Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-03-23
For the Gazette.

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Ht a lesnAoN when the boxes
|-fT$SSU EalA>\ that are owned by
! >G5gEIEo Ml the society people
eAgs5I(IIGhHw were for sale, the
--SJ&xLII x ~ owners having gone
3 to q swell ball in
O. stead. It is seldom
E=<E@S that this is done
and I was surprised to see the manner in
which it was taken advantage of The
boxes were filed as usual, with women
in -uecked dresses, and to the casual
observer it was not noticeable that these
we're not the wives and daughters of the
stockholders. But in fact they were
helter-skelter people, who had gone to
an immense amount Of preparation and
considerable expense to shine falsely for
one night as figures in New York "soci-
ETY." Not often is such a con-
fession of mental weakness made
as was found in the spectacle
formed by these deluded ones, who, to
crafty their own vanity and in the hope
of deceiviDg q few strangers in town, had
arrayed themselves in all their glory and
posed for examples of the Four Hundred.
In one box l espied a family group con-
ssting of husband, wife and daughter.
The young girl possessed a share of fine
beauty that would have carried her far
along the path of good fortune if she
only had the correct guidance. But 1t
was plain enough that any natural gen.
fifty Of mind that must accompany such
facial excellence was being fast distorted
bv such depressing influences as her
presence on this occasion signified that
she was surrounded by. The family
group took little notice of the stage,
and the girl sat broadly in the
front of the box, with her eyes
scanning the faces in the parquet. I
was not surprised to find her striking up
a Irritation with a young man who was
watching her through a glass, and knew
that the latter would manage to get the
note he was writing on his card into her
hand as the crowd passed out after the
performance. It has been remarked
before that society left Its discretion as
well as its dress waists at home when it
went to the opera, but its vuigarity has
an air of originality and splenoOr that
leavens it somewhat. It is a long step
uUN ~ LllOb6 " hO O4ACi pooLC AtLlALSNAOA4o
OF q truly luxurious imbeoilitY.
-.
Merely to show what the sacred society
of New York amounts to in some cases 1
will mention Mabel Wright, whose sud-
den marriage recently caused such a sem
sation, and who is famous for being the
belle here through three seasons. She
was admirable in all ways except that
she possessed very few of the qualifica-
tons that the comic rulers of society so
seriously demand in an aspirant. The
girl was engineered into society by some
young men who had met her casually,
and, in philanthropic spirit that was
cOmmendable, went about securing invi-
tations for her to the most pretentious
houses. Her first appearance made her
famous, for she was by all odds the
handsomest Of the few pretty girls with
whom she was placed ia comparison.
For three seasons she foated across the
social armament as regally as a perfect
star, and IN all that time her privilege
to float went unquestioned. Neverthe-
less, the luminous queen resided all this
time in a boarding house of modest pre-
tentions, with her father, who was an
employee in carpet store. She lacked
money and ancestry. All that carried
her along the social routine and up to
fortunate marriage was the splendid
beauty of which she was the pos
SCISSOR. This would not be worth
nothing we're it not that the imitation
aristocracy of New York is undoubtedly
the most carefully guarded of any in the
world, and the general rule is that with
out wealth there Is no passing over the
threshold Of Its doors. Intellect has re-
peatedly failed to surmount the barrier
that separates il from the rest of the
world, when il has been foolish enough
to try. And now that beauty has &C.
cOmplished this end, we are at once con-
frOnted with a new phase Of things that
We had hitherto not dreamt of. Not
long ago Mr.. McAllister declared that
the best proof of man s availability to
good society was his capacity for giving
good dinner. Others, because they
could trace their origin back for 100
years. have laid great stress upon the
value of birth as a recommendation to
social acceptance. But never before, at
least in America, has beautiful girl
been allowed to step from a boarding
bouse and rest her humble but handsome
head upon the holy bosom of the Four
Hundred
Thomas Wentworth Higgiusou had an
article in a magazine on the pretentions
Of society at Newport 'During
somewhat long experience of Newport
life, - he wrote, IL have known some
amazing Instances of persons who were
indignant against what they called the
ourages of reporters, while they yet
privately sent cousoliug bank notes the
lay after 10 successful offenders. - Now,
l have journalistic friend who reseuts
such indiscriminate slurs on his profess
sion az that, and be wrote TO Mr.. Hig-
gibson, inQuiring for particulars. Who
we're the reporters who had taken brides?
For what journals had they reported? In
short, was there any truth at all in Mr..
Higginson : reckless charge? ''My re-
mark - he replies, ''was rather in the
interest of reporters, i. e., as showing
the insinesrity of some who repToved
them. do not think that stated that
the reporters accepted the money. AS
to the probability on that point, each