The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-01-21
THEIR FIRST PEEP.
Ladies Allowed to Look Behind
the Scenes
Guests Of Honor at Saturday
Night Club Banquet.
GOOD NATURED FUN.
RaiIIery Of Members Was Some
what Curbed.
Tom McNeal Was the Master of
the Feast.
FOOD NATURED FUN.

It lacked but the presence of the baby
member Of the Saturday Nighters. at
tired in bib and tucker and seated in a
high chair, and the Punishment Of the
ladies. to have made q Clover club din
ner out OF the banquet Of the Saturday
Night club The clubs first mfd-winter
browse was held at the Hotel ThrOop
on Saturday evening. The event Will
De marked down in the historic annals
Of the club in purple ink, because Of the
innovation made by the members and
ex-members in having their wives join
in the festivities.
The greatest difference, therefore, be-
tween the sprees or the famous Clover
club OF Philadelphia and the Saturday
Night clubs banquet was that the for
mer are stag affairs, and occur in q.
high license city, while the latter main
tains its eminent respectabf1ity and the
event takes place IN the cold-Water
state Of Kansas The point Of similarity
is the spirit of fun and the rOllicking
hilaritv that DeT.neateS both. Even the
presence Of their cherished heIpmates
was no deterrent influence upon the
roaring, rampaging jocularity Of the
Saturday NighteTs. Indeed. there is a
ranking suspicion that, having them
there, they were determined to show
their wives, who were also truly curious
to know, just how bold and bad they
could be.
The meal passed quickly. There was
that. the only thing IN it calling forth
comment was the Oakland twenty
three out Of the twenty-five men were
overheard telling their neighborS that
their wives could beat that.
But after the coffee, which somehow
lacked completeness, because of course
cigars were barred, the particular kind
Of gray matter that goes for wit was let
loose all around the damasz L And
each separate section was barbed. It
was hot seething, sinuous, sibilant.
Anybody was privileged to take a shot
at everybody or every body at anybody.
common target. Not a member was
allowed to recite his piece. carefully as
il had been prepared beforehand and
touched up by the erstwhile silent part
and frequent. In the parIance of the
street, everybody played horse" with
the member who tried to speak. but in
this respect the guests were exempt for
the most part
At the farthest end Of the dining hail
from the door sat a. little man at the
head of the table He looked mostly
grey head and heavy dark nouSfaehs-
If he was rather hemmed in by previous
Arrangement there was no necessity for
alarm. He welded the rhetorical ham
mer with telling effect This was Tom
hfcNeal master of the feast and arbfter
OF all disputes that arose from the pun
gent humor that exhaIed from all sides
OF the table.
He started the shafts flying himself
by number OF personal illusions ana
finally fenced over into Ed McKeever's
corner The speaker pro tenn Of the
Kansas house resented the onslaught.
and started cut to retarate in kind,
when the following coIioduy ensued.
McKeever-I rise to q point Of order.
McNeaI-Huhl You don't know
point Of order when you see It. Who
ever expects a speaker pro tenn. to know
what a point OF order looks Hke2
ATnTr T3TrH T r4zF Ia H4rr% r.f
order can't II?
AIcNeaI-It Is universal law that no
man can create q thing which he never
saw or had any previous knowledge Of.
Sit down.
While McNeal was barred from in
Producing any fables, there was no re-
strfction put upon fairy tales He told
the ladies' that the club was composed Of
under any circumstances as they could
see for themselves. The quzrtette was
likewise admonished that ''in singing
here 1t was customary to get up on the
table,
A W. Dana had the most trying time
OF all, because he talked the longest. no
knew about the songs OF the twentieth
century He was unfortunately placed
as the first speaker on the list and had
to bear the brunt Of It. He succeeded
finally in emerging from the cloud Of
raiIlery and IN Calculating a number Of
truths about the grandeur and extent
of harmony. compelled a recognition of
the art and beauty there is in poetry
and song and closed with the recital of
a real gem Of verse Kipling's ttLsEnvOf''
showing how art win be triumphant in
the Great Hereafter
Some ancient history was recounted
by Mrs D. G. Tillotson, who told the
story most graphically of the breaking
up OF the Bachelors club by the invinci-
BILE Kansas girl And in the course of
years after it was entirely disinteerated
together