Evening star., 1896-08-22
FLIRTATIONS IN STRATA
Summer Houses Now Built on the Pagoda
Plan.
More Than One Story Needed in
These Days of Sentimental
BOarders.

The summer house, that rustic substitute
for the city conservatory, has assumed
larger proportions this year than ever be-
fore. 1t has always been looked upon as
the rightful property of the young women
in the family-a sort of outdoor parlor for
the entertainment of sentimental suitors.
If conservatories could talk, they could
tell us the history of many a romance in
the lives of hish-born meidens; put tie air
would fairly ring with passion were the
walls of the summer house able to tell all
they hear. And there would be none of
that 1nonotonous conventionality about the
stories which is supposed to be character
istic of the city-born suitor. Nowadays
there would be a terrible jumble of aristo-
cratic declarations of alteration modified by
the influence of the surroundings, and the
simple love tales of the rustic swains VINO
come a courtin' to Maria Jane, or Sarah
Ann, after the season of summer visitors is
past.
The Old Summer House.
Indeed this Is the trouble with the sum-
mer house as of old CONSTRUCTED. 1t ism
made to accommodate as many people as
the exigencies of this season demand.
There are NOR. people at the country
boarding houses and fewer at the fashion
able hotels than ever before, be :ause every
body, from the i-millionaire down, is
economizing, each in his own way, and in
general there is higher social class at
each boarding house than last year. not
because the grade Of the house itself has
gone up, but for the reason that each par
ticular set has taken one step lower down.
Before the advent of the city boarder, the
young women of the family had no diff
Guilty in arranging for the occupancy of the
rustic parlor; they took turns and were
satisfied. But since the country has come
tNa dad Honv oil of
people from the cities, the young women
have been greatly hampered in the enter
ta!nment of their friends.
A few enterprising proprietors of country
boarding houses have solved the problem
by building two or three vine-covered par
lors at discreet distances from one another;
but this takes up a good deal of the space
which might otherwise be available for
tennis or croquet.
A New Departure.
The very newest thing in summer houses
has appeared at the top Of one of the Cat
skill mountains 1t is four stories high, with
steps like fre-escape leading up the side.
Otherwise 1t is built exactly like any one
story house of similar character The tor
floor has no roof, but only picket railing,
and thus affords an excellent opportunitv
for star-gaZing in the evening, and for view
Ing the magnificent expsnse Of fertile fields
and wooded valleys In the daytime. The
top floor is also more exclusive, and is
therefore, more popular. There is frequent.
ly race for 1t Immediately after supper
and the couple that gets there first has pos
session. The next take the third floor. and
so on. The house will thus accommodate
at least four couples, and very often, when
the case has not progressed too far, they
occupy the floors in fours or even SKIES
and with the addition of mandolins. and
guitars and fresh. young voices, they make
the air ring with college songs or the popu-
lar airs that everybody learns nowadays
by sheer absorption. Thus the summer
house is made to take the place of the YER
anda, and, having an exposure all around,
1t is much breezier. and what recommenSs
1t even to the older and less hilarious mem
bers OF the boarding house colony is the fact
that it leaves them in possession of the YER
anda proper, with the noise and chatter of
the younger element removed to a distance
that lends enchantment to both sides.