feited with teas during the past fortnight
or two, but it is believed that society is at
last to have dive. siOns Of a little livelier
sort. Balls without number are on the
taps, and the list is constantly incTeas-
ing. Opera and theatre parties continues
in favor, and the managers can thank
them for the conversion of many an
honest dollar into their exchequers. The
weakness in the money market has, how
ever, exercised a very noticeable effect
on many OF the entertainments given this
winter. Many who gave them last winter
viii not repeat them this year,
and shOpkeepers who have in the
past derived the best part of
their income from society people are
bitterly bewailing the hard times. 1t is
safe to say the bellies have not INDUCED
in half so many outfits this winter as they
were wont to do IN the few years that
money was so abundant. One effect of
the recent experience of the deceptiveness
Of appearances of wealth has been a more
rigid adherence on the part of the store
people TO the cash system. Even society
people are said to fully appreciate the
need for economy. OF course, the million
aires Of New York will continue to lavish
money on social pleasures as Tecklessly
as ever. The class Of people who are
mostly identified with the retrenchment
movement are those who affect society
extremes, but whose fortunes range at |
and about million, and are so invested |
that perjury is barely possible with them |
While II is not with their more wealthy /
rivals. As an outcome of this feeling, an /
organization of young married women /
and older society girls has been formed, |
1t IS said, to discourage, If possible, the /
fashion of sending expensive bouquets by 4
men 10 their partners IN the german, or
TO their favOrites at the balls during the 1
season. They argue that where one man
can afford to constantly send expensive
flowers, some cannot; that the custom has /
abuses, and should be stopped. The debu-
tantes, 1t is reported, are already up in
arms against the proposed innovation,
and it looks as if New York would see
this winter a social war of "buds'' and /
''rOses." The ladies comprising the or
ganizatiOn have agreed not to carry any /
bouquets 20 the balls this winter. One of |
the most brilliant events that will mark |
the dying days of the year will be the /
ball 10 be given by Mr.. and Mrs. Ogden /
GOelet, on Dec. %, at their residence on
Fifth avenue and FOrty-eighth street. |
About a thousand invitations have been
issued. Mrs. Robert GOelet and Mrs. |
OTme Wilson, nee Astor, Will assist the /
hostess to receive. The floral decorations |
for the occasion will be on a scale of |
almost on a parallel with |
those which aided in making the recent |
AstOr wedding famous. Hundreds of /
dollars will be expended on them and the |
menu will be written with a complete dis
regard of expense. All the costumes /
worn by the ladies will be of WOrth's /
making and special impOrtatiOns for this /
occasion. As this will be Mrs. Wilson's /
first appearance since her marriage at an 4
Of the kind it is expected |
that her old friends and admirers Will be /
present in large numbers.
EVA AIACKAY NOT TO MARRY.
W ora comes from dCIOSS Tue water ludi
all the rumOrs linking the name of the /
daughter Of Bonanza" Mackay to some |
titled snOb Of an Old World capital are
false. a lady who has just returned to |
this city from a visit to Paris says that |
rumOrs are becoming exceedingly |
annoying to the Mackays. The lady says 1
that the fact Of the matter really is that |
the Prince in question is an adventurer |
who is hard up for money and whose /
l. orTr~ 1n6 II hau
been already OyerwOrked. When he /
first allowed it to 60 out that he |
was engaged to marry Miss Mackay, all |
the people TO whom he owed money de- /
velOped a sudden desire to let him owe |
them some more. Mrs. Mackay had not |
up to that time taken any trouble to deny |
the statements concerning the people who |
were supposed to be in love with her /
daughter. But when this princely adj |
venturer began to spin around Paris in |
an exceedingly lively style, spending /
money like water and running up large /
accounts all on the reputation OF being |
engaged to marry Miss Mackay, Mrs. |
Mackay made decided objection. Then /
the fellow allowed the thing to remain |
quiet for a year or two IN the hope that |
the affair would blow over. and now he /
comes TO the front again with renewed |
stores of the engagement, hoping, no /
doubt. to play the same game over again. |
1t may be that Mrs Mackay will not deny |
the story a second time. She did it on the /
first occasion simply for the protection of |
a lot Of people who were being vlctimiZed |
by the adventurer. Miss Mackay is /
very unpTetentiOus young lady, and is |
and pleasant in the extreme. 1t /
is not at all unlikely that she will yet be /
led to the altar by one of her own cOun- |
trymen.
MARK TWAIN'S LECTURING TOUR.
Mark Twain is just now involved in a |
very profitable little financial scheme, |
the inside facts of which l learned |
couple Of days ago while talking with a
well known lecture manager. Clemens |
is off on a lecture tour with George W. |
Cable for a companion. Most people i'm
agine that the profits of the tour are about /
divided. Such is far from the
truth, however. The risk was all assumed !
by the humorous Mark, who is not half
as much Of a fool as many people seem to /
imagine. By the terms of the contract |
Clemens agrees TO pay Cable $500 per
week during the continuance Of the joint /
tour. Major Pond, the business mana
ger, is given a comparatively small per-
centage of the gross receipts. 1t is re-
ported on almost unquestiOnable authOri-
tv that Clemens profits on the tour have
so far averaged a little over $1,000 per /
week. There is no reason why he should /
have undertaken an enterprise of this
kind. He has got lots Of money and can |
make lots more whenever he chooses to |
sit down for a couple of weeks and |
turn out a volume on any pos /
sible subject. He has gone into the /
publishing business, and hereafter all his /
works will be distributed through firm |
which belongs to himself. Mr.. Clemens |
has some peculiaritieS. He is one OF the |
most nervous men in the world, and it is
impossible for him to keep still. Some
body is obliged to go with him 10 keep |
him busy. so that he will not have to be I
faced with the horrible alternative of sit 4
ting still. Two seats are reserved for /
MIR. Clemens in the drawing room car on |
the train by which he may travel. One /
of these seats is in the smoking car and /
the other is in the drawing room car. AS /
soon as he finishes smoking his cigar he /
has to get up and leave the apartment, /
because he cannot bear the smell of tObac-
co smoke when he is not smoking. So he sits |
a short while in the smoking car, then /
goes 10 his seat in the drawing room car. /
and, after he has been there about half an /
hour. back be goes to the smoking car /
again. That is the way he goes on all /
day long. He used to be immOderately |
law and pretty liberal. That was in tn e /
days when it was necessary that he should |
work and also necessary that he /
should save Since he has grown so rich 1
that there is no need for him TO do another |
stroke of writing, he keeps pegging away |
harder than ever, and he throws his money !
- Il -,Nw- =