The times., 1898-11-20
Toilets Worn at New York's
Annual Dress Carnival.
THE DANCING sISTERHoOD
Chiffons Powdered With Fluffy Balls
of Silk for Maids nrd Mirage Vel
vet for Their EIders-Lndy Cur
zon,s Calcutta Gowns Are MarveIs
of Rcauty and Style.

to feminine stature is a captain in her
art, and French moiistes assure us they
have achieved this desideratum by cut
ting the front breadths of skirts very
long. 1t is quite wonderful what he ght-
ening effect few ground scraping inches
of cloth will have, as the usual clothes
carnival during horse show week bore
witness Women, who in golfing petit
coats are girlishly small seemed stately
as Dianas in their cloth and fur suits
with skirts so long they were obliged to
save their noses by holding the front
widths clear of the earth. Indeed, 1t is
necessary to acquire Il long flowing glid-
ing step in order to carry these lengthy
draperies with good style, and to procure
the proper fall of starchless grace the
crisp frilly petticoat has been cast aside.
No woman who makes any pretensions
TO good taste is any longer accompanied
in her movements by the siIken, sad, un-
certain rustling of taffeta. The musical
wish wish of silk friction against silk
is heard no more, and if you had asked
any of the well dressed creatures who
fiuttered in smaller but none the less
modish crowds last week about the equine
favorites, how she achieved the hushed
clinging of her cloth or satin garments,
she would have told you of her crepe-de-
chine under petticoat. The crepe-de-
chine skirt is, of course, a French idea,
developed first for the benefit of Lady
Kelso. hitherto Mrs. George Curzon, who
has ordered a very exquisite trousseau IN
which to make her vice regal debut in
Calcutta. 1t was only question of few
days when this detail of comfort and
beauty crossed the ocean, and already
they are biushing and paling in score
of colors in the shops where wealth and
beauty procures its plumage.
For Lady Kelso they were made as
long as the skirts under which they were
to be worn and of the heavy silk crepe
with a dash of wool in it that possesses
both body and a surprising amount Of
warmth The majority of the imported
ones are for day wear, of black, old blue,
and resin brown, and elaborately en-
broidered. In most delicious pale tints
they are made up for the evening and on
them are applied trails of yellow and
scarlet velvet poppies. Now, a erepe-de-
chine petticoat may seem rank eXtrav-
agance, but any woman who viii buy
and wear the best crepe in the market
and trim her skirt with fiounces of Rus
sian net ornamented with lines of bebe
ribbon, will enjoy an amazing amount of
hard wear In It. The Partisan skirts
are all made to be perfectly fiat about
the waist and hips. and so deeply gored
from the knees down that at the foot
they measure five or six yards in width
Another impression that horse show
week left on those whose souls are
tuned 10 beauties of raiment, and who
haunted the tanbark rings in the morn
ing, were the numbers OF fair visitors
who, when they unlocked their coats or
capes for fresh air. showed silk waists
with fiat necks. 1t is just as well to
premise by saying that you must be dis
tinctly young and columnar-throated to
cut off your basque collar. and during
the horse show week many collarless
bodices of great comeliness were OBJ
served at the theater. They seem indis-
putably to suit well with the hatless
style in which women are now Obliged to
attend the play, and a certain impress
sion of the full dress is loaned by the
display Of white throats.
A pretty fiowered satin dressy waist
having q lace front and being judiciously
enhanced with fur, is brought up fiat as
far as the neck, and the wearer is apt to
wind yard of mock pearls where the
choking collar used to be, or encircle the
pink coral beads. In fact, a whole series
of old and new style necklets and dog
collars have been called out by this fash
ion, for no woman goes to see horses or
her faVorite players with a bare throat.
A band of very eXtravagantly jeweled
lace caught with a handsome brooch; an
endless very fine chain of gun metal,
punctuated with Rhine pebbles, or a scarf
of chiffon wound about and tied in a big
bow in the rear, are among the notions
that serve as detachable collars for these
waists.
This discussion leads naturally to men,
ton of another method of topping off
morning suits as signiied at the recent
show. The women who still cling TO
tailor-made traditions wore neat high lin
en- collars with their dark cloth suits.
The collars had long points in front that
folded down fiat over the ties, while a
circular comb-shaped piece of linen stood
up, crisp as lily leaf, back of the ears.
Around such collar was wound in every
case a scarf made of bias soft surah, cut
very wide, very long and of some delicate
tint. Twice about the neck this was
drawn and tied in front in a double bow
knot with arrowhead ends falling nearly
to the waist line.
Some women used with the above men,
TONED collars long scarfs of Liberty silk,
with Persian pattern ends, and some
used a broad satin ribbon tied in wide
bow under the chin; a bow without ends,
and its middle made fast by brooch.
The exceeding length of sleeves was
everywhere emphasized by the gowns
that such women as Mrs. Cornelius VAN
derbilt, jr, beautiful Mrs Norman
Whitehouse and equally lovely Mrs. Dana
Gibson wore. Their sleeves were cut to
fall beyond the knuckles, else long cuffs,
and very wide ones, too, were set on to
almost conceal the hand. Down near the
wrist these women's sleeves gripped their
arms closely, and 1t is evident that before
very long those who possess really hand
some arms will be wearing sleeves to
display every contour from shoulder to
fingers. At one of the early Autumn
dinners sleeves wrought wholly of very
open worked jet and of pearl or colored
passamenterie made their appearance
and promise to take the place of the
long-loved lace and chiffon sleeves.
The long gowns aforementioned need
not be regarded as in the least obliter-
ating on the charms of well modelled ex-
tremities. Pretty shoes and slippers in
fact have never been so strangely con-
spicuous as this season, when trailing
front breadths must be held high when
the wearer takes the least exercise. 1t
is to be observed that cloth topped shoes
are having return of feminine patron
age and that colored patent leather
vamps are absolutely the only kind for
dress occasions. Black varnish is of
course always standard, but in the
pretty vagaries of fashion a dark invisi-
BILE green patent leather is much used,
as well as a deep rich red. Some dainty
carriage shoes have black cloth tops,
rod