The sun., 1908-12-20

What II be does wear hhon aprOh9
He Is an artist nevertheless.
Madame shares his triumph. She 10
In n6RligSe now. q dainty matinee over
her shoulders. her feet thrust into high
heeled mules OF satin. and short pstti-
coat which reaches midway from knee
TO ankle.
With utter disregard OF time and an
attention TO the details Of the wardrobe
which no other ago has dared to emulate
she Ia prepared for one Of those acciden-
tally arranged rendezvouSes whore with the
shocked surprise Of an ingenue. the mod
eety of q nun and the indictments OF
trained coquette she will receive proposa!a
Of love. There are many prints and
sketches which depict her thus.
One Of these shows her In q rustic arbor
on a marble benos. She is q credit to
her firing men and women, but you feed
that last touch might have been added
had Beauoaire woven II aNoli me tangere'
inscription across the elaborate facade
Of the headdress.
The god of silence wreathed In roses
holds his finger to his lips on q marble
pedestal. Her fan and tiny kerohief
have fallen at her feet In her alarm.
His lands clasped high on his ruined
breast, Monsieur sharee the bench. In
buckled shoes and lace trimmed sleeves.
In silken hose. satin coat and breeohee,
in a couture of puffs and queue tied with
scarlet ribbon Monsieur begs for her
favcr.
The print is entitled "oui ou foni'
| A lady who has andered in from
Fifth avenue shopping wonders aloud
what would happen II Madame should
consent. You share her onder.
The corseted waist, with its span Of
some eighteen inches, the full brocaded
skirts spreading out therefrom ovef the
neighboring territory would absolutely
preclude the nearer approach OF the
would lover.
History leaves 80 much unSaidl What
did he do?" continues the calculator.
did he remain in that attitude afterward,
merely changing his expression from
entreaty to satisfaction He could not
embrace her without disarranging all
that powdered structure, without leaving
such evidences of his regard that her
return through groups Of curious cour-
tiers and ladies' would be fraught with
embarrassment. think the eighteenth
century is safe from our encroaoh n ents--
for obvious reasons ..-.
They are certainly mems women
says another lookeron. Surely none Of
them ever troubled about the condition |
Of the poor or the sanitary housing OF
overpopulated quarters Of town. Woman |
suffrage was unknown and they had no
time for Saturday morning club meet |
ings. In none Of the faces does one de- |
tect the coming OF the crows feet and
the backward going Of the beaux' feet.
At least they seem to have been able to |
keep age at bay"
It is just criticism. you admit. as you |
note the ladies' fair in their boudoirs |
tapping swains gently on satin shoulders |
with perfumed fans. in rendeSvouses where |
an epigram took the place Of oaress and
where even II painted lip met powdered
cheek it did 90 with no greater thrill than |
is afforded by vanity gratified.
Turning the prints you see some tiny |
books carefully ehcased under glass on
velvet cushions. One is entitled -Guvres
Chretiens' christian Worixs) It be-
longed TO Marie Antoinette. and through |
what vicissitudes 1t must have passed.
hC ouii tOu sDotOOSVt th0 CioWh ohd
golden symbols Of royalty are faded.
Perhaps you cavil at the title. ques-
tioning the books authenticity on that !
account. You are not alone In your
soepticism. At least one woman shares
it and to her the collector suggests that
perhaps IL she should open it.
She does after a moments hesitation, |
for the book does not separate In the
accustomed way. Instead 1t Is like box |
and inside ere two scent bottles. some |
tiny ivory tablets. mirror-that's all.
Poor Mariel' the holder OF the book |
says. and a group Of women who have
gathered about echo the sisterly senti-
ment, for women are all sisters when 1t
comes to a matter Of Christian works Of
that kind. are they not?
SO human says another, while some
one does not forget to quote that line Of
Stephen Mallarme's regarding the grace
Of faded things: -New objects displease
thee-thee also do they frighten with
their shrieking boldness.'
There Ia no shrieking boldness in these
tiny volumes. The books are few inches
long, some not more than three. There
is a delicate perfume about them, their
covers are dulled to browns and Rrays
or faded to old rose and blue. The fiy-