The Washington herald., 1919-02-11

| New York, Feb. 10.-Gotham's DASH
ing set of seml-respectables who be-
gin the days round of pleasures at
the opening OF the o'clock dansants
have been trembling over the news of
the arrest OF Reginald Deyuelle. held
for drugging Billie Carleton, the ac-
tress, to death with opium in his Lon
don establishment.
DeNuelle was known in New York
as Reggie Devoc and for five years he
led the life of q dancer, fashion de-
signer and Orientalist and maintained
an establishment in the fifties where
he was the center of bizarre parties.
In a setting of Oriental spIendor, he
entertained the society drug deyotees
in Manhattan and also the experiment
talists. 1t is loose tattle to say that
society and that means the upper
strata as well as the lower is honey
combed with confirmed drug users.
There are, according to medical au-
thorities. 100000 drug addicts in the
greater city and that means that one
In every thirty, regardless of age, sex
or nationality, is a drug user or one
iE seven OF the Erown-ups.
Reggie Devoe was n character OF
the better cafes. He was q snappy
dresser, and a remarkable dancer.
As side line, an exceedingly lucra-
tive one, he designed unique hats and
gowns.
Often he would sit down at a table
in cafe, call for pad and pencil and
| design an extreme hat or a daring
new gown that later won applause
when worn by well-known actresses
like Nelaska Suratt, Kitty Gordon or
Joan Sawyer.
Devoe's apartment in New York was
like that of an East Indian potentate.
ClinSins Oriental draperies garbed the
guests The color motifs. designed by
himself, represented night-blue Egyp-
tian skies, sultTy with the breath of
! tropic dreams; black and reddish Gre
tonne, golden stars brooding above
sleeping lotus blooms. 1t was Il place
| designed obviously by sensualist
There Were many dance soirees there
and society and near-society flocked
there. Devoe set a fast pace and
dawn was always tossing mauve rays
athwart the recently refiIIer milk bot
| ties of the town before his parties
broke up. The parties always began
at midnight. To come earlier would
be considered old fashioned. The cos
tunes always seemed as if the pagan
women had started to build them
from the shoulders down. and upon
getting half of the work done. noted
the distance AMI expense involved in
reaching the knees AMI quit right
where they were.
Has the silk hat gone the way .of
! the dickey? On Easter, 1898. one New
York firm sold G2S silk top hats. In
1905 but six of the tall head pieces
were seen in a long stroll up Fifth
avenue. In the year 1918 the same
concern which made the. 1885 record
I just cited sold exactly nine hats of the
pattern. The silk hat is more than
ninety years old. 1t is still worn at
night by the well dressed to theaters
and social functions. But it does not
appear in the day time. Not even on
sunday afternoons. 1t has been tho
mark Of the gentleman, the gentle
Grafter, the climber. the dandy. the
politician. the Sunday church Eocr.
the undertaken. the negro minstrel,
the financier. the gambler. the book
agent and the professor.
A moving sidewalk to run from
Times Square to PershiuE Square,
where the Grand Central Station is
located, is being projected. The NOV
ing sidewalk will he the connecting
link between the two subway systems.
The shuttle trains now in use have
been the cause of great congestion.
There is also another big reason. Most
New Workers are victims of claus
trOphobia. They are all right when
moving. but when enclosed in a small
dinky train they become panicky at
the slightest cause.