Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1893-02-17

freedom, and as her escort leaned near
er to her, down the stairway from the
dressing rooms at the other end of the
vast hall stream of women were pour
ing, youth in its prime, youth in its fad
ing. and middle age that was fighting
iiercely with the aid of paint and false
nesses innumerable, all insolent and
bold-eyed and looking about inpatient
" for the revelry when each could
strive to outdo the other in boldness.
The handsome, dignified woman
arose from her seat in the wine room.
She was leaning heavily upon her part
ner, and all the reserve was gone from
her face. The music was crashing q
swift polka, and half thousand
couples were dashing about. The hand
some, digniied woman went into the
polka with rush. She and her part
ner swept around with the long slides
that made motion seem like floating in
the air. She put in extra steps as the
other women were doing, and soon her
small slipper was flashing by the faces
of the men. Groups would form about
her rs about score of other women,
and men would cheer the skirts held
high, the heels kicking above the head,
the thousand frisky tricks wherewith
the women strove in rccklessness.
At 3 o'clock the air was insupport-
able. The men and the women still
danced on to the music that forbade any
ceasing of revelry, but their faces were
redeemed and their eyes were swim
ming and they were casting aside the
last restraints. Women were being
borne about on mems shoulders as tri-
butte to their proves of giving high
kicks. Men were holding women high
in the air, with heels where heads
ought to have been.
Here a man rceled and staggered TO
one side, overcome with the eXertion in
that frightful air. There 4 woman had
tainted, and still the music crashed on
and the frenzy rose. 1t was fantastic,
intoxicated rout of folly heaped upon
folly and madness upon madness.
Above the music rose the sound of q
multitude of voices, voices mellowed or
cracked by wine or laughter.
In the arena boxes the fast young
men were embracing the fast young
women, while the "dowagers" looked
approvingly on. One rich young man
was hurting bouquets at high kickers
upon the floor and shouting his fathers
honored name rs q guarantee OF his
ability to pay for them. Rich old men
were pouring protestations into the
ears of young women who returned the
words with i'll concealed scorn and with
sly winks to their friends.
From o'clock on until $50 the revel
grew wilder and wilder. Heads were
dizzy with wine, ahd with the hot,
heavy air, and with the whirl of the
dance. The laughter grew louder,
demonstrations more violent, jealousies
fiercer and moro open. And for half
an hour after the music ceased most
of the crowd fingered, drinking and
waltzing without music. After this,
there were the cabmcn, the all-night
restaurants, the jaded, weary women,
with toilets crushed, with rouge in
streaks, the men with wilted shirt col
lars, and with stomachs turned by the
odors of stale cigarettes, stale wine,
ard stale perfumes. Yesterday they
were all sleeping it off, dreaming OF
that wild ball.
While Sol Bcrliner was not the last
to leave, he was by no means the first.
The real last of the ball was dozen
limp, white-faced young men who fell
asleep in the coat room and, not being
aroused from their stupor, slept on un-
til nearly 10 o'clock. A very brisk
ball was the French ball of 1898, and a
very brisk demand there was Yester-
day for cocktails, carbonate of soda,
hot water bandages, and other RENE
dies for sore or added heads.-N. J.
Sun.
The French ball is up for investiga-
ton at police headquarters. Commis-
sioner MacLean demanded the in
quiry, and the other commissioners
voted to refer the matter to the super
tendent. French balls are French balls,
it is said apologetically, and the police
are not censors Of the dance.