The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-09

There will be fountains and clipped yew
trees and all the formal decorations of
that period. and the whole foundation
of the scheme will be a lovely shade of
peacock blue, to suggest the sky of q
summer night. Louis XIV. and his court
will all be represented, and the rest of
the guests will come as the people OF
the different nations who were at the
court at that time. Some of them have
already chosen their "counterparts;'
Lady Alington's party will represent Rus
sia, and her son will be Feodor HI, the
Car of that time. The Duchess of Ruth
erland's party will represent the Venetian,
and the Countess OF Dudleys the Spanish
folks, who were at the court; one Of the
most brilliant groups will be the sIamese
envoy and his suite who visited France
at the time of Louis XIV. The English
king and his court also will be there.
Altogether 1t promises to be a most bril-
liant affair, and will put all former fes-
tivities Of this kind into the shade
People who know them we'll are more
inclined to condole with Lord Ribblesdale
than congratulate him on the engagement
of his daughter, the Hon. Diana Lister to
Percy Wyndham, son of the Right Hon.
George Wyndham, NJ p. Diana Lister,
besides being extremely pretty, and one
of the most practical girls alive, mas
been, almost from her babyhood, her
fathers chief companion, and they are
absolutely devoted to each other. Her
elder sisters, now Lady Lovat and Mrs.
Mathew Wilson, We're just ordinary girls,
but Diana has always been capable be-
yond her years. Her mother, Lady Rib
blesdale, was an invalid for many years
before she died, and it was to the young
est daughter that the arrangements for
all house parties were left. Her father
often declared that he would never hear
of her being married, but, of course, it
was not likely that such a charming girl
would be left long ION the shelf"
Percy Wyndham, her future husband,
Is the only son Of George Wyndham and
the Countess Grosvenor (who married the
politician as her second husband), and,
therefore, a half brother of the Duke of
Westminster. The two young people be-
long to opposite political camps. George
Wyndham, of course, is q conservative,
while Lord Ribblesdale was the last mas
ter of the Buokhounds in the late Mr..
Gladstone's administration. Lady Rib
blesdale, too, was a sister of Mrs. AS
quith. Percy Wyndham is at present an
officer in the Coldstream Guards.
Yellow in all it's shades was the pre-
dominant color at the court held recently,
the most gorgeous example being worn
by Mrs Lewis Harcourt, whose resplen-
dent attire put into the shade most of
the gowns of the women who happened
to be near her. The dress itself was OF
flame colored broche velvet-an old fash
| Toned material which in all the rage for
evening gowns this season, but differing
from it's stand by ITSELF ancestor of 20
years ago, by being as soft and pliable
as the finest charmeuse. The skirt was
| split up all one side to show petticoat
| of flame colored chiffon and old lace,
veiled with diamante net, and finished
with crystal fringe. The gorgeous train
was of shot flame and golden tissue,
which court and twinkled every beam OF
! light as its wearer moved, and gave an
almost dazzling effect. Both gown and
train were bordered with beautiful skunk.
With this regal attire Mrs. Harcourt car
| ried a lovely bouquet of orchids OF diff
| ferent shades from yellow to orange
| An extremely beautiful dress, though
not perhaps SO striking, was worn by the
Countess of Granard. Also of brocade
of a lovely ivory shade, the skirt was
| trimmed with diama1ite tulle that
sparked in the light, while the train of
| the same material as the dress was lined
| with cloth of gold ~f
| Great interest was displayed in Prin-
cess Lithnowsky. wife of the new German
ambassador, who made her first appear
ance at this court. She is a most hand
some woman, and gives every sign of
being refreshingly original. She wore a
! gorgeous dress of rather dark color,
and lace veil on her hair instead of
| the tulle of convention and of the Lord
Chamberlain's rules, but she seems to
nave paid little regard to these for the
three white feathers tnat are also part
Of the regulation get-up were omitted BY
her highness.