Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1897-08-15
ECHOES FROM ALTON.
THE SPIRIT OF UNCoNvENT'o'
Atty STALKS ABROAD.
How II shows Itself In s"o'"
An Ominous Prophecy-hone"s
for the Oid-Fashioned
HustIer-Notcs.
UustIer-Nofes.

1
door recreations. Society has taken Wy
the Cad that we knew Of long since-Dy
another name-and the happy huhuHs'
ground OF fashionable folk is fouhu
vhere the summers outing LEADS Dy
land or sea. The spirit Of unconven'ioi-
atty and good fellowship s'a.N9
abroad-or, II that is too drama'lc i0'
these sizzling days-walks or drlVes VI
sails wherever sweet liberty Wills
And society looks well from tne
change; It's composite expression Is p''a
sont. sometimes one might venture 10
say that 1t appears almost happy anu
has ceased to take its pleasures sao-
ly"-Enelish fashion.
Hedged about the rest OF the year Dy
thousand divlnlties in thlS hes
day of blue skies and soft AIRS eve"
Mrs. Grundy wipes her moist bro" anu
winks. or maybe mods in lazy sluinDe''
when the non-eligible youth ana the so''
daughter OF some neart and nome set
off unchaperoned and alone 70 s"'iIsl
daisies I'm the far meadow, or hsh A'i
ox-frogs in the oozy creek.
Some such a phase Of modern soc'e'S-
in the duplex-I came across YESTERDAY
n kind of fete champetre. mace up Vi
visitors from the hotels and nelsnpoi
hood. In the crowd-were no prlm -looh'na
smsll-waisted maidens watched over ny
stern mammas, and balanced on SUI
camp-stools and benches - is Scoring ''o
yielding OF upspringing grass, Dut d - ~ ~
ful group of pretty girls ana poS =
Mannish girls? O. well; / dare say iol
the ubiquitous shirt-waist was mere III
all its starchy pertness. and, individually
/ think they sported some other DrO'le,
black satin tie More than one girl wore
the short skirt and leggins belonging 10
the bicycles near by. ana seVeiai
nrettv figures were bas-reliefs IN whlte
duck and scarlet against the gray ana
Green OF Mother Earth. But one anu
all they were leaning, Longing or sl-
ting in attitudes Of unconscious grace
mon the ground. And laughing WIN
sucb a Jolly. whole-souled spirit or mirlh'
And eating fried chicken and cold PIE
and biscuit and cake as'only clear con
science and a light heart can eat wiz.
deNonce 10 Indigestion. Conspicuously' OF
course. the boys were running arounu
waiting-gallanuy as OF old-upoh the
girls and eating as in the oldeh way
before a new girl was born, everylhl
they could possibly get hold o. IN the
BACKGROUND one young man pulled the
side Of his linen trousers in an limitation"
skirt dance la Loie fuher, anu senu
,ne, his heels toward his head, sang. win
equal gusto and bad grammar
"My nanny told me
A long time ago-o-o.
Son. don't you marry,
No girl you kno-o-w!
She'll spend all your money,
And wear all your clothes;
What will become or you,
The deuce only knows
listened eagerly for the third verse
and think I've improvised part of the Sc
conduit our young mans musical men
nations were cut short by the arrival OF
a hlg raw tomato. delivered plump
against his face, with an admoniuon 10
hold your tawH'-which he did with poth
hands. | looked the crowd over anu "as
clad enough to be welcomed as guehl'
Good? Every one OF them! These hght-
hearted. always alert, ana pra tiilIl,
xrls-these easy-gOing, athletic, galiaht
boys. .,-,o,,,
AN OMNIBUS PROPHECY.
read an ominous prophecy not long
since. Some one said that a mighty
change was going on in the social woIu'
that femininity was on the decline
admit the change but in feminlnity
Il IS a metamorphosis. and not dechhe'
inst the difference between the sweet
insipid drooping Amebas Of half cen
turv ago and the broad-minded, Woe
awake. working woman of to-day. Inc
sweet. innocent maiden, submissive ana
untaught who was the grandmother OF
our new" woman. was herself the sIahu-
daughter OF q woman OF whose boIuhe9s
and mannish proclivities we or TO-DAY
NAV little guess. That strohg-hl
catherine Of Russia and Queen Elizabeth,
AND. those horrible old Medici women be-
longed to other days, and we would take
the "snagger girl" with all her sins OF
slang upon her. I'm preference
In truth, and il may be because or
natural depravity, az my sponsors would
have said. ] do not take kindly 10 the
too-too-goOdy kind Of women. There's
that Mary Of Scots. whose womanliness
IS so historically extoled; so much beauty
and sweetness as she had. and yet 50
weakly feminine that she was constantly
I'm n new love scrape, and only ceased
TO lose her heart when she lost her head.
poor thing. The oldtme girl in humber
walks Of life must have been dreadylly
cramped in mind and body. She prided
herself upon manner and good breeding,
and knew every point of etiquette, from
sitting bolt upright In her chair, with
elbows at angles and just the two tips
Of her prunella boots visible, to eating
soup with the side Of a spoon, and never
on any account touching the table.
And yet, ! mind me that ! have seen
nd Of OF VIII fe % n
such revolution upon the existing order
Of social things. and that she made me
long for the old-fashoued sister with an
aching void. which all her gear OF spat
and shirt, blazer, fob sash. monocle. and
four-in-hand could never fill. This non
descript creature although pure-hearted
and clean-minded enough, usually an
swered TO the nickname of Jack. and was
a Northumberland sort OF girl. TO
whom the conventionalites were nothing,
and who talked dog and horse races.
rolled a cigarette and struck a light on
the sole OF her shoe with the best of them.
The worst of this sort Of girl is that she
accepts as jolly the absence of dignity
on the part of the young men who fol-
low in her train. The nonenties from
which masculine madens get their model.
are permitted to smoke in their society,
keep their hats on, and interchange slang
phrases, all for the sake of a boon COM
radeship which is neither lovely nor
wholesome. Because of this laXlty, men
are careless OF their treatment OF wo-
men, They study their own comfort.
go to dinner in their slippers. and make
evening calls in tennis suit. But Il is
in ways matrimonial that these feminine
Jacks and masculine ellis turn the world
topsy-turyy. For the mannish young
girl does not stop at masculine attire
and mannerisms. She thinks II smart TO
wait on herself and it is her boast that
she can go where men go and have as
much freedom as they.
BECOMES A HUSTLER.
III this young woman goes in business
she becomes hustler. She does her own
managing, publishes her own book keeps