The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-01-27
A GAY NIGHT In PARIS
FURIOUS FUN LASTING TILL DAWN
AT THE OPERA MASK BALL.
Every Costume Registered Weeks
Ahead and the Crowd Of Merry
Makers PrOmiscuOus Throng.
Sterling Heilig's Paris Letter in New York

Sterling Heilig's Paris Letter in New York
Recorder.
When visitors complain of Paris they are
always told to wait. wait till the season
opens" wait for the holidays wait
for the carnival and midi emit Wait for
the horse show. the dog show, the battle of
Flowers and the Salons" Wait for the
Grand Prix.' There is always thing
to wait for, something with a special tag 10
it, to mark off Paris as special city. Just
now everyone is waiting for the holidays.
and with the holidays come the masked
balls.
When they say masked balls in Paris
they always mean those of the opera. There
are quantities of others, all amusing, all
beginning with the Christmas season. FL
nally the students of the Latin quarter give
their costumed, but not masked ball of the
Quatre-z-Arts. The latter was the one
which brought about the Latin quarter
riots several years ago, still fresh in the
memory. 1t is generally admitted to be the
most abandoned public function OF the
Paris winter. You may imagine anything
you please of it. anything, anything. So
much are they resolved on continuing that
the students have already put out this year
a comic programme, promising amendment
university has deigned to preside over the
ball, costumed as a fin de steele clergy
man. The students have distinguished
themselves by adopting solid roles. 1.-The
Digest "Justinian," etc. The ladies will
not be behind them in gravity-note THE
ChaSte Lucretia," 1.-The Law" and Caesars
Wife," The latter will be wheeled about in
Of iade snre peed EN- in
black. shivering and chattering her teeth,
with her hands in a fur muff. She will be
iiceman and an Enelishman. Other cos
tumes-"General Booth and DIR. Brown
Secuard's Rabbit
evening-orange-fower water, lemonade and
chamomile tea. The professors Will dance
with the students. Fortunately. or unfor-
tunately, It is hard to get adrpittance to the
Qurare-z-Arts; and the balls of the Fin
de Steele and the Courier Francois" have
very much Of special character; People
do not exactly stray into them. The Bull
lier hardly counts; and the Moulin Rouge
and the Casino, delightful their func
tions are, do not dream of competing with
the mask balls OF the Paris Opera.
Before IL p. m. an immense crowd has
already formed around the Opera, and the
police are in attendance to keep order. The
Place Of the Opera is wide square, looking
down the Avenue of the Opera, at the juno
ton of the Grand Boulevard. On either
side rows OF great cafes and restau-
rants. The crowd surges in the open square;
the restaurants and cafes blaze with special
lights; an open way is being forced for car
riages; and at the eastern corner of the
great front entrance of the Opera, very
curious crowd of masks is being given en-
trance. They are Of the free list, and they
come as early as they can. Factory girls
from Bellevile, little laundresses from Su-
resnes, market girls. and little salesgirls
from the mean shops OF old Paris: con-
the disinherited, who, being young, still
hope--they count the Opera balls among
their chances STILL just as their mothers,
f.
uries back have DONE
THE OPERA MASK BALL.
The free list, forming the dregs of the
opera balls. is absolutely essential to their
gayety Any person, male or hale, so
| that one be good looking and young, may
| make application for free entrance a week
beforehand at the proper bureau. The in
| spector inspecta Eyes, you will do. Your
| name, your, address, and in what costume
| do you propose to come" They are partic-
| ular about costumes. Everything that
might possibly touch politics is rejected.
| No one. not even pretty girl, may come
as policeman a soldier of the present
| day. The recipient of the free ticket is
| told also that the costume must be fresh
| looking and handsome. Often these young
| people will pawn their Sunday clothes to
| hire fetching disguise They come early
| and stay late. They are bound to dance
and dance and dance. They do three-quar-
| tiers of all the dancing that is done. No
| one could mistake them. The young men
| lack in elegance what they make up IN
vigor. The girls are red-armed, rough
| youth and health, or delicate and pale and
tender. with the perverse anemia of the
| Paris workshop. These have great liquid
| eyes to light up their pale faces when their
| red lips are scarcely red. Factory girl or
laundress? 1t Is matter OF taste. But
! each must do her work and dance, and an
swer saucily and take champagne when it
1t is after midnight and the ball is open.
| There comes trooping in the more aris-
| tocratic public In three sets. % The tour
lists, the provincials, the sight-seers, scat
] tered individuals and couples seeking with
| natural hesitation and timidity to get
| a glimpse of that in which they have no
| part and take a thrill therefrom. 90 The
Paris great world. in its various ranks
| and masked. All have their boxes, where
| they sit to look on and listen, If they be
| of a peculiar correctness of mind. Others
find in their boxes and the corridors. and
| even on the floor itself, unique occasions
for discreet Irritation. C3) The demi-monde.
word which is misunderstood in English
and must always be, perhaps, now since
| we have begun 1t. Here 1t includes the ac-
tress, the comic-opera singer. the almost
| legitimate mistress the professional beauty
| and the ballet dancer, not to speak of the
small fry Of the bellies petites. not TO speak
| of the very little fishes of the Moulin and
| Accompanying ALL coming by them
selves. are men in evening dress. All men
| must be c0StumeQ or else In evening dress.
| The dress coats do not mask.
The ball is at its height at a. m. The
| Grand Cortege Of the Bauties of 81 Ages.
the Triumphal Entrance of the Ship of
Beauty, the Passing of the Bridge OF Beau
| ty, or whatever the particular event may
| be, according to announcement, has been
| welcomed and applauded. All is animation.
| Society ladies are beginning to grow dis
| creetly slittsh, the young clubmen in the
lower boxes are beginning to be noisy, the
| free-entrance people are being taken to the
| buffet for champagne, the tourists have for
| gotten their strangeness, and the demi-
| monde is glowing with the kind effulgence
| of well-named planet. The foyers ard
| the Hobbies, the corridors and the grand
| staircase are as crowded as the dance-hoor
| of the auditorium. surrounded by its boxes
| and the full length of the stage behind.
| The crazy strains of three Hungarian or
| chestras strike on the ears as one is elbow
ing through the crowd in various quarters.
WHEN BEDLAM BREAKS LOOSE.
| In the chaos of noise and color-it is little
more than a bedlam of lawness and fin de
steele recontres-"Have you seen the Wolf.
| Little Red Riding Hood?" Perhaps; have
met so many beasts tonight"
Two pretty girls in masks approach a
jolly but faded old gentleman, with white
hair. '"riens. are you not VI. Arthur"
ALAS! 1 was once!
"Who are your Ito an extremely tall,
thin. bony girl) "I am Venus, arising out
of London"
A lady finds herself on the floor sur
| rounded by dozen wicked clubmen.' but,
gentlemen, leave me alone; am an honest