The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1906-06-15
THE SOCIAL SPEED
LIMIT IS EXCEEDED
OipIomatic Corps Tired to
Death at End of the
"WhirL"
ARE STAR ATTRACTIONS
Foreigners Perform at Bazars and al
All Swell Funetions-Wash.
inston Pace May Be
Stacked Up.

Washington, D. c., June "A wall
has gone forth from the diplomatic set
IN Washington that the social pace in
the national capital Is entirely too swift
for them.
Remarkable as is this state of things,
there is not the slightest doubt that the
foreigners who are sent here by their
governments on diplomatic missions
find themselves utterly worn out at the
end of each season in trying to keep
pace with the rapid whirl OF social fes-
tivities. 1t hardly seems possible that
diplomats and their wives and the at
taches Of embassies and legations who
life of the capitals of Europe should
find the Washington pace so speedy
they cannot keep up with it, yet such Is
the case.
The fact is that the pace in Washing
ton Is so swift that not a few Of the
wives of the European diplomatic set
have to give it up and practically drop
stances are considered. it is not so sur
prising that they find themselves I'M
equal to the burden placed on them.
Women Suffer Fatigue.
The strain of social life in the capital
is SO great that few of the cabinet
women can bear up under it, and the
same is true of the wives Of a number
Of leading officials who are compelled
to assume almost as great social re-
SponSlbility as the wives of the cab
met officers. The wives of senators
and representatives find the test a Sc
we're one. But on none Of these does
the burden fall quite so heavily as on
the man or the woman prominent in
the diplomatic world. The demands on
them are constant and so excessive
as to be unreasonable. Hostesses in
SiS irn n
tainments in the course of the season
and to each Of these they must have
the diplomatic set. 1t matters not
whether it is q dinner. a luncheon. a
tea party, a theater party or a char
liable event.
Perform for Everybody.
The foreigner, being something more
of a novelty than the ordinary Ameri-
can, is wanted and wanted badly and
hostesses are mortally offended If he
or she is absent. The strange thing
is that in spite of the strenuous de-
mands on them, most of the diplomatic
set do their very best to meet the exac-
lions. They go everywhere with the
best of grace and hesitate at nothing
to make themselves agreeable. This
spring, many of them have been con-
spicuous at various charitable events.
especially those for the benefit of the
San Francisco sufferers. They have
served as walters, sold flowers, ana
done all sorts of things to fulfill the eX
pectations Of their Washington friends.
But now, with the end of the season
at hand and seashore in sight, the for
eigners are complaining that they are
utterly worn out and are all but broken
down. They want nothing now but
rest.
Reforms Are Hnted At.
Some of them have recently quietly
suggested that there ought to be re-
form in Washingtons social world in
the methods of entertaining They feel
that Washington hostesses insist on
giving too many entertainments and
that each hostess should confine her.
self to a few large functions in the
course of each season instead of try
ing to arrange so many as is now the
custom Thus, one hostess, for in
stance, gives numberiess dinner parties
in the course of the season. Naturally
the same guests are asked again and
again and the tendency, if not to mon-
otony, is at least to keep those in So
ciety on the go endlessly. If some
one accomplishes a reform in this mat
ter, it will bring the thanks of the dip
lomatic set in particular and will more
than that excite the gratitude of many
of the American social leaders them
selves.