The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-19
EITB aoAsos lnoUr row..

There have been larger audiences IN tho opera
house, and many have been more enthusiastio-
IN fAok the opening was a. tame as any ever
wttneased-but there never ,was q gathering
that1ooked more festal In character. Practically
every woman In the orchestra stalls had come
without q hat and the decorative effect Of that
ohanRe was recognized Immediately. To be
surss there we're ~aiersttss and ribbons In .eddt
ton to the modish ostrich feathers that inter
fsred with the view occasionally quite a. much
as Q bonnet might have done, but they were
brilliant Tho dark Gowns were In the minor
ity. and the fact that many Of the people in the
boxes were TO 60 TO . large ball afterward add
Cd an exceptional briliancy 70 their attire. So
The house was 40 fine 10 look at 80 any impro-
pario could have asked for. Mmo. Melba IL
considerably thinner than abe has bean for sew
oral years. That change II. Of course, becoming
% hsr figure. and 90 were the various gowns
abe wore In the opera. Possibly the reductions
In hesh has had the same effect on her that u
haS on nTo.s other persons. and her face may
which always brings out the most choice treas.
pres Of Q prima donna's Jewel casket, Mme.
L Rfs ever S SSfcss : s sasm sssa on sist sso w SssSs q oss sh6 sfMls Met.
ropoItan. It was quite, beautiful, but NOS
HsSsr1 Worse 80 iin In IF: .sso ns t aS,. se FSss @ nss Which : &c,
lossal AFFAIR of white straw and ribbon, topped
on By e bunch Of peoples, roses, or some china;
ond act, and whom Il nnaily. came OF. her head
Every performance Of ia Traviata''. In it's GUS.
tomary rococo form accentuates the wisdom
E 1SS 3 ssgi Sp Of pfSs oSses. H. stv sSo a. m sSm ana q t .hs
most cities, the prima donna always looks like
land. The 1850 models Of, Sarah Bernhardt
ing dress are usually an ordeal. but they could
not i9ok much more ridtculoSs attir e 50 than
ana ass STra an .aS A0 wssSro sTseo fSer e, we were Sss sS%e
similar inoonRruities In the matter of decorar
n lion on o.. Monday Q n DAY. night ns,,j Just T. r. ~ sh q : 1lwSy gsm ARE.
lar style.
Those persons who professed to discover o
change In tho manner Of enforcing the Raines
law last Sunday must have paid very little at
tention TO tho interior Of tho saloons on many
preceding sundays. The hotel which was one
Of the first to insist on sandwiches abandoned all
pretence of that kind a year ago, and has al
lowed Its customers to drink with oil freedom
from any such restraint. This 10 true Of nearly
all the downtown saloons, and only o few of
the hotels on upper Fifth avenue continue to
charge for the Sunday sandwich. There 10 very
good reason to believe that something moro
than q fear of violating the law Is tho occasion
for 90 much conscientiousness In these cases,
and the extra rate charged 10 certainly enough
70 make the observance, OF the law profitable.
The Raines law has not boon very strictly car.
Of It. Ike RsS' the Sst theatre SsT law. It has reached a
a s,nss, St Of rs snsdss p&srf s,nss,G,sS; is T under d ihs
cussion at Albany, they are given here with
uninterrupted REGULARITY. The mere disuse OF
as an adequate demonstration OF the fact that
the performances on Sunday are not theatrical.
any that take place during the whole week.
At tho German performances given in many
place net S SS dsua shs . HHiss'i /. ' very i Hssfe z aE R]ffsfsnSs
In sar tss p fSss assSsst to b tSS SS rssrIs o. H. II IL pr lsirly
agitation IL. the best theatres In New York
will never be opened on Sundays. The Empire
or the Lyceum, for instance. would lose caste
Sunday, Even IN Western oities, the Best
actors do not appear on Sunday. Not to do so
q aotS SPs Position OF aGs IN G,iSsii s Fprotesslkon features Oh an
Richard Le Gallienne's principal cause for
dissatisfaction with this city on q previous visit
was tho fact that the absence Of trees made 1t
impossible for him to eleep hero. Now that he
Is coming hero again, he has chosen the couni
try, where his slumbers win not be disturbed
by the lack Of abundant foliage. 1t viii DO New
York's loss, however, that Mr.. Le Galienne's
black satin bicycle suit, trimmed with old
yellow, win not be seen here. II enough warning
had been given, 1t would a been worth
while to grow trees all over the city to keep
that black satin suit on Manhattan Island. But
Mr. Gallienne decided too quickly. Possibly
has besh anxious, to come to this country on :
lecture tour, and has eagerly awaited from
MstIor Pond e! Sss ANY w Isnfer M sSG Is e to s,t the Rasli IT,
eIdeed 70. CONF. over himself and live here until
s sre p pSatos resdy 81 him have tas' iateiy ben been CON-
spicuous uptown. and persons who did not see
able toform some idea Of what his appearance
would DO in black satin breaches trimmed with
| bSir w he has = S e long; sSs seh srd faes Fl, a9 9Srs SsSTlSS
and Is long enough to fall over his collar. Mr..
10 Gallienne Is spectacular at all events, and
New England has gained even If New York has
lost.
Anthony Hope Hawkins is another English
celebrity who lectured prohtably here, and the
principle seems to be established nov that the
literary men who are TO prosper here must ap-
peal TO The women. To that ability was at.
tributed Ian Maclaren'B success, and 1t must
have appeared to anybody who attended one Of
Mr.. Hopes readings that without the support
OF the women his audiences would have been
slim. On the last day he read here one of the
largest rooms Of the Astoria Hotel was crowded
with the same enthusiastic femininity that had
attended all of his readings. and the last audi
ence he had was indeed the largest. but not
mOIe tnau uNO hoH. "eTo pTceCut. ~ OApcEh-
ences OF Conan Doyle, who did not appeal, par
ticularly to women, will be remembered here.
On his visit two years ago the interest taken In
his readings and lectures was so slight that his
tour was successful from no point OF view. The
effect of such @ visit on the succe : of an
author was discussed tho other day in one Of
the clubs at which Mr.. Hope had been seen fire.
quently while he was in New York, and the dis
position was to believe that his future novels
might not sell so well.
'Every woman who went to hear Hope read"
said one OF the men. felt a keen curiosity about
hia nprsOnaliIY. and that waB wholly satisfied
by hearing him read his stories. l am inclined
to believe that such an. experience instead Of
being an advertisement for an author Is In real
ity q disadvantage. In the future Hopes novels
will seem. tame TO the women who read them
alone. and 50 long as the author Is not to read
them himself I believe that the interest In them
will be considerably less. Mr.. Hope was a we'll
bred man of agreeable manners. but there was
very little about him to make n woman's hero.
He had just the sort of attractions that would
recommend him to women during the short time
that his READINGS continued. His personality
was not marked strongly enough to lead wo.
men to buy his books merely because they had
once heard and seon him. / think they were