The Washington herald., 1912-02-05
CLIP THE WIN GS
OF TURKEY TROT"
Society Matrons and Dancing
Teachers Declare Against
Animal Dances"
MENACE TO MORALS"
Experts Speak of the Glide as "Vul-
gar, Impossible" and Pos
sibly Disastrous.
MENACE TO MORALS


society fad, the notorious turkey trot." )"
Is menacing the morals Of Washington s
girls and women, the debutante as well
rs the shoPgirl dancing teachers in the
National Capital have put a ban upon
the sensational glide and refuse to teach
the new movement, and also prohibiting
the treading Of the tabooed step within
heir academies.
Society matrons who have seen private
exhibitions in dancing schools here, to
determine whether the trot is vulgar and
demoralizing, have pronounced IL I'M
possible" They have not only forbidden
their 8daughters and young proteges
from indulging in II, but issued an ediCt
that they shall not attend any of the
smart functions where the glide is coun-
tenanced.
Declines TO Instruct.
a prominent teacher of dancing. whose
clientele includes members OF the most
fashionable young set of the city, re-
ceived so many requests for instruction
In the turkey trot'' that she went to
New York, familiarized herself with the
movement, and then returned to Wash
lngton TO face her anxious pupils and TO
tell them that she would not instruct
them in the new dance under any cir
pumstances.
Interviewed last night, this teacher re-
uuested that her name never be con-
neCtCd in any way with that disgraceful
turkey trot,' and gave descriptions of
the instruction she had received in New
York to prove beyond any doubt that
the dance is not one in which nice
people should care to reyel.
Mrs. Flora c. Dyer, whose name is al
most ugffh danrfnU-
the younger sets of Washington, could
not refrain from exhibiting a slight de-
gree Of indignation when asked If she
permitted her youthful pupils to indulge
in the turkey trot" on the ballroom
floor of her academy.
OF course" said Mrs. Dyer, Il never
have even considered permitting the
turkey trot" among my pupils. Such a
course has never entered my mind The
dance is impossible to gentlewomen and
10 young girls-well, to young girls the
turkey trot'' may be disa strous can
not approve or CountenanCe such a dance
movement, and / cannot conceive Of a
lady desiring TO perform it.
Enough Decent Dances.
There arc two dances typicaIly Ameri-
can, and the pleasures to be derived by
either the young or old from these dances
is sufficient for any one loving propriety
and decency. The old-fashioned waltz
and its sister dance, the popular two
step, are the dances to which allude.
These are the only dances permitted in
my ballroom. have received requests
to permit the turkey trot," grizzly
bear chicken reel" and similar
movements, but these requests have al
ways been answered by. a frown Of dis
approval 1 do not think really nice
people should care TO dance other than
the waltz or two-step.''
That the new Jance movements which
have been introduced within the last few
months have been perverted by society
and certain classes of people" was the
assertion made by Miss Cora B. Shreve,
who is recognized throughout the coun-
Try as one of the most capable teachers
OF dancing in the United States as wen
as an authority on the proprleties in
dancing.
Miss Shreve declares she has not only
placed the ban on the turkey trot,"
bunny hug" grizzly bear" and all
other freak" dances, but AYERS that the
popular and near-proper Boston dip"
Is prohibited in the three classes in her
school of dancing. Miss Shreve said:
1T is not so much that these new So
called dances are improper as that their
portrayal by certain people approaches
the meaning of that ugly word. vulgar
Concerning the turkey trot,' 1 may say
the dance has been carried so far beyond
the confines Of propriety that l have re-
fused TO teach it, despite numerous re-
quests, and have announced TO my pupils
that it shall not be performed on the
floors Of my academy.
ANY one of experience and discern
ment who has seen the turkey trot'
danced knows that it is anything but re-
fined, and it can be best described by a
word which l do not care TO use. There
are other dances than the waltz and two
step. In fact I specialize in teaching
fancy dancing, and a large percentage
of my pupils ara mere children. But
none of the fancy dances teach possess
any OF those undesirable features which
stand out so prominently and shoclingly
IN the turkey trot "
Maj. SyIvester's View.
Maj. Richard Sylvester, chief of police,
when asked for his opinion as to the
turkey trot." the bunny hug" and
Gotham glide" said:
These dances are all we'll named, to
begin with. Further, 1 think they are
greatly TO be deprecated.
Maj. Sylvester admitted having wit
messed exhibitions of the various dances
He intimated that they were not danced
in public when he saw them.
That the board of education does not
intend to have pupils of the high schools
initiating the society women OF the Capt.
tai who are devotees Of the turkey
trOt'' was made plain by Mrs. Ellen
Spencer Mussey. member or the board.
Mrs. Mussey. denounced the dances as
very undesirable for young people.
We looked into the manner OF dane
ing the turkey trot and 'griZzley bear
said Mrs. Mussey, ''and found them to be
highly undesirable for young people at
least. We have instructed the principals
Of the schools to place these freak dances
under the ban. and they will not be al
lowed even when the girls are dancing
with one another"
Barred from Schools.
Miss A. NJ. Goding. principal Of the
Normal School, said that sNe had been
put to no trouble through the rage for
freak dancing, because as yet very few
Of the girls know anything about them.
There have been no requests TO take
them up and so anticipate no trouble"
said Miss Cooling.
The high school pupils have taken an
interest I'm the dances, however, IL the
Normal School girls have not, for it was
not very long ago that Alan Davis, prin-
eipal Of Business, was asked IL the new
dances would not be permitted at one of