Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-08-04


When heart to heart
Ny silver chains enfold.'
81 wept," he said, "for loves not true;'
I" smile" he said "for you and you"
Then, hspiug out some tender word,
And looking up aud laughing low,
He snatched the bow-string from his bow
And bound us with the silver cord;
Nor ever shall the SAD fates sever
The twain that Love made one forever.
So sang Mr.. George Cotterell on the
event Of his engagement rather late in
life, being very much in love, after having
long avowed that his heart was cold and
dead" Let us hope that the "sad Fates"
may leave the happy pair in peace
through the remnant of their years.
have been asked, by lady residing in
a small Western city, to give her a few
suggestions as to how the table should be
laid for dinner party, so that things
should be in good form without laying
oneself open to the charge SO commonly
made in the semi-rural districts that one
is putting on style" unduly with view
to the confusion of less sophisticated
neighbors. 1t has occurred to me that
perhaps little talk on the subject may be
helpful to many of us who wish to strike
the golden mean between ultra city fashion
and country rusticity.
First of all regulate the number of guests
to the size of your room, for crowding will
spoil everything. If your dining-room is
not large, a round or oval table has the
advantage of saving space. Suppose there
are eight people to sit down. table four
feet broad and little more in length, with
two leaves to let In, is ample A beautiful
table is the eight legged Jacobean, in black
oak, oval, and in any size required. An
other is the old-fashioned, spindle-legged
Pembroke, which, when fully open, will
comfortably dine eight people, or may be
closed small enough for two. The table,
however, is not of so much consequence as
formerly, except in the matter of size, as
the draping comes down SO long on all
sides as to quite conceal it. Use any
napery you Hke-and whatever the fash
ion of the moment (black satin, plush,
India silk, wnat not, there is moth
ing so pretty as fine, snowy white
damask-but be sure to cover the table
first thickly with canton flannel, felt, or
something equally heavy and almost
cushion-like beneath the cloth.
THE QUESTION OF LIGHT
Must next be considered. There is not a
prettier fashion than that of the shaded
wax-tapers in their tall candlesticks or
old-fashioned double candelabra, placed on
the table itself; but when the latter is
small and room for them cannot well be
spared, hanging lamp placed directly
over the center of the table is the thing !;
or if you must use garish and unbecoming
gas-light, shade it we'll with some harmon
izing color. The hanging-lamp is much
to be preferred, and it should be covered
by large silk shade, spread widely enough
not to focus the light all on one spot. If
you have pretty candlesticks which you
wish to utilize, and the table is too small
for them, put them on the sideboard, where
they will be quite as effective.
Now as to decoration-a question which
presents such infinite possibilities that we
can hardly give directions. Nowadays all
dinlers, suppers, teas and luncheons are
served a la Russe-that is to say, there are
no viands on the table, nothing but china,
glass, flowers and other adornments Gen
orally some one color predominates, such,
for instance, as red-produced with lamp
shades OF red silk, scarfs of red plush, the
flowers being "Jacquemont" roses and car
nations. Just now, for the passing month,
the most fashionable color for the festal
table is white and yellow-yellow roses
and white orchids, for instance, in amber
glass or hand painted china; white clover
and field daisies peeping out of the half
open lids of gilded baskets.
AN EFFECTIVE NOVELTY
Lately introduced is the use of large glass
roses to hold roses, lilies to hold lilies, and
so on ad inem. Another fancy is the
dainty slipper of white straw, filled with
| flowers, resting between a rake and spade of
glass, tied together with bow of yellow
| ribbon. Still newer, is rustic fence of
white china, through the palings of which
smihx, ferns and ivy are twined, while in
the bars at each end are Kate Greenaway
figures upholding baskets, which serve as
flower receivers.
Whatever may be your ideas of decora-
tions be sure to have the flowers low. The
day of growing plants and towering pyra-
mids aud huge bouquets, so high that one
cannot see his vis-a-vis at all, and must
crane his neck around an alleged ornament
to get a glimpse of his host or hostess, is,
happily, gone by. The recent craze for
spreading flowers on the cloth itself is
pretty, if carried out with discretion. and
if the blossoms have not Struggling look
nor are too heavy in their arrangement.
| attended recent dinner at which the
hostess had initiated what she called
the Pompadour style. At each corner was
an open japanese fan, thrown down with
studied carelessness on scarf of blue China
silk. The delicate pearl and gold-hecke
surface of the fan was covered lightly with
pale pink roses. Each scarf of blue China
silk, after forming loose bow around the
handle of the fan, was drawn to the center
OF the table, resting on the snowy damask
cloth with wreaths oi roses In the center,
where the scarfs and garlands of roses met.
was placed an exquisite ship of pink and
blue Seyres porcelain, with delicate ropes
and masts of filagree gold. This, also, was
filled with pink roses. Dotted about the
table were Seyres salt-cellars, surrounded
by small pink rosebuds. The menus were
printed on shell-shaped cards lined with
pink silk and suspended to Cupids by blue
ribbons. Pink roses aud blue forget-me-
nots formed all the bouquets.
THE GLASS AND CHINA.
The ten courses were served on glass and
china, which was all of the Pompadour
colors-blue and pink-and every lady