Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-05-14
IJTTLEPRIYATE SUPPERS
FASHION WHICH NEW YORK
EES FIND AMUSING.

From tho .Ne,O York SUh.
..Tbe private dining room," an expert
mood hotel caterer said recently, sis
ono Of the imperative demands of advance
,,o civilization In New YorK. In the
prnnswiek, Delmomco's, and the Hof-
man House the rooms set apart for dinner
narties have been in constant demand the
.o,son through, the accommodation being
rl,inly unequal to the demand. Society
iooys with rare tolerance upon the restau-
rant in America. A glance at the popu-
lar restaurants up town In the middle of
the dav shows hundreds Of fashionably
clad ladies' lunching together in couples
or trios without male escorts, a condition
# things utterly unknown on the other
aide of the water. But while the restau-
rant itself has always been popular,
here has been more or less suspicion
about the private dining room.
,.Thaatre parties are primarily respon-
sible for the number of private dining
rooms that are now attached to the vari-
ous restaurants of New York. Few forms
of amusement are more popular than the
atye parties. AS they are usually pre-
coded bv a dinner or followed by supper,
the Ge0Dle &Gb W huUW CehDL DbhCA thiCuSh
The many hours Of companionship, and no
end of freedom prevails. As everybody
Lrows. the New Y Ora theatre party is not
given to muteness, taciturnIty. and OPP
6rassive silence while at the play. BY
some extraordinary freak in the cOde OF
fashionable people it is considered emil
nentlv proper to chat, chat and guy with
entire freedom at the theatre, while it is
the essence of bad form TO speak in any
thing but the lowest tones IN a restaurant.
The change Is sudden and disagreeable
when party of young people who have
been skylarking nOisily at the play come
INTO restaurant and are obliged TO mod
crate their manners and voices. New
York society people are very Tree and jolly
in their manners, you know There is
none OF the heavy formally OF the English
about them, and they dislike restraint. A
lot Of neope can do what a couple would
never think of attempting, and while
there is, OF course, more or less suspicion
about man and woman VINO sup alone In
private dining room, there can be none
when party of ten or twelve occupy the
same apartment.
NO end OF stories could be told OF the
remarkable scenes which have occurred
in the private dining and supper rooms of
even the most exclusive and carefully
kent establishments in town. 1t is part
Of the system of every house interested
in this peculiar trade to prevent all Cos
SID or disclosure of any kind. One story
remember got into the papers about four
Years ago, but in such misty way that
no one could tell to whom it referred. 1t
was a dinner of people OF more or less
Standing in society to celebrate the de-
rarture of a French nobleman who has
great reputation for high living and gen.
eraly rapid habits. There we're no young
girls present at the dinner, but a number
Of Young married women, and rather
dashing set of people generally. An or
chestra was concealed in an adjoining
room, and the dining apartment was beau
tlfuly decorated with ferns, exOtics, and
rare flowers. The flowing bowl, the music,
the cOlored lights, and all the other attrac-
tons of a perfectly served dinner, kept
the company in their chairs from O'Clock
in the evening until nearly 1 the next
morning. By that time things We're going
at rather a furious rate. and the screams
Of laughter and incessant roar OF talk
were Interrupted by peculiarly sharp
and ringing sound, as though some one
was slowly beating a gong. 1t CHANGED
that young newspaper reporter, VINO had
been attending his college dinner in the
same building, passed the door at the
time, and. hearing the hubbub within, fell
10 wondering what caused the gOng-like
sound. He peeped in. The noble for
egner. looking somewhat dishevelled and
entirely happy, stood in one corner of the
room holding a big salyer cut at arms
length, while the guests took turns in
kicking the salver to zee which could go
the highest. There was an entire absence
OF fOrmality, and everybody in the room
took a turn in regular order. The reporter
looked in, blushed, hastily withdrew, and
subsequently wrote a short and breezy
sketch Of the occurrence. carefully con-
ceaing the date and locality. The article
upset the equan.mty of twO-thirds OF the
society people of New York.
There is absolutely no end to the queer
happenings in these rooms. | know Of a
severe looking widow who has given a
dinner PARTY in a gOrgeously furnished
dining room once every month for two
seasons now. The table is laid for six
or eight people always; yet there are
never more than two persons there-the
lair hostess and solitary guest. The
guest By the way, is one OF the queerest
men that floats about New York. He is
lean, sallow, round shouldered, saturnine.
de belongs 10 a dozen clubs, has small
income, never smiles. and cuts acquaint-
ances as fast as he makes them. About
once a week he Will wake up from SOL
INN lCthd ~ anu Hldht u ACuleA n VI Nia
Joke which becomes town talk at once.
tie moves about with slow and rheumatic
Indifference, and is just about as beauti-
iul as rail fence. Yet men bow eagerly
10 him, and the women plot and scheme
lot hlm necessarily.
I'VE see lots OF curious things in this
business, you know. and some thar are
amusing, too. About the notwithstanding
VI our visitors are those OF the shoddy
eenleel kind. who blossom out as bowling
e"ells once or twice year here. They
come with the air of people who are re-
solved to do IL in right way for once in
tnelr lives, If IL costs fortune, and their
ulnners and suppers are remarkable Illus
ylttlons OF what one should not order. A
luncheon was given here yesterday by a
uIessmaker who has just returned from
ser Yearly trip to Paris. IL was ladies'
'uncheon, and there were eight covers.
~ OF the women were alfred In the
saowlest Of silk and glossest OF satins.
Hu their manners were 30 elegant that
,,ney greeted one another trigldly, and re-
USED 10 notice the polite attention OF my
sSu walter and myself. Most OF them
o.e women who are employed In some way
another. They reminded me OF small
e,gIks who invariably bully the walters,
@nu una iault with everything that Is put
w. h tne table when they go out % pay tor a
INNER. One Of the women at the lunch
o su announced that she was very thirsty,
uu sent her glass Of Burgundy. IL
N.Y." 70 her head, and she asked the hostess
very sarcastic way whether she
.suluu take a glass Of wine without