Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1905-03-25

young NJ n who has been distin
gulshed during his prep" and college
days for his devotion 10 dancing. has
recently accepted respons. BILE d. sition
IN business house and has announced
MS remuneration of his favorite pas
time
we never expected this of You. Wal
ter, laughed one of his favorlte cou-
sins. I'VE thought that we might
count upon you to the bitter end. You
nave always professed yourself will
ing to sacrifice your all for dancing.
Inc girls are in despair. No one leads
Ike you, and it does really seem as
though you might go to at least one
lance a week.
might if the girls would set the
YOURS where they ought to be-" re-
piled the boy. FL like 20 dance as we'll
as ever did But have little sense
OF honor, and l find that if | am nm
late | am not as clear-headed nor as
patient as | am when | keep regular
hours. mean to give to my employ
ers the very best thcre is in me- l
can't do that when | am dancing until
TWO or three O'Clock two or three
nights or even one night per week. If
the dances would begin at eight or
half-past, or even at nine, and close AT
IL, think | could, as you say. stand at
least one each week. but now they be-
gin between 10 and II and last until
almost daylight, aud, though | haven't
as much conscience as | wish | had I
can't feel right to so to them. | SUM-
posed that was exceptional. that |
must be sort of physical weakling. to
be so much overcome by these late
hours, but two Of my old college mates
with whom l lunched the other day.
said. of their own accord, that they
could not afford the time nor strength
any more 20 go to dances-and then
there was a general confession all
around. They say that all the fellows
they know have had to give I'D
dancing"
Il should think that the girls would
care enough about you to try and
change the hours"
They seem 10 feel rather bad because
we don't come any more. but there is
a set Of rich boys who either work for
their own fathers. who let them come
to business when they choose. or else
boys who live on their incomes and do
nothing but sport from morning to
night and from night to morning. and
these fellows set the pace. The girls
can sleep all the morning if they want
to, and they can't realize what IL is TO
nave 10 eat breakfast at seven or eight
aud theo ptitn into worA iGl yhe day.
They simply cannot grasp the idea.
They scold about our not coming. and
feel hurt, bit it does MT seem TO occur
to them that by making a little effort
they could arrange Thugs so that most
OF us could come TO their parties. or a
good many of thrm."
This conversation led to interviews
with several prominen. society girls.
why can't you make your parties
sensible? You want all these fine bust
ness and professional men 10 come TO
them You get tired of the sporting
talk of the idle felows-the beam
length of the yachts. the new develop
ments in motors, the sort of missile
which Kills big game to the most
deadly advan'age. You would rather
hear of the real lite of these young
men who are struggling TO achieve
something To their converse ion the
sporting talk is as moonlight unto
sunlight and as water unto wine. And
yet you deliberately shut out these
better elements by your silly conven-
lions as 10 Tine"
The girls insisted that the thor
% -Of inc
whip hand" They preferred to have
their long dinners and then their
smoking time before they should dance
and what could the girls do? There
is no beast of the field more abso-
lutely and ingenuously selfish than
your professional society man." and
he has no n stitution more sacred
to him than his dinner, with It's appen-
dix of wine and smoke. AS he dimes
out more than half the time, the early
dance would seriously incommode him.
Unless the girls take up the matter of
reform with a high hand the dances
will probably continue to begin at IL.
as at present.
Surely. IL is better to sleep in the day.
time than not TO sleep at ALL But il is true
that our society girls are on the whole
a pretty sickly set and one cannot help
feeling that their unnatural mode of life /
is largely to blame for their ailments.
When one goes to bed between one
and five four-fifths OF the time. one !
can hardly expect to be what the old !
fashioned people used to call rugged. !
Fortunately the great mass of the
people are not fools. They have some
useful occupation to which they must
HE early in the day, and at which they
must work so hart and long that they
are glad TO drop into their beds at
from TO II o'clock every night.
Still, a considerable class of our youth.
especially in he larger cities. are in I!
jured by these unnecessarily late
hours. They can be changed and they
ought to be, and the bright. sensible
society girls are the ones who onpbt