The New York herald., 1922-02-21
IlpS RIVAL TRADE AS
SOCIETY RUNS HOTEL.
Debutantes and MatrOns
Take Over BiltmOre
Just for Day.
5000 ARE .ON THE JOB.
Mattresses, Bellhops and
Elevator Boys Get a
Vacation.
VENTURE FOR CHARITY
Profits of Day All Go to So
ciety for Prevention of
tuberculosis.
VENTURE FOR CHARITY


early yesterday forenoon and went as
usual to Tie Biltmore Hotel. He came
across nothing out of the ordinary un-
til he reached the room clerks desk.
There he looked into the face of a
woman instead of that of the usual
male clerk. She wore a tall headdress
adorned with a double red cross and
had on a dress of white with "a blue
apron tied with red ribbons. Mr. Hol-
land had noted lot of other women
about the lobby dressed like that.
In TIE most perfunctory sort of way
the lady clerk turned around the hotel
register and handed Mr. Holland a
freshly dipped pen. He wrote down
his name and then gave way TO his
sense of curiosity.
beg your pardon. madam. but they
seem to have started new system
here" he observed
lady booking clerk 1--WE are of the
Society for the Prevention and relief of
Tuberculosis. We are running the hotel
to-day There are 5000 OF US on duty"
"oh. that's the big idea.' said Mr..
Holland. "And some idea. Very re-
sourceful. Working all right so far,
at least so far as am concerned"
At that moment a young woman
dressed in white. blue and red passed
calling in high clear soprano voice ::
Call for Mr. Holland. Call for Mr..
Holland :" ~.
4.
Here. boy, I mean young lady. my
names Holland the Kansas City busi-
ness man said. Telegram Cor you."
replied the young, lady page
The room clerk was Mrs. Marcus M.
Marks. The page was Miss Caroline
Francis McCoon, one of this winters
debutantes.
con the job at 5 A. NJ.
That was one Of possible thousand
incidents in the ordinary routine of hotel
management that were episodes of Miss
Ruth Vanderbilt Twombly's big plan OF
taking the Biltmore Hotel over yester-
day from Mr.. John Nee. Bowman for a
days and nights business in the interest
OF the philanthropic project of which she
is the president. Unique among benefits.
the plaH involved n larger amount OF
genuine. serious business detail than the
resourceful women of New York had
undertaken before for so short length
of time. The machinery of the big hotel
had to be taken up at 5 80 o'clock yes
terday morning where it was left off by
the ordinary working force and con.
tnued with its usual acceleration until
4 o'clock this morning. Within that
space of twenty-five out Of the twenty
four hours of the day there was not
moment when Miss Twombly and her
5000 assistants were not ION the job"
The only exception TO ordinary hotel
rules that Mr.. Holland of Kansas City
may have noticed were these: That q
regular boy bellhop took him and his
luggage to his room; that the regular
elevator boy took him up to the tenth
floor and that n regular chambermaid
had made up" his room for him. Miss
Hope Lincoln, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Frederic Lincoln and sister OF Mrs. Will
lam A. Rockefeller was the elevator
starter. When he went down stairs to
buy a cigar Miss Barbara Whitney.
daughter of Mr.. and Mrs. Harry Payne
Whitney. sold him his smoke, and when
he went into thc~nain restaurant for his
lunch he found that Mrs. Grayson NJ. p.
Murphy was the head waitress.
To mention the names of all the
women who as the efficient aids of Miss
Twombly reported for duty between
80 and s o'clock in the morning il
would be necessary TO devote two and a
ka,, columns of this newspaper TO the
names or the best known feminine resi-
dents of New York
II was unique charitable enterprise
that the executive heads admitted would
be very profitable TO the Society for the
Prevention and Relief of Tuberculosis in
spite OF the fact that in taking over the
hotel from Mr. Bowman they had to as
sumo the days overhead" which in
ifseft meant an initial investment OF SIS
600. That staggering item was checked
nff before the days business started. as
Miss Twomby had received checks. two
Of them for $4,000 each, covering that
Initial expense.
Miss Borf In Recital
The experiment or running a hotel
was called "A Fiesta with F'andancos. a
Carnival Celebration OF Serious En.
deavor," and was appropriately so called.
The Biltmore was a fiesta from the
start. and from mid forenoon until
o'clock this morning there was con-
slant succession of fandangos, starting
with a musicale in the Cascades Ball
room. which had been turned into
bazaar called "boutique." with fifty
shops installed around the sides of the
room as temporary branches of well
known stores in the Fifth avenue shop
Ping district. At the musicale. opening
AT ii 80 o'clock. Miss Lucreza Bori OF
the Metropolitan Opera sang and Ar
turo Bonucci. celist. played. More than
2 thousand persons paid 81 each to listen
10 the music. Miss Bori was in superb
voice. and charmed her hearers. She
changed hs.- costume every time she gave
" group OF songs
lt was consergati lively estimated that
5000 persons had luncheon in seven res
iaurants IN the hotel, in addition to the
thousand that had attended the musicale
IN front OF every person az tho tables
Mais laid card bearing this legend !;
'four tip viii help fight tuberculosis
generosity counts to-day Frequently
the tips were as substantial as the prices
OF the midday meals The average tin
was So. The largest was $40, reported
by Mrs Joseph a. Hornthal. who was de.
tailed to the grill
with several thousand persons paying
the upset price OF SIS for his or her luncn-
con II Is easy to sec how the gold poured
into the hands OF the treasurer OF .he
day. MRS. Cornelius N. Bliss, Jr. Some
OF the thousands seen about the tables
,were Mrs. Hamilton Nick. Twombly.
Mrs Brady Hartman. Mr.. Condo Mast,