The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-07-03


the fitch anniversary of st. Paul
e we should glance backward over
the city's progress socially as
well as commercially, and com
pare its present social life with
that of the past which is now
but a tradition with the present gener-
sation. All we know of the social life
of fifty years ago is from the stories
told US by the few old settlers left from
the time before there was any society
with a capital letter. In those days
this part of the country was full of
men who had left their Eastern homes
to seek their fortunes in the far West
and charming fellows they were, if the
few women who remember them are
correct. ct is too bad, my dears, that
YOU do not have as good times as we
used to have" is what some of the
grandmotherS now, who were bellies
then, say to us. Mrs. Cathcart wrote
aspapersa year or two ago in which she
included many social "reminiscences of
early times in ST. Paul, which was
most Interesting and bore witness to
the good feeling and informality which
characterized the big dances in winter
and the Fourth of July celebrations of
that time.
Then Mrs. Hollinshead, who is one
of the survivors of those early days,
tells of a dance which was given at the
d. A. J. Baker place in the country
then a wilderness indeed-one night in
winter, when a terrible binding snow
storm set in during the afternoon
which resulted in covering the roads,
and the guests who braved the storm
got lost and it took Gen. Sanborn near
ly all night to find them and carry
them to a place of safety Then there
We're the old-fashioned supper parties
and musicals given at the hospitable
home of DR.. Borup in lower town, in
which all ages participated; the parties
given at "Lodore," the country home
of DR.. Patterson's family, over beyond
the old Becker place. The Patterson
girls were great bellies; alas, there is
not one of that family left now eX
cept the two Officer girls and the Rev.
Harvey Officer, children of Henrietta
Patterson, who married Mr.. Harvey
Officer. The parties and dances at the
Dana house in lower town are never to
be forgotten. Those were the days
when in social life the heart ruled the
head; every man was considered a
otherwise. If we believe the old set
tiers every girl was beautiful, every
man brave Mrs. Cathcart in her pa
per said that she never saw three more
beautiful women than were Mrs. Henry
NJ. Rice, Mrs. Alexander Ramsey and
Mrs. Henry H. Sibley, who were all
then recently married. In that time
nobody was very rich; there was no
display, no luxury, no formality. But
hearts were warm, hospitality was real,
with none of the give and take spirit
which came later. But as the city
grew in size and Importance it also
changed and developed in a social way
The days when every one knew every
one else became thing of the past En-
pertaining became more formal as peo-
pie grew in wealth; social lines were
drawn, and the old society was split
up into sets, until today there are doz-
ems of, cliques, and entertaining has
reached a height of extravaganza and
luxury little dreamed of by the pio-
neers. Fifty years ago every girl had
dozen beauX, as the young men greatly
exceeded the girls in numbers, but
when the far Western country was
opened up the men went out to the
coast and the number of girls today
exceed the young men. There is per-
maps nothing left now that at all re-
sembles the good times that used to
be, except the life at a frontier post,
of which there are yet one or two,
where there may be a dozen girls and
twice as many young officers.
But now we have become metropol-
itan, stiff and formal. The supper
party with every one present from
grandmothers to great grandchildren.
and ending with Virginia reel, is no
more heard of in st. Paul. Socially we
take ourselves seriously, give formal
dinners, afternoon receptions and teas
at the Country club where we gaze at
each others clothes and wonder how
father pays the bills. We look askanee
at the stranger from the East or West.
and think nobody can be anybody I'M
less We know him. We admit the par
venu in shining raiment and sniff at
the gentleman in shabby clothes In a
word, we have progressed, grown up,
and are decidedly swell. And some of
The old settlers aver that our last state
is worse than our first.
Among the affairs of the past week
We're small bridge party given We'd
nesday afternoon by Mrs. Horace Big
Glow, of South Exchange street: an
other small party of the same kind
given by Mrs. Frank Mickey, of Mac
kubin street, Thursday afternoon. and a
small evening bridge party given by
Mrs. Oliver Dalrymple Thursday. Miss
Gordon gave dinner Tuesday night
for. the bride, Mrs. Owen, and the Rev,
Harvey Officer. Mrs. c. r. Mckinney,
of North st. Paul, gave a tea Wednes-
day afternoon.
The marriage of Mrs. Halbert. of this
city, on Tuesday, in Chicago. to Mr.,
Stewart Wells, of Binghamton. N. Y,
was a great surprise to every one but
Mrs. Halbert's intimate friends. The
newspaper accounts sent out from Chi
cago were not ristht in any particular
Mr.. Wells and Mrs. Halbert were not
old sweethearts at ALL simply old
friends of long standing. They were
married at the residence of Mrs. Hal
berts sister-in-law, Mrs. Halbert, of