Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1894-10-15
COSTLY SlLvERwARe.
wealthy Americans Who Set Their fable,
with silver Worth n Princes Rausam.

were designed, nodded and delivered for
the triae OF $40 and SIC apiece. and setting
ones table with $4,000 worth Of slyerl
That is what many Of our rich Americans
do every tine they give a little dinner"
and more silver services are in possession
OF the wealthy people OF the land which
cost forty and fifty thousand dollars than
ones which cost the minimum price of
$4,000.
Mrs. NewlyRieh, after diamonds and
equlpages. always wants startling Access
sories for entertaining. and as dinners are
safe and genial keys to sooiety's gates.
she gives dinners by the hundred. and
buys silver service,
take Mrs, Newly-Rich as an example,
because she is the only person In these
times who ever buys an entire silver ser
yice-which fact. wrung from the largest
silver manufacturer In the world, sheds
quite an unplctureaquo light on those daz-
cling dinner services owned by mos in
times"
The Mackay set. which was designed by
this firm, was marvel Of beautiful work
manshlp; 1t was exhibited In the Paris EN-
position of 1876, The silver. which announced
TO thousands Of ounces, was brought from
Mr. Maokay's mines In the West, and the
designing and making took over two years.
The service contains over 1900 pieces. This
wonderful set cost the mere bagatelle Of
! Sl5O.O0O. and a safe was made for it, with
drawers and trays, hired with velvet and
kid, each drawer locking with a comblna-
ton lock. The designs w1re very elaborate;
entire scenes IT the most beautiful carving
were represented on the various sets; while
some were plain, with very delicate watery
designs and eugrayihgs, relying for their
beauty on the exquisite shapes and dellcacy
Of design There were claret Jugs. huge
tankards, tiny saueers, diminuuye spoons
and great platters aud tureens. and while
there was great variety In the designs, har-
mony was retained throughout.
! Bul while there are people whose fortunes
are equal to that OF the Mackays. there is
no silver service in this country at least,
| which was made from one order. and at
such pains or expense. as theirs.
The W X Yanderblts. the Wcbbs. Twom-
bleys. Fred Vanderblts, b. o. Mills, Ogden
| Mills. wetmores, Gouids, Mrs. William As
| tor, J. ]. Astor, shcpards, Sloanes and many
| other wealthy people have SILVER sets Dut
| they are, as a general rule, collections conf
| posed OF wedding presents. pieces OF Plate
| inherited and odd pieces bought from uhe
| 10 time.
Twenty or thirty years ago, when the
| few number OF rich New Workers were
solid old people, who had assured positions,
/ and gave large dinnerA where the most
| carved the beef and the hostess served mo
! pudding, entire dinner services were bought
| The silver showed to advantage then, II vas
| all put on the table at once and as course
| dinuers were unheard OF, dinner AerNiee
| took fewer pieces than II does now
! Mrs. Ogden Mills, who Is the leader Oh a
coterle more exclusive than the -Four Hun
/ dred, has two beautiful dinner services one
OF silver ana one Of gold. The silver one
alone cost $4,000.
Mrs. Mills gave a eotllon at Newport
last summer which was duly set down, is
were all the other couilous. as the finest
] thing OF the season. The dinner whieD
preceded 1t was eaten in the ballroom,
huge apartment with waNed moor ana
snowy ceiling and walls, unrelleYad by
| tint or touch Of anything but white. The
! leA4gns In bas rehols NnlCn decorate the
| walls and ceiling are very beautiful, ana
] the sc0nces are shaded with white cfyatAl'
! In this room two long tables were placed
/ the white damask glistening under the load
Of silver and gold, as dinner was served
] as usual, IN courses, there were no plates,
platters or dishes Of amy kind to be seen
except the 50 an ones which held the "hors
] d'oeuyres" louh0ns and almunds one
/ table, at which twelve were seated WAS
] lighted by tail brauched candelabras, the
1
skirts" VI white silver tanklrls OF
water were placed near the ends Of the
table, and low. long DlateauN OF silver were
filed with maiden-hair and farleyensea
| forms, their slim, green fingers spreading
over the white cloth and rodecting them
selves in the highly polished silver. Ihs
other table was exactly the same, but In
Rold-at least gilded silver, as no private
Individual has YET INDUCED IN real gold
seryics--and he eneet Of the elegantly
simple damask the richness Of the silver
and gold and the beauty OF the ferns was
as original as II was artistic and pleasing.
Mrs bradley Martin and Mrs. l. Town
send Burden each have Very elegant Sill
yer sery ces. Mrs. bradley Martins having
| been made from special deslgus one was
| aiso made for her daughter CognuHa Wien
| ne was m rried TO the Earl Of Craven. The
| Townsend burden set, which includes low
| ing cups and silver candelhhrAH and fern
| dishes. cost between $4,000 and $4,000
! and Is considered one OF the mos, exquisite
In mint of workmanship In the country.
The w. X. Vandorbilts have two dinner
services, one for ordinary Dinners and one
for extraordinary occasions, such as the
| openlnR OF a new louise, the christening 81
! a yacht or a BABY, or the returned nome
/ dinner after tholr travels; one OF these s.ts
Is plain. with exquisito engraving and the
family Insignia the other Is as heavy and
az elaborate as he marble house at New
D mort The plain sol cost SOV.O0O, tue othtr
| probably twice as much.
The Langdons, the schuylera aud the
Crackers. who lived In New York years
ago. had beautiful sets. which at the time
| we're counted among the wonders Of the
world; they cost nom $4,000 TO s2o,OVO'
| one man. a Westerner, who lived on Union
eoiiare In the early mites. had a set which
| cost s75 OlO-but he was considered cat
| lie king par excellence
The Cornelius Van1erhlts have tea
sol which IS half gold and half silver, and
cost si5. 900. 1t Is considered very unlquet
| rhs ielIy plates have centers about three
inches in diameter and two-ineh border
OF fretted g0ll
Every ieI ptoplo buy dlnner services IN
nlate said the head Of the biggest silver
| MN In the world, recenuy - thousand
or moe pleces are a good many far young
] hnusekeaper to look after, aud family
Nhieh eau look back 10 a gcnegsuon or two
OF ord nary afiuenca generally has god
deal Of plate. Each bros receives no los
than ten pieces Of silver and tan duplicates,
which m axe a nice nucleus As rule br.de
csts tea set and an Ice cream set. ana
lot o. spoon and forks and knives, She
1 deosp't often get silver plAtea, but as the
| years 70 on her husband presents her with
cparz les and feTu-dlshes and from time TO
I lime at chriz.mas Ehe glyca him soup
tureen ana Tor hts birthday a dozen plates
I and an asparagus rack, and by the tme
hey celebrate lhsir silver wedding aud a