New-York tribune., 1922-10-05
Society Plays Hostess To-day
10 Visiting Bankers Vices
30 of Citys Richest and Most Widely known Women
Entertain 5000 in Homes at Luncheon; Eight
Secretaries Busy With Lists Drawn Impersonally

This Is Hostess Day for the women
visitors attending the convention Of the
American Bankers Association, the
day when thirty-fve Fifth Avenue
hostesses will entertain at luncheon
and when the nytl about New York S
indifference to strangers is expected to
curl up and die.
Hostess Day is by far the most popu-
lar of the programs planned for the
entertainment OF the visitors. Thou
sands Of women have seized the oppor-
tunity to lunch IN the homes OF the
best known New Workers, and the late
arrivals at tho convention have had to
be informed that Mrs. Rockefeller was
sorry, but her dining room was limited
IN space, just as the dining rooms OF
Gopher Prairie are limited.
About three thousand women will be
entertained at luncheon parties vary
ing in size from twenty to one hun
dred The largest will be Mrs. Otto
Kahn's party of 15o, while Mrs. John
D Rockefeller jr. will entertain ninety
six.
: The work of extending these invita-
tions has been going on since last sum-
ner and has occupied tho time Of eight
expert secretaries from the leading
Wall Street firms. In the first place
the committee extended 5000 general
invitations to The women as they made
their reservations at the hotels.
When their acceptances were received
they were checked off on the list. Then
they were parcelled off in groups OF
twenty from each hotel to each hostess
in order. This was in order to avoid
any possibility Of injured feelings.
Listed Impersona!ly
There was nothing personal, for ex-
ample, in Mrs. Rockefeller's list of
guests or in Mrs. Lamont's or Mrs.
Kahns. In the lexicon of the women's
hospitality committee all were equally
welcome, whether they came from
Gopher Prairie or Denver, and they
were grouped by hotels for convenience
in bookkeeping. Mrs. Rockefeller's
guests. for example, are from the Com
modore, the McAlpin, the Pennsylvarlia
and the Gotham. Mrs. E. II. Hartman
has another group from the Commo-
dore. Mrs. j. Horace Harding is en-
tertaining a group from the Pennsyl-
vania and Mrs. Kahn's 150 are from
several hotels.
A second set of acceptances then had
10 be filed, and when the women ar
rived in New York City this week. 1t
was up to the committee to see that
each guest actually received her card
Of invitation to the home to which she
Va mr.
difficult part of the work, as II had TO
Der done so quickly.
sI've had bank presidents in limou-
sines going around to the hotels de-
livering these invitations in person TINS
last day" laughed Miss NJ. Ruth Nc
<ir'a 'ay. on whose slim shoulders rested
the responsibility for the smooth work
ing of the huge luncheon scheme. I'm
some cases when the women were not
in their hotels it was necessary to send
their cards by special delivery mail.
Our girls worked here until midnight
Tuesday, eight of them, and / have
never seen girls so breathless. Regis.
tration for the luncheon closed finally
and definitely at ten o'clock Tuesday.
Then VIC had to address the last cards
and keep our files straight and notify
the hostesscs."
No Transfers
The committee was obliged yesterday
TO issue statement, begging the visi-
tors not TO ask to have their invitations
transferred from one house to another.
1t seems that an Arkansas woman,
making the acquaintance of fellow
bank presidents wife from Montana,
would decide that it would be pleasant
TO go 30 the luncheon with her, and
would request the Hosucss Day commit
tee to fix it up so they could both go
to Mrs. Vandermillion instead of to
Mrs. Morganbilt's. Seven telephone
operators worked all day answering re-
quests Of this nature, and inquiries as
to how to reach Mrs. Vandermillion' s,
but last night it was said that the three
thousand were all happily adjusted
The women who will entertain to ozday
are Mrs. Charles B. Alexander, Mrs.
Robert Bacon, Mrs. George F. Baker
jr., Mrs. Walter P. Bliss, Mrs. James
A. Burden, Mrs. Joseph II. Choate jr.,
Mrs. Joseph Z. Davis, Mrs. Edward C.