The Washington critic., 1886-03-11
TOPICS OF THE DAY.

There is hardly more unique place
than Washington on the globe, says
Cath in areccnt special to the Cincin-
natl EHQuirCr. Rome resembles II some
in the concourse of strangers from
everywhere and the opening of many
of the palaces to these, and in the re-
ceptions Of artists, bishops, and others.
But Washington throws open its doors
to people without any religious or spe-
cial motives, and female life here, par
ticularly in February and early March,
is like fair. The women start out in
the afternoon and enter the doors of
people with whom they have the very
slightest acquaintance, or none at all,
and they drink tea or have a little
lunch, and the parlors are crowded,
while the conversation rattles on with
out regard to subject or end. Some
citizen is the first one visited; next some
army family; next some rich stranger,
who has come here to celebrate
himself. and they drop in at Cab
met minister's, and thus the so.called
social life is mere rush, with enjoy
ments, no doubt, but with more wei
come and freedom than this world has
ever allowed before. After the women
come home to their homes or hotels
and dine, they go out again, perhaps,
in the evening to some particular re-
ception, as at the White House, and
there life is repeated as in the afternoon
until midnight or later. In some of
thpsa hnncnc thnxr ,n,nt,,.
about midnight, and then have ball,
and dance without much regard to
time. One finds in the accounts of the
French Republic, about the period of
the Directory, similar sketches of
what the ladies call court life.
There was Barras, the patron of
Josephine, who may have turned
her over at n reception to
young Bonaparte. The little revolu.
tions and coup d'etats, which now and
then happened, hardly disturbed the
round of pleasure, nor was it of much
significance that few distinguished
men were sent today to the guillotine
or tomorrow to the penal colonies on
account of their political obstructive
ness. The social round OF life in
Washington is really the basis of its
revival,
~
Apropos Of the same general subject,
says the correspondent of the Mime
apolis Tribune; 1t doesn't require much
capital to be an ordinary society man
in Washington. The furnisher's and
the tailor's outfits afford the greatest
hardships. l have seen scores of
young men here who make 81 200 to
$500 year who can snow nothing
but dress suit and some linen, a
variety of walking sticks and few
pairs of pointed shoes as the result of
years of toll, have seen, too, able
bodied young men, with soft, dreamy
eyes and soft, empty head, who have
the same outht and who share the
income made by their mother or sister
in Department-an income far
below that named for the society
man who works instead of
his mother or sister. So there is little
difference in them. There are hun.
dreds of society dudes here who go
everywhere-where there Is no expense
attached-and look like the sons of
noblemen who do not earn $50 in q
year, but who live off the income of n
relative and make display on $40 or
$50 a month. This is pin money"
but 1t is all they have. In society in
Washington one does not know, by ap-
pearance or by words, the sons Of mil