Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1897-11-04
BAB'S BLITHESOME BABBLE
The Type of Woman Whom We
Like to Meet.
SOME STORIES OF THE PAST
The New Way of Marking
Stockings.



New York. Oct. 29.-There is a type of
woman whom it is always a pleasure to
meet This is the woman who, by
no means young = indeed, the world
would call her old-has yet lived every
day of her life, and who in her old
days remembers with pleasure the de-
lights of her eventful career. As ! know
her, she is II years old, the childless widow
of an immensely rich Southerner who went
abroad long before the war, lived there all
through it and only came back within the
last hive years, bringing her dead husband
that he might rest with his ancestors.
Dignitied III manner, handsome in an
pearance, witty in speech, this gentlewoman
makes me wonder whether any woman of
to-day will be like her when they are old.
I fear not. They take life too sadly and
fail to find the proper interest in people.
Always this old friend of mine tells ME
something that interests me. To-day it is
of the time when the Empress Eugene
ruled not only Paris, but all the world /;
when the women dressed their hair after
the fashion she affected; when mysterious
stories went about Paris of the attempts to
kidnap the little prince imperial that poor
prince imperial whose death was so tragic.
Tomorrow am hearing of Antonelli, that
wonderful man to whom the world was
book which he read with ease; of his
schemes, of his polite manner, and then of
the trust that he reposed in his American
friends because he thought them so natural
and so true, of the little girl who was taken
by the great cardinal to see the pope; how,
with the dignity of six years She said
Holy father, bless these rosaries so it will
not wear off, for they'll have to 20 way
across the ocean to America. " and of the
mirth that the innocent speech excited in
Plus TX.
Sometimes hear stories of the great
queen-she who celebrated her Jubilee but
few weeks ago-and these stories tell of
her when she was young and of some of the
mistakes that she made. Perhaps you know
this one-lt is old, but it is new TO me
When the queen of England was first mar
ried she was intensely jealous of her hand
some husband. she was by no means
beauty, and whenever she saw him talking
to prettier woman she not only suffered
herself, but she made that woman suffer.
No matter how innocent she was, no matter
II the good prince had only inquired as TO
her health or her father or given the ordi-
nary salutation of the day, if she seemed
extremely beautiful in the queens eyes,
then she had absolutely no excuse for her
existence.
Among her lades--those ladies who take
their turn in being beside the queen-was
lady Flora Hastings the beautiful daughter
OF All aristocratic Scotch family. Every
where her beauty was talked of, and every
body who knew her, after speaking Of her
beauty, told about her kindness of heart,
her sweetness of manner and the genteness
of her spirit. One day, passing through
the corridor. the queen saw her husband
laughing and talking with her lady in wait
ing. That was enough The queen accused
her of want of maidenly modesty. The
girl, IN dead faint. was carried from the
palace into the city. The horror of the
implication brought on her death and to-day
when the queen drives to her Highland
home she is obliged to go past the grave of
the girl whose life she ruined How? In
stead of burying her in the great vault
where her honored ancestors slept her sis
tiers insisted on her being laid to rest just
inside the boundary of those lands in Scot
land which they knew the queen must pass
by. And to mark the spot and to call atten-
ton to it is an enormous white marble hand
with the forehnger pointing . heaven,
while engraved on the wrist are the words,
81 bide my time" None OF that famil,
ever go to court or speak to member of the
royal family. And the sisters, women as
old as the queen now are satisfied because
they know that God judges rich and poor
alike, and. biding their Time queen and
gentlewoman will stand equal before that
Judge who can read the heart of each.
We are all inclined to think, we who only
know of kings and queens far from their
thrones. that to them and to all of their blood
there comes plenty of everything and vet
my dear gentlewoman possesses an auto
graph book which bears upon it the mono
gram of Princess Alice and the English coat
of arms. 1t had been one among many
other presents given at Christmas to the
governess said, Madam am so poor that
j haven't sixpenCe with which TO buy
you Christmas gift, but will you take this
book, which was presented to me?" The
queen, entering and hearing her daughters
speech said, That's right, my dear; give
madam the souvenir, and under your name
] will put nine" Years afterward when
the governess taught the little American
girl, she gave her this precious volume to
remind her that although people might
hIUh Tlo Al Il nj.
the most love, the most money or the most
power The ink is faded that was used to
write the name of the gentle princess and
her great mother, and the book is filled with
the names of the great on this earth, and oh,
what lesson it is to look at them and re-
member them Here's the name of the
great banker, a Rothschild; his wealth could
not keep death from his door. Here's the
name of the great cardinal, whose name is
in the Book of Life for ali generations to
read Just as it is here beside that Of the
gentle pope. Here's the name of poor Car
lotta. What tragedy her life was And
near by is that of Louis Napoleon. And
then come great writer's, great artists, witty
men, famous women, who all gladly give
their autographs to the pretty American
child, who won them by her sweetness and
frankness and who had fallen heir to the
autograph book of the Princess Alice. Both
OF them are at rest now the American girl
and the English princess, but the book is
filled, and the black and white stands after
the shrines that held these two gentle hearts
have been shattered.
But my gentlewoman is not always inter
ested in the past. 1t was only recently she
told me of the new way of marking stock
ings. you see," said she when one has
fine silk stockings, such as lady wears, one
wishes to match them each time, and of
course this is difficult to do A number
isn't pretty on stocking, but a French
marquise has written me that the new
stockings are each marked with a tiny
flower, so that the pansy goes with the
pansy, the rose matches the rose, the violet
seeks its mate, the orchid finds its compan-
ION indeed, every flower that you can think
of is daintily embroidered near the top,
each in its turn, and so ones stockings are
properly matched and properly worn. Alb,
my dear, how true it is that the nouveatl
richie do not appreciate the luxuries of life.
II is true they have everything, but not
knowing the fineness, not realizing all the
time that i took to make the perfect glove,
10 weave the rich cloth or to create beauti-
fni lace. they abuse it, whereas we who are
ladies care for our belongings and would
count ourselves vulgar if we did not show
our appreciation in this way"
! could but smile as / thought of the
wealthy woman who. the other day gave
my hairdresser a magnificent evening dress
that she had worn once. OF course she
Gould sell 1t, but that present explained to
me the tang of vulgarity that there had
always been about this woman. NV gentle
woman would either have given her money.
II that were what she needed or something
better suited to her station in life. Such
present makes poor woman dissatisfied,
and il is foolish.
By-the'by, speaking of hairdresser. the
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