The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-01-08
How the Meek and Lowly Reporter Is
Treated on Occasions OF This Kind.
About the Stage and Furnish New York the
Finest Music the Town Has Ever Heard.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal

Special to the Indianapolis Journal
NEW YORK, Jan. IA cat may look at
queen if it doesn't meow" So much for pro-
verbal theory. The fact feline. and more inter-
esting, Is that cat looked at the resplendent
ball given this week, at Delmonico's by the self
asserted aristocracy of New York. He was the
Maltesen pet of Mrs. George n. Brackett, and
celebrated brute in his own coterie; for cats
have become immensely fashionable of late
jostiing the pug dogs and crowdng terriers in the
parlors of the grand. Mrs. Brackett is naturally
interesting as widow at forty, and additionally
so as the possessor of fortune sufficient to back
any eccentricity which she chooses to indulge
in. Her cat is her pride. her inseparable COM
panion and, therefore, was taken to the ball in
toilet consisting of an embroidered and gemmed
ribbon encircling his neck. He tagged his
mistress like page, and was a considerable feat
ure of the occasion. He deserved the mention
which he didn't get in the newspaper reports
next morning.
A second overlooked thing in print, though q
consequential factor Of the ball, was q real
English butler to loudly cry out the names of the
guests. You must understand that the balls
given by ''sociesy people" at Delmonico's are by
no means public It is true that seven hundred
persons were gathered this time. but tho sem.
maintained. The smaller rooms were furnished
like parlors. and the decorations of the entire
big building from which ordinary customers
were excluded at midnight, even the bar-room
being sacred to the nights occupancy were such
as might reasonably have been in Van
derbilt or an Astor residence Three heavy
dealers in costly furnishings provided the arti-
cles on hire. and did it SO well that many sales
uara xhero effacfed Coruelius Vandarhlt fan.
cied one of the Gobelin tapestries hung on a
wall, and bought it for 81. 900. Well, as said,
everything was done with domestic luxuri-
ance of taste and in the British fashion. Two
monkeyish pages in livery met you at the por-
tai and conducted you to the dressing-room
Then, after you had laid aside your wraps,
third midget funkey showed you the way to
an ante-room, into the presence of a
being before whom you instinctively felt like
bowling down in humble reverence. He was six
feet high by about three feet wide, and his COW
erings were many hues of velvet and silk. This
was the genuine London butler. Nothing so
mania began. The page took you up close
enough to his awful form to permit you to real
ize what pgmy you were physically to him.
and to mental giantry, his majestic bearing
and bass voice were sufficient evidence.
''What is the names" he asked.
''Mary Jane Smith," you replied, trying to
hide your fright. Then he escorted you to the
further end of the room, where stood three dig
nified matrons, Mrs. Adrian Iselin, Mrs. W.
Bayard Cutting and Mrs. B. K. Stevens. These
were the acting hostesses, in furtnerance of the
home idea of the ball.
''Miss Mary Jane Smith and'M John Henry
JONES'" roared the butler.
You and your companion bowed to the three
In Arrow matrons, who returned your sautation
and thus you were received" The ceremony
meant that You were memberss of sgood So
eiety," accented as such at this beauti-
fsxl hall - s1 %1
credited as one of the tip-top seven hun
dred New Workers. who immeasurably
above and beyond the traditional upper ten
thousand" Ha! ha! But it isn't a laughable
matter to some of the participants. Many
scheming mamma and mbitious daughter have
spent anxious days and nights working them
there is a ragged edge almost literally to it,
Poor relations of wealthy families often
squeezed in by a slight stretch of favor; and sue
cess sometimes means q rich, fashionable hus-
band for girl who, otherwise, might have to
accept mere true love without endowment Ad-
mission to one of the howlingly swell Delmonico
balls means the very highest social indorse-
ment known to New York. to be extravagantly
priced by those who desire ii, no matter how
much it may be despsed by those who don't
There were about dozen executions to the
the reporters from the important daily journals
They wore careful evening toilets as nybody,
they mingled with the rest of the assem-
blaee. they danced if they pleased. they par
took OF the supper and they were indis-
tineaishable from the other gentlemen, sx-
cept when engaged in small room
apart writing their accounts. How, then, did
they fail to get the brand of quintessent social
approval? will tell you. For these balls a
number of very fashionable men-n this case a
hundred-named each seven persons to be in
vited. Not only were they charged to select
proper individuals, but the lists were scanned
closely by a.; special :s and i;. expert commit
always desirous of seeing itself pleasantly
published. OF course. 1t woudnt do to issue
regular invitations in blank. On the other hand.
the city editors of the papers refused-when the
question raised, several years ago-to send
reporters to hang about the doors and peep
through the key-hoes That might be done for
ball Mrs. William Astor happened to be the
spirit in the test instance. She set
tied 1t by appointing a press committee of two
beaux, who personally conveyed to the editors
the information that one reporter from each
journal would be received presenting his
credentials. and the perfect freedom of the ball
would be given to him. That example settled
the usage. Chosen reporters are honored guests
at the most exclusive Delmonico occasions.
This time there was pointed out to me a re-
porter dancing with the heiress expectant to
1uced by his former college chum the son of a
CrGsus.
Two nights later the great annual charity ball
Hitherto for several years the swels
have bought tickets literally enough, but have
used them only for the purpose of sitting in the
boxes of the Metropolitan Opera house. where
the affair is held. and loftiy looking down on
The commoner dancers-for admission is sold to
Ill reputable applicants. But the really benev-
olenr manageresses did not mean that the insti-
tuition should go into vaiuelessness, il surely
would in that way. This year they went around
with q paper which bound the signers to dance
At least once. IL was generally signed by the
nohs. and SO once again, of yore, the ball
the very rich with the merely re-
spectacle.
The perfume pencil was used considerably on
both these occasions You never heard of itf
Neither did any OF the girls who used it until
after the device had been brought to their at
IGNITION. This WAS done by dapper peddler.
possibly the inventor. for they not known to
he stores. The black lead was combined with
strong scents, 80 that. when he wrote on q card,
curiousIY delicate and pleasant odor WAS pixan