Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1900-02-22


luxury-eating, sleeping, driving, shop
ping and posing as a beautiful queen
before whose shrine the clubman is
prostrated with homage. No more
mistaken notion could be so UNIVERSAL
ly accepted.
The winter town season begins with
the new year and ends with Ash
Wednesday. Night after night fashion
leaders go out to dinner. never dining
at home excepting when it is their turn
to entertain. The dinners are al
ways elaborate, with many courses and
much wine. of which the ladies par
take, though some eonfine themselves
to the waters as the only means of
retarding the day Of overtaxed. nerv-
ously exhausted systems. Exhaustive
as a series of dinners Is in itself. there
are other arduous duties which oc-
cupy every minute of the day and
which the social toiler must rigorous
ly fulfill to enable her to hold her place
in the line that leads to social emf
nence.
They make a business of social life
and are as punctilious in following
the numberless demands upon their
time as a business man is in conform
ing to the exactions Of his work. A
day taken from the life of leader in
New York society will serve as a good
illustration of the daily fatiguing
rounds of the hardest working wo-
man" in the world
Madam rises at o'clock To over
gramme of the day. After a warm
bath she passes 10 or 10 minutes in
physical culture exercise and mas
sage. While the maid brushes her
hair she glances over the morning pa
per, certain paragraphs being mark
ed that would in likelihood interest
her. During these few minutes she
stores her mind with the material for
her repartee.
At 10 o'clock she has her breakfast
in her apartments. Then she sees her
housekeeper and. If it is her night to
entertain. the caterer and decorator.
She attends to every detail of her
household management.
At II o'clock she receives her mail.
The letters have already been assort-
ed. All personal correspondence of
social nature she answers. The others
she reads and then dictates her re-
plies. The rest is attended to by her
secretary.
At / o'clock she dresses for her drive
or walk if the day is suitable and time
permits. Dressmakers. shopping, chari-
ty calls. o'clock teas and perhaps a
spin through the park occupy the next
four hours, for at o'clock madam is
once more in her room and indulging in
much needed short nap. On the
stroke of her maid awakens her, and
then begins the real work of the day.
Dressing for dinner is a task that re-
quires a great deal of attention. The
weather. the hostess and the enter
tainment after dinner. all must be duly
considered. Thought and care must
be exercised in the weight and color
of the gown, which of course necessi-
tates many attendant details.
At 7:15 the society woman drives to
the home Of her hostess. Dinner lasts
until $50; then to their boxes at the
opera or theater, as the case may be.
or, as it rarely happens. the early
evening is passed with home entertain
ments. At u o'clock the cotillon, which
lasts into the wee hours of the morn;
then home to repair the ravages of IS
hours exertion by few hours of rest.
Such is the inexoraBle taskmaster
society" Tired bodies and weary
brains often lag. but the task must be
accomplished regardless of fleeing
beauty and departing health.
Ethel DE WERE