The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-12-13

bribery. OF course everybody wants a
good place, and no man Of tact seats his
partner IN an out-of-the-way corner where
she Is not likely To receive favors. The
seats Tor the cotllllon are numbered and
The leader usually has the disposal of
them In a private house. He is be-
sleged Tor good places by his friends,
Who attack him on all sorts of pre-
texts The man who holds out against
such persuasion, and declines to show nn-
due partiality, will make few enemies at
hrst- put he Will win popularity in the
END. At Delmonico's, Johnson, the fac
totum, gives out most of the seats, and his
task is not one TO be enyied.
III IS impossible, as everybody knows. to
make dance successful when men are in
the minority. The verdict upon dance
Is settled by the gossip afterwards, and as
women do the most of it their view pre-
walls. SO the leader who doesn't feel like
Jeopardizing his popularity takes great
care to have some extra men on hand 1t
IS easier now than formerly To get men TO
come TO cotillions, and one of the reasons
for it is peculiar enough. 1t is simply
that one is no longer obliged to send flow
ers to his partner. Partners, by the way,
those who follow in the trains
OF bellies. Such invitations are usu-
ally given verbally. 1t used 10 be nee
essary 10 send big bouquet, which was
naturally regarded as an expensive NUS
ance. But il wasn't the men who broke
down the custom. The fair sex perceived
that partners were getting scarcer, and
justly attributed a part OF this misfortune
TO the rule which made big offerings of
flowers essential. So the women put their
dainty little feet down on the custom
wisely deciding to give up flowers,
thought they earnestly desired them,
rather than TO give mp men, who were
1t comes about that ii is no longer the best
form 10 send bouquets TO ones partner.
1t Is the custom now to have general
dances before supper and the cotillion
afterwards. This means that the cotillion
begins about ! O'Clock. The supper hour
is nervous time for the girl who hasn't
been asked to dance the cotillion. If she
comes back with happy smile you may
know that it's all right; if she tells the
hostess that her parents don't allow her to
dance more than twice week, and there
fore she must go home, everybody who
hears her smiles unkindiy.
/. There will be great effort TO get up new
figures this year for the increase in the
number of dancing parties will wear the
old ones ont the faster Doubtless all the
aspiTant Is for the leadership of cotillions are
racking their brains for suggestions and
have already evolved many ideas But
they won't tell what they are; they would
safes Perhaps the rush for novelty will
drive us TO something like the eccentricity
which made SIR Henry Maysey Monson's
cotillion, seven or eight years ago, so IA
nous. He introduced a lot OF new figures,
many of which were taken from the cir
Gus. He had women jump through hoops
covered with tissue paper and do various
other tricks not common in bathrooms.
This cotillion was voted little too violent for
society Most of the figures really came
from the French winter resorts, Caen.
Homburg, Monte Carlo. Harry Cannon
introduced the pretty trick of Harvesting
the girls with ribbons and driving them
about the hall until they made their selec-
tons.
There is much interest to see what will
be done about favors this year. Miss As
tor and one or two who followed her lead,
aud even bid against her for society's no
tiee, carried up the fayors to point of ex-
travarant elegance which may be regarded
as vulgar 1t was the common talk last
season that men might soon expect 10 re-
ceiye gold watches. and women diamond
rings. There was q general protest. Peo-
pie did not wish TO De indebted TO their
hosts for such valuable articles. Ii was
Justly considered that present costing
SOS or more should not be given. Simple
little toys, and pretty inexpensive keep
sakes were felt to be far more appropri-