The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-11-21
WOMEN AND THE oueILo.
Such Affairs of Honor at One Time Com
mon In Vienna.

Affairs of honor between women
were far from i~nfrequent I'm Vienna Is
years ago." says a French fencing
master. 'and / assisted at several. /
well remember one in which the COM
batants were both young and belonging
to the best society. which was refought
for a very singular reason. The meet
ing took place in the park attached
to a then unlet schloss. a few miles
outside the capital. There were -four
young lady friends present-who were
sworn to secrecy-and myself. in adj
dition to the fair duelists. Well. after
each one had been pinked on the body
several times, apparently without the
slightest injury, the combatants sud-
denly remembered that, though they
had removed their dress bodices. they
had not their corsets. And" added
the speaker. with a smile. eff you
knew what a mass OF steel and whale
bone fashionable Viennese corsets were.
at all events in those days, you would
not feel my more surprise thar I did
at the difficulty they had found I'm in
turing n another. They Immediately
proposed to take the articles Off, but
I interviewed. stating hat honor was
satisfied, in the hope that they would
make II up. My good intentions were
unsuccessful as regards the latter part.
as i heard afterward that they re-
fought the affair at a trends house
In deshabille. when the younger OF the
two was so severely wounded that her
life was despaired OF.
Many years ago there was in Wen
ma a beautiful actress and
one of the finest mistresses OF fence I
have ever met-who picked quarrels
with quite half a dozen young debu-
tantes in her profession whose beauty
she was pleased to think might event.
ually turn them into rivals. The dis
appearance Of n remarkably pretty
young girl from the cafe concert stage
created some comment. IL was after
ward stated knew IL to be a fact
that Miss Y. forced a quarrel upon her
and succeeded in i~rredeemably dishg-
uring the superb shoulders Of her pref
~ young antagonist. The poor girl
had nothing OF a voice and 20 her
nance was, OF course. spoiled, as de-
c~ollette costumes were now out Of the
question. and IL was her lovely arms
and shoulders which had lifted her
into fame with the habitues OF the cafe
concert.
You see, there are not a few SALES
d'escrime i'm Paris whore quite "A m
siderable number of the pupils are la
dies. They come. of course. chiefly
because fencing is so graceful n form
of exercise and so beneficial 90 the per-
feet development of the figure, but
many Of them eventually become such
experts that they might meet an OPP
ponent of considerable skill with every
chance of success. AS recently as the
commencement Of the present year I
assisted at an affaire d'honneur in
which the combatants were two ladies.
The meeting-which never came 10 the
cognizance of either the press or the
authorities-took place early one May
morning In the neighbCrhood OF SUI
resnes. One Of h ladies'. who is a
down with her second on a bicycle. the
other seeking the comparative privacy
Of a brougham. They both wore their
fencing costumes n fought for some
Is minutes ere n received a sufficient
ly sewers injury to satisfy honor"