Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1920-01-01

couples and parties and even in droves of 80 or
more, remaining as short a time at each stopping
place as possible and announcing everywhere how
many calls they had already made and how many
they expected to make before they finished.
At every place they drank. The result was a
most appalling assortment of "jags" long before
shutdown.
Late in the fifties the abuse came to be so great
that the newspapers and the ministers took it up,
and many were the editorials written and many the
sermons preached against 1t. This crusade speedi-
ly brought results.
1t was not many years before the smart set of
young men in most cities stopped calling. The
hospitable door that had been open from morning
to evening was adorned with a basket for cards.
Gentlemen were driven all over town deposting
their visiting cards in these baskets. In a year or
SO servants were delivering these cards. Then
the baskets disappeared and the mail carrier de-
livered the few cards sent out. OF course this
process was not at all uniform. 1t was fast In
some cities, slow in others.
A belle of the eighties, sitting In her easy chair,
thumbing over an old scrapbook filed with faded
cuttings from the newspapers Of those days; her
husband, a beau Of the same period, In slippers
and dressing gown, smoking and listening as she
spoke and read, now and then nodding his head
and smiling at some memory recalled; and the
daughters of the house, planning for the watch
party festivities Of 1920, listening with curious in
terest and laughing and chatting about how odd it
all seemed now-such a scene was doubtless to be
witnessed in many a city all over the country
with the closing days Of 1919.
"We didn't go in so much for the watch parties
in those days." the matron said. "The whistles
blew and there was some noise, it is true, among
the downtown folk, but we girls, as a rule, retired
early-we had to save ourselves for the trying
ordeal of the next day, for New Years day was
the great social event Of the year. 1t was 'receiv-
ing day In all the homes Of the town. We called
it keeping open house
ut was a day of lavish entertainment and the
doors were supposed to be open to everybody that
called, whether friend or stranger. We prepared
for it weeks In advance. 1t was a period of great
conviviality. Aside from the fact that the con-
vivialty was somewhat ~overdone, at times, that old
custom of the New Years open house was quite an
old-fashioned, sincere expression Of good fellow
ship to friend and neighbor and visiting strangers
opening the portals Of the New Year, as 1t
were, with a greeting and a home welcome. And
as a social function, 1t was most delightful-it
helped to bring people together.
sTt was the fashion to give each Of the callers a
souvenir to carry away with them and all sorts
of ingenious little devices were used. Some had
silk badges with the names Of the girl painted on
them; some had dainty metal souvenirs specially
struck of, others ornate cards with notices, and
some went In for the oddities, like the clay pipes
that papa tells about. I remember the gentlemen
used to wear these souvenirs pinned or tied with
ribbons to their coats-as the knights Of old wore
their ladies' favors-and late In the evening the
callers looked like foreign diplomats, with all their
decorations, or, perhaps, like South African chiefs
would be the better smile.
sOf course, only the gentlemen called-they
were never accompanied by ladies. The ladies re-
NAMED In their homes to receive them. The gem
tlemen were supposed to be In full dress-the
younger set wore swaIlowtails and crush hats, and
the older gentlemen Prince Albert coats and light
gray, pin-strtped tr~ousers-that was the vogue.
The old timers, remember, did not take very
kindly to the crush hats. And everybody, OF
course. had to have a hack or a sleigh.
aThe hostess Of the house usually called to her
assistance a bevy Of the young girls who made up