The morning news., 1889-03-03
SWELL GELS IN LITERATURE.
SecretProductions of Mrs. Willie Van
derbilt and Miss Sallie HarGous.

mltted TO announce an occurrence IN
New York society which is the
most unique and significant of the season
Il is that six buds have agreed 10 write for
publication in one of the city weekly jour
mails each on photographed article TO be
entitled, The Experiences of a Debutante." "
This indicates, beyond doubt, transition
period in American fashionable society.
over in Europe society people have long
contributed to current literature, and re-
ceived cold cash therefor-the payment not
being received for charity either, but for
tue purpose of swelling their own incomes
Many names might be mentioned. but 1t is
sufficient to instance the fact that Oscar
Wilde employees on his magazine twenty
title women, to whom he pays large sums
for contributions, aad whose names appear
at the foot Of the texts.
In New York II society woman should
60 into literature and receive money for
publications, she would at any time prior to
this have been looked a. askance, and very
soon dropped from tae rank. We must
infer this from the neglect of writing f
literary women Of distinction who publish,
a1d by general habits Of New York society,
although there las been an exception III the
case OF Mr.. John Suer~o "a. A feW Nom
bers of our hdOt ton write, but tIey have it
distinctly understood tnat it is only for
amusement, aud that no ptofaue eye eve:
gazeS usOn the results.
he Marqulse LAMA, the daughter Of Dr..
Hammond, writes very graceful sounets;
not long since she got out an edition de tuTe
Of them for distribution AMONG her friends;
Mr.. Willie Astor has written some essays
wnc1 have been read to assemblies of
friends, and Mrs. Willie Vanderbilt has
wflttel book which details her own expe-
rieucs on slipboard called he Log of the
Alva, by "Alya," for private circulation.
Miss Salle Hlr gous, the belle Of tne present
season, also as done 80 aesning IN th9 way
of verse making, but only for the entertain
ment Of her acq 4alntances. Thus IL will
be seen that the deDutantes by writing for
publication are taking the bis in their
mouths and are making an entirely new de-
parture.
Queen Victoria makes bosom companion
Of Mrs. Ohphant, and insists on tlat writer
living with her at Windsor, and the Prin-
cess A ice was a warm friead of Mary
Carpenter, the author and phlantropist,
but the American hdUt ton finds it ueces-
sary TO draw a s,riCt line DetWe IN itself and
those wage earners who might claim social
fraternity on the score of Intelligence and
culture. Fashion stoops down cneerfully to
the beggar on the cucb5tone, because there
can be nu mlsake alb Jut this act being one
Of condesce1sion but one cannot coade-
Sci -defen O. therefore, my lady excludes her
self from public gazJ and surrounds herself
with mystery. In England photographs
of society people, from the Princess of
Wa es d Jvn. are on sale III every shop, and
may be bought on Broad ay, bat New
York wo,u1u will not allow their pictures to
be sold, and woe betide the pinot grauher
who displays one A few Americans only,
who have lived in London, tolerate ne sale OF
tpeir pictures. Among them are NJ $. Burke
Roche and Lady Randolph CIurchill and
her sister. The patents of society in this
country are new, and its ins met of self
preservati II keeps it from INDUCING in
such yanitie5 keeps 1t also from recogniz-
ing women brain workers, and from doing
any professional work itself
DOUBTLESS fashionable and literary life
have not many poiuts Of sympathy, for the
higher one rise in the intellectual life the
more trilliug and dstateteful seem the oc-
cupa .IoAs Of fashions, and, on the other
side, the fashion routine is an absorbing
aud eX lau sting buslaess, admitting of little
Tune for side issues. TIE society woman
cannot entertin everybody, and it s g
overlooks The Lterdteur sAe only overlooks
the one Who would put least value upon her
Invitations Sdl, in Europe, not only
more .ulngling between people in the two
vocatio $, thal here. The reasons are that
their social positions are fixed, and women
dare to do as they please. They may expect
invitations and neglect to enlertail and 81
get time for other pursuits. More leisure
comes to them, too, in the way Of better
trained servants and household matters
running in smoother z oOves. Here if a
woman aOsents herself rom the assembly
balls people woader if sac was not vited,
and wly, aid the effect may be that she Is
dropped from invitation lists, for she has no
way If maintaining her position but by
holding actively aud aggressively on to it,
'1ben, too, European ariSCocracy has become
such in some measure through literary
channels and 1t is permeated vita literary
TRADITIONS, wnile our hdut ton is risen al
most exclusively from trade, which sui
ficienJiy accounts for its having no natura
prediction for literature.
An effort was made in the establishment
of the Nineteenth Century Club to bring
fashionable society and literature int
closer relations The club is unique also in
that it inc udes women among it members
Its success is considered one of the most
important signs of the times 1t is wor tn
noting, however, that the policy of the
club has been to draw the women members
almost exclusively from the ranks of So
ciety, while any man with brains is eligible
1t contains people Of as widely different
opiniol as Robert Ingersoll, for instance,
and Mrs. Courtlandt Palmer, who is a blue
orthodox, although her husband was 50
radical, and its aim is to discuss subjects
from many standpoints and to tolerate all
shades OF thought; the varying shades,
however, must be among the men, it being
held that women of heterodox thought
would lower the tone of the club. The ex-
PLANTATION given for this discrimination is
t lat women are not yet sufficiently emanc-
pated to think for themselves without losing
caste. This is the lingering idea OF society
women, who are in majority in the club.
TIE literary women, therefore, are limited
in number; Mrs. Croly Jennie June), aud
Mrs. John Sherwood being the pri cial
ones. Mrs Nincehzo Botta, wife Of Prof
Botta Of Columbia, is n memOe~. Years
ago, when she was Miss Fanny Lynch, she
made some pretension' t. literature, and
was one Of a coterie which included Alice
and Phoebe Cary. She was He'd poet IN
those days. but she writes nothing of conse-
quence now.
T. hus it nay be seen that the episode Of
the debutsntes is significant, and that if tie
promised confessions do not rival IN
esprit those of Irene McGllicuddy, they
may still be the means OF turning over a
new society leaf and inf sing mild taste
for literature among our beau monde.
ADA CONE.