The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-22

-
cuasing tho subject Of 'fashion In wine.
goes back to the time when evsn sw1nish
indulgence in drink was esteemed . Pc
culiarly gentlemanlike accomplishment.
In the eighteenth century and even up
to nearly the middle Of the last century.
judges. clergy and gentry absorbed
wines in prodigious quantities, and sup
! plemented them with deep potations Of
whiskey, brandy and usqusbaugh. Lord
HERMAND, for example, made virtue
OF drinking, '"and his almost unparalleled
feats were surpassed by those Of his
brother bencher, Lord NEWTON Or.
WEBSTER, a pious leader In tho Kirk.
was notorious as a 'fve-bottle man.
THE consumption Of liquor At Breohin
Castle and elsewhere sounds almost in
credible Lord PANMURB was = seasoned
cask and ono Of q famous trinity from the
three kingdoms who could boast Of put
ting six bottles Of port under their belts
and carrying them of comfortably,
Lord DUFFHR1N and Lord BLAYNEY being
his compees.
Here in New York until within about .
generation the wine list at a considerable
dinner was a long and portentous roll,
while distilled liquors were brought in at
the end Of the repast; and consequently
and because Of the appallingly heavy
and varied bill of fare the dinner gen-
orally stretched through hours, and left
many OF the diners in state which would
now be regarded as offensive to SELF
respect and to proper respect for the
host and for his guests. All that has
passed away. the wine list has been re-
duced greatly and the time spent at din
ner is cut down to about an hour. Tho
dinner table is no longer treated a. Q
trough for hogs.
This does not imply that some men do
not drink too much still. 1t means only
that they are expected to keep within
the bounds Of decency in decent COM
pany, whether as guests at dinner or in
a club Of self-respecting gentlemen. A
drunken man under such circumstances
has become an intolerable embarrass-
ment, and II he appears at all at this time
he is usually relic Of the old days Of in
decent indulgence. If men drink i'm
moderately they are likely to do it in
private but the stress Of modern life
and the requirements OF both affairs and
pleasures nowadays compel restraint. A
man needs all his nerve and Judgment
in both. He must keep himself "in train
ing The hard drinkers stand out as con-
spicuous exceptions.
Mr.. HOWARD says, however, that
among the women Of the smart set" Of
New York the drink habit is growing"
and he talks of hearing stories daily
Of some woman who is recognized
member of this set having become in
toxicated at some one Of the many din
ners or functions given under it's au-
Spices and making herself ridiculous
or committing some act that afterward.
becomes notorious, while under the influ-'
ence Of wine" Who tells MIR. HOWARD
such stories? Why doesn't he look for
himself at the blooming maidens and
rnatrons of this set and obtain abun-
dant and indisputable evidence that the
stories he hears are false?
Health is now fashionable; obedience
to the laws OF hygiene has become q
requisite. Gross indulgence is incom-
patible with present physical standards.
Such women as he describes would be
offensive to the sense. If there are any
OF them, they belong to the old school Of
fashion, and not to the new. Women no
less than men must keep themselves in
training" to be equal to the indoor
and outdoor exactions ofmodern fash
ionable life.
The smart set, as we have observed
before, is not so wickedi in any respect
as it is represented to be or, perhaps, as
it would like to be accounted. It is
really circle Of conventional propriety
so uniform that any eccentric departure
from it's self-restraint provokes wonder
ing comment. In many ways it is very
provincial still-a little body in whis-
pering gallery, In which the mildest
breaks in its conventional monotony are
food for gossip and scandal, which ex-
tend with telegraphio speed throughout
it's narrow limits. It lives and moves as
in dazzle of electric light which permits
nothing to be hidden. Divorces which
give legal sanction to vagarious inclina-
ton may distinguish it, but not intrigues
| which DEFY law and usage, not coarse
and swinish indulgence.
| rS-s.a- -