St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-02-24
palace contains.
A JAPANESE SMOKING DEN.

1t is very likely that George Wander
bilt the only unmarried son of the
William H. Vanderbilt family, Dor
rowed few ideas for his smoking
room from his brother Cornelius, sub
shutting Japan for Russia. Entering
this beautiful apartment, ones breath
is taken away, and il seems almost
that some genie has taken you and
landed you bodily i'll the kingdom of
the chrysanthemuin. Your feet sink
in the richly colored rugs, which match
in their glorious coloring the silk hung
walls and ceiling. A screen of wonder
fully carved ivory stands before the
glowing fire, and it seems like an eX-
quisite piece of lace as the light shines
through, so wonderfully delicate and
fine is the work upon it. There are
couches covered with gold embroidered
blue and rose silk and satin, and
piled high with the most restful pill
lows it has ever been my good fortune
to lean against. The bronzes, carvings
and paintings scattered about the
room on teak wood cabinets and ped
estals have cost thousands, and the
curious old armor and intricately
wrought swords grouped against the
walls are worth a fortune in them
selves.
Mr.. Vanderbilt is a very clever con-
noisseur in all art matters, and he
spent a year in Japan, securing all of
his curios personally. This smok-
ing room could not hold one quarter
of all of his japanese possessions, but
the best and choicest have been re-
tanned and the Others packed away
until he changes the tone of his Smok-
ing room, develops a new country and
bestows the Japanese collection as a
whole upon the Museum of Art. Until
that time comes the pretty nieces,
almost his own age, and the bellies and
beaux will gather in this little bit of
the FloWery Kingdom, wonder and ex-
claim over it's beauties, drink real Jap
anese tea out of fragile, fat little cups,
and watch the clever black-eyed jug
glers whom Mr.. Vanderbilt always en-
pIoys to amuse his guests when the
smoking room is to be used to receive
and entertain in.
HOW THE ASTOR SMOKER WILL
LOOK.
John Jacob Aston has a room in his
new house sacred to smoke. 1t opens
out of the drawing rooms, which are to
be three in number, forming a suite
which can be thrown in one for enter
tanning. The smoking room is circular
in shape, and the walls are rough fin
ished in a shade of old rose, with
frieze of dancing fauns and satyrs.
The floor is a mosaic of different tinted
stones, and in the center of the room
is a fountain which sends up con-
tinual spray of water. A cushioned
seat extends around the room, and the
hangings and draperies are Moorish in
design and coloring. Curious old lamps
of jeweled glass in Byzantine fashion
are fitted with electric lights and hang
by heavy brass chains from the richly
decorated ceiling. The little smoking
tables, furnished with cigar cases, ash
receivers and match boxes of brass
hammered by hand, have no legs, but
are fastened to the wall in such way
that they can be swung out for use and
pushed back out of the way when the
smokers have done with their pipes
and cigars.
1t would seem that all the originality
of New Workers had been expended
upon the smoking rooms. All Of the
other apartments are, for the most
part, alike, varying only in color and
arrangement; but for these little hooks
some object, quaint, rare Or beautiful,
has been the motive, and the room has
grown around the precious object or
objects. For instance, Mrs. Theodore
A. Havemeyer has a medieval room
in which her guests smoke, while Mrs.
Jordan L. Mott Jr. has grouped all of
her Napoleonic treasures in a sunny
little corner, and, behold. 1t is a Ma
poleon smoking room. A Trilby smok-
ing room may be looked for at an early
date, for there are at least two already
begun, with fair promise of speedy
completion