The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1899-01-18
THE VANDERBILT BALL.
Cornelius Senior Entertains In
Honor of His Second Son.
WEALTH AND BEAUTY THERE,

Fayne Whitney - Women Blaze
With Jewels - Two Dinners Were
Served - First Vanderbilt Bali In
Three Years.
The Vanderbilt ball the other night
in New York was an affair of stately
grandeur. There We're 500 guests in the
Fifth avenue palace, and 500 richer,
better dressed or handsomer men and
women were never gathered under one
roof
The mansion was displayed in all its
lavish magnifcence The guests trod
upon carpets that have felt the feet of
oriental royalty; they dined off plate
that might have come from the wed
ding chest of princess with a fairy
godmother; they looked upon paintings
the least Of which represented more
than poor man earns in a lifetime of
labor
Magnifcence was the watChwOrd of
the occasion 1t is not often the Van
derbilts entertain, but when they do the
tale is worth the telling The half thou
sand who were the guests of Mr.. and
Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt We're a fitting
company for the regal halls, the rich
carving, the tapestries and the general
riot of grandeur Of the most sumptuous
private palace in America if not in the
world.
1t was the first time the grand ball
room has fulfilled the purpose Of its
creation in three years The ball was
in honor Of the son, a mere boy at col
lege, but heir to $50, 900, 900.
Only inferentially was the grand ball
to celebrate the engagement Of this lad
to marry The bride to beat least ev-
erybody considered her the bride to be
Miss Elsie French, was not among
the guests. She is at present abroad
with her mother
There was, however, a prospective
Vanderbilt bride among the merrymak-
ers. Miss Fair, the betrothed of young
Willie K Vanderbilt a nephew of the
house, attracted more attention than
the pictures, the flowers and the music.
When she danced, the eyes of the ex-
elusive multitude were upon her The
story had been generally circulated and
was generally believed that the grand
resumption Of Vanderbilt hospitality
would also mark a reconciliation in the
family, but Cornelius junior and his
wife We're not there
There were two separate dinners serv-
ed during the evening The first,
buffet luncheon for the older people.
was spread in the dining saloon, but
the young peoples dinner was served
everywhere Tables were spread for
convenient little parties in the halls.
the picture galleries and the many beau
tiful smaller rooms, and there the young
people ate and drank at their ease.
The cotillon began at O. clock in the
morning. 1t was led by Worthington
Whitehouse and Ida Vanderbilt
Sloane the daughter of Mrs Douglas
Sloane The favors We're varied and
gorgeous enough to be in keeping with
the magniicence of the rest of it.
There were Venetian lanterns on
stands as high as a small woman S head,
tambourines for the ladies. sashes of
silver, whips and canes and boutonnieres
and good luck trophies. A most beauti-
full picture was that presented by the
dancers declzed with their trophies, in
that fairy cavern of ballroom
1t was the court ball of the richest
set Of the richest city in the world, and
the women had dressed for it as they
had probably never dressed for ball in
New York They were a-glitter with
gems, and the white flashes of diamonds
and the red and green CLEANS of rubies
and emeraids answered back the chal-
lenge of the electric lights that shone
from the frieze and corruscated from
the giant Candelabra
The guests entered at the Fifty eighth
street entrance under the porte cochere
which admitted them to the main hall
Relieved Of their wraps, they burst
like butterflies from chrysalis, and in
all their glory swarmed up the stately
winding staircase to the water color
room. There Mrs. Vanderbilt received
her guests alone. The water color room
Is In the style of Louis XVI. On the
walls are the soft beauties from the
brushes of Madeleine Lemaire, Childe
Hassam, Pizarro, Claude Mottet, Do
mlngo Burne-Jones and Abbey.
From the water color room the prog
ress was direct to the ballroom, a state
ly chamber the most beautiful dancing
apartment in any private residence in
America 1t is 50 feet long as wide as
an ordinary city lot, and the ceiling is
80 feet above the floor.
The ceiling is one grand panel framed
IN gold and suspended five or six feet
above the side walls In the frieze on
the top OF the wall are the hidden elnn.