Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1886-06-17
'SEE, THURSDAY, JUNE II, 1886.
LONDON SOCIETY.
Various Methods of Obtaining Admission
to Fashionable Circles.

to IasniOhaDle circles.
This status can be obtained by any
man whatever who possesses a suit OF
evening clothes and a fair amount of
manners. Such one will have no
difficulty in getting an invitation to an
ordinary dance in the less fashionable
circles. Once there, he must get intro
duced to one or two of the matrons
present who stand highest on the So
eial ladder and, if possible, have ugly
daughters. He must dance, or pre-
tend to dance, assiduously with the
children, and take the mothers them
selves to supper. If one of the latter
gives dance herself, or is asked for
mems names by friend, the aspirant
will not be forgotten, and will get his
name down on 'list." He has then
merely to continue this process as he
rises in the world, with proper devo.
ton to leaving cards, calls, etc., and in
a couple of years no ball or drum will
be inaccessible to him.
With women it is different Should
they be neither fast, beautiful nor rich
they will find the steps of "high life'
hard to climb. Those who come under
this description will have no difficulty.
If they are in the first category, which,
in spite OF certain morbid writers, is
still rare in England, they may get
taken up by some nobleman orgreat per.
sonage, when they will become fashion.
able in particular set, and be invited
to the ''frisky matron' balls But the
august mothers of society will look
coldly on them, and they will pine in
vain for invitations to the old established
houses. Beauty, if accompanied by So
briefly, can gain admission to any
portal. If without membranes in
the shape of parents who wish to ''go
out, too, some energetic matron with
no daughters of ball-going age will
run the new ''belle. If there is an
ambitious papa or mamma, the process
is more uncertain. The fair maiden
having been first seen at place of
public entertainment, some enterpris-
ing woman, observing chance of
making her parties talked about, will
send the stranger card of invitation,
mother and all. If she should be a
success-an event impossible to pre-
dict, for the canon of beauty applied
by society is varying and inexplicable
no entertainment will be considered
complete without her, and rich and
great will tumble over each other in
their civilities to her Snowman or
show-woman as the case may be.
The method by which the rich climb
the ladder can easily be described In
the first place, they must give ball
and secure the patronage of some lady
within the charmed circle of the grand
monde. She will probably be not very
far within, perhaps the wife of Bar
onet or an Irish Peer. This patroness
sends out the invitations with her own
compliments to all persons on her own
list, and to many who are not on, but
who she thinks will come. She extols,
morning, noon and night, the integ-
rity of her pr0tegcS, and the splendors
of the coming entertainment. She lets
| her female friends know that the deco
ration of the front landing will cost
f700, her male acquaintances that
f1,000 will be spent on the supper.
The first attempt will very likely be
partial failure. Few smart people
will appear, the guests will sneer at the
host instead of dancing with the
daughters. But they will see the front
landing, eat the supper and talk about
both afterward. Consequently when
in short time a second ball is an
nounced, there will be rush for in
vitations; the donors will receive cards
from all quarters themselves, and may
be considered henceforth ''in society.
The process is, however, an expensive
one, and has to be kept up to some ex-
tent annually, lest the aspirants fall
from their high state.-HarperS Mag
azine.