Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1890-09-25
Vanity Fair and It's Present-Day As.
From the Pail Mall Gazette.

From the Pail Mall Gazettei
Now that the fierce annual combat for
social advancement has temporarily closed,
and a strange lull has succeeded it writes
a Golden Butterfly" in Land and Water).
am the more reminded of the foolishness
and vanity of those things which so many
among us strive after. Even as / write a
moth is madly careering around the
lamp, battering itself against the globe,
and excitedly striving to reach the flame.
A futter, frizzle and thud-it has; and
have put the poor beast out of its agony
with my matchbox This is a mere re-
production of what we have all seen, not
hundred but thousand times in human
life; and yet day after day and year after
year, with an almost firing monotony,
similar tragedies repeat themselves, till at
length we cease to wonder at what has be-
come almost a matter of course. Who
does not remember X, whose house in
Belgravia was the scene of constant feast
| ing and hospitality! Mrs. X and her
| daughters lived at the rate of some twenty
thousand year. They gave luxurious
| dinners, brilliant balls, dressed extrava-
gantly and courted popularity through ev-
| cry means in their power. Mrs. x
would have no friends but the best, and
each year, as she assembled higher and
higher in the social scale, she ruthlessly y
| dropped former acquaintances no Longer
in touch with her latest associations. One
fine day the entire machinery collapsed
and, through the medium of the bank
| ruptcy court. we all learned that ten thou
sand a year cannot be made to do duty fol
n. Aav.
back very lovely woman suddenly at
tracted the notice of a certain distin
guished parsonage, and Immediately fash
ion, following suit, raised her to the high
est pinnacle of notoriety. She had beel
married for several years and had led til
then a quiet, peaceful and happy life
Now all was excitement and show. Onl,
the finest and most expensive dresse
would suffice. Smart friends had to b
smartly entertained; rivals had to be over
powered by exceptional display, and mon
ey was scattered right and left with sur
prising rapidity. 1t only lasted thre
| wears. The house was sold up, the dis
tingnished parsonage transferred his pa
tronage to another, husband and wife be
came separated, and the lady herself, met
aphorically, disappeared. am not draw
ing upon my imagination, for these ar
| merely well-known instances even We
fresh in the public memory. And here
another. Some twelve years back l re
member Mrs. - giving great ball un
der the auspices of one of the most popu
, and influential leaders of London society
, Invitations were as keenly sought after g
: if they had been bank notes. Themes
forth for three or four seasons Mrs. 2
, entertainments became the chief events {
the summer months. Then Mr.. Z
, died, and his will disclosed that he an
his family had been living on their capita
; and absolute poverty suddenly stared b
t widow and orphans in the face. Now di
, the world rally round any of these in the
4 period of trouble and misfortune Not
5 bit of it. Those who had feasted IL
0 most at their expense were the very fir
: to turn round and criticise their improy
4 dence. and, fearing that calls might po
{ possibly be made on them to contribute
4 their maintenance, took the bull by Il
( horns and dropped their acquaintance
n London society, I can never repeat b
e necessarily, is brutally heartless. 1t
? prepared to help the first adyenturer th