Evening Star Newspaper, May 4, 1889, Page 8

oF ed ARTISTIC KITCHENS. Beautiful Rooms Where the Meals of Millionaires are Cooked. Q¥ IDEAL FRENCH KIT TRE VANDERBILT KsTCHENS—THSIR EXQUISITE APPOINTMENTS— LUXCRIOUS COOKING UTENSILS—TEE KITCHEN OF THE CAFE SAVARINA—COOKING BY STEAM. te The most ideal kitchen I ever saw was at Fecamp’s, famed for its Benedictine and Bene- dictines of blessed memory. We had stopped over to take another diligence. The waiting- room, which was also dining-room, was too reminiscent of dinners past and dinners to come So, impelled by the natural instinct after a more agreeable environment, I reached the kitchen, The change from the grim. weary waiting- oom to this airy, spacions kitchen. filled with gayety and color, had the enchantment of a transformation sc: The three large French windows were vine-wreathed. The range was tiles, and a spit with blue tiles, was filled with |b quiring its own charcoal flame an as the service pressed. AGAINST THE WALL and over doors and in panels hur, and pans arranged with as mnc Were trophies of arms, and b: d to the last degree of brilliancy. Long-handled fry pans like unstrung banjos were graded do Easy pans for a single egg without a mis link, and copper measures in ik seemed to go off toward a vanishing Many of these were beautifully wrought with incised ornament. I will not attempt to de- scribe the personal attractions of the kitchen, the rotund hostess who was cook, nor the wit and good fellowships which e le the kitchen a rival of the wi ar sbout more serious bus: The Norman kitchens of the humbler sort with which I b came familiar were all arranged with reference | to form and color, due presumably to the fact | that they were largely hving rooms, and will always be remembered as amiong the most ar- tistic rooms I have eve: n. ‘Perfect ventilation.” said Mr. George Post. the architect, who is regarded as an author on the subject of kitchens, “is the first consid- eration in a kr :then come light and the Possibilities of perfect =.” MR. VANDERBILT'S KITCHEN. To get these in a crowded city block and half buried in the earth. is, in the nature of thir dificult. Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt's kitchen was the first of the evolutionary series of kitch- ens which Mr. Post inaugurated. It isa Foom, J3x16. There are three windows on 57th street, and these are peculiarly constructed to | receive the light and air on which the architect | insists. A bronze grating only is seen from Street; within this are shelving panes of g which may be opened so as to freely admit the sir, yet will prevent the passers-by from look- ing im to see what the Vanderbilts are going to have for dinner. for there are people who en- tertain that sort of curiesity. Another pro- Vision prevents them from smelling the dishes. VENTILATION. This inheres in the more essential ventilation. ‘The range is situated in the remote corner of the room in ofder to be near the main ventilat- | ing shaft of the house. An immense hocd is | a ded above. which connects with the shaft, ond palo all the steam and odc it through and, without losing a sing! gut of the house. This is an immense advant- Age, as every one living in city houses aro which linger the scent of perpetual dinne knows. d io be used copper pots dently m: -room, for THE RANGE is in fact two ranges separated by a partition. ‘These are built ont from the wall and behind | are two borizontal boilers. Attached at one end is the charcoal broiler, at the other is the roaster, which consists of alow grate with a spit attached to a jack moved by clockwork, end asemicirenlar Dutch oven. Of course for cecasions but one range is used. t this end of the room the cook moves, a cherry table at his right hand, his copper treasures in a pot closet at his left, the dresser athisback. This dresser has no back’ except the epameled tiles of the wall. This, too, isa consideration in a citr, which, lacking the mecessary Supa of Croton water, is overstocked with Croton bugs, insects which show an un- reasonable disposition to colonize in the seams of dressers, that they pry open for that pur- pose. THE KITCHEN MAID. At the other end of the room the kitchen maid moves, At one side isthe table at which she prepares her vegetables, and opposite the porcelain-lined sink and draining table, where they are washed. ‘This sink is provided with a Srease trap, a clever arrangement by which the grease is chilled and adheres until it can be r moved, and the stoppage of pipes thereby pre- vented. In front of the windows is a long ta- ble for the preparation of entrees, and beneath this are closed compartments. Near by is the chopping block, its architecture that of the butcher's block. The pastry shares a cooler oom, which the seullery maids also occupy. Ihave been specific because this kitchen has been thoughtfully considered, and while it has what is needed, has only what is needed. The floor is laid in red and gray encaustic tiles, the wails are lined with cream enameled tiles, and there is no reason here, as Mr. Post suggesta, why a hose should not play without detriment to anything but dirt. A CHEF'S TEMPLE. Mr. W. K. Vanderbilt's chef has had such re- own that the temple in which he moves and the altar at which he officiates must be of in- terest. Both are worth his cost to import. and worthy his talents. Mr. Vanderbilt's kitchen 1s very beautiful tothe eye. The purity of marble, the luster of tiles and the gleam of metal are whatonesees. The floor is of marble, the sheives, the tables, the sinks, allthe things that are rarely moved, are of marble and cut with the prec ision of jewels, The walls are linen with cream enameled tiles, and ail the angles are covered with brass molding Where these meet the doors and windows, thc are covered with these metal moldings dis- pensing even with wooden trimming. ‘The ceil- ing is made of white enameled tiles set in cement. But one does not imperil the head of & $10,000 cook with a loosely-set brick, so each tile is also secured with raised metal bolts. Accenting all this gleam of white and metal is the large double range. It is similar to that already described, and set in one corner un s large semi-circular hood enriched with eu bossed copper orna nents, and swung from iron bars wrought in spirals and foliations, This hood, the purpose of which has been already described, is 80 powerful nt in carrying off the odor and gre am that it will waft from the hand a newspaper held under it, THE COOKING UTENSILS are in keeping with all this splendor. They are of copper, with wrought-iron handles, many of them ornamented, and some of them have becg copied from special pieces in the Cluny and other museums. Luxurious cook- ing utensils are indeed the thing of the mo- ment, and a wedding present not disdained isa set of copper silver lined such as are now dis- layed among gems and gold at the jewelers, ading from the kitchen to the butler’s pan- try are spiral stairs entirely enclosed in glass to shut out possible odor. yet retain the light. And this is #o successfully done that although te kitshon is directly below the dining-room and butler’s pautry, nothing disagreeble makes its way aloft. . a CLEANED BY HOSE. Before referring to another attachment of this kitchen, allusion should be made to the drains and hose outlet in the center of the marble floor, for it is by a hose which may play fearlessly in any part of the room that the kitchen is kept ciean. Connected with the kitchen, and built under the sidewalk, is a se- ries of vaults. These are for ice, meat, vege- tables, milk and eggs, and are built in three sections of hollow masonry, that they may kept free from damp and insure perfect ventilation. The heavier articles. such as ice and meat, are Jet in through the sidewalk with derrick’ and boist,which relieves the kitchen of a gdod deal of unpleasantuess, as every housekeeper may imagine. THE VERY Latest thing in kitchens is that of the cafe Savarina, in the fine new building of the Equitable Insur- ance company, in lower Broadway. Although it is intended to feed 3,000 people between noon and 3 o'clock, its methods, appliances, and per- feet organization present hints to people who dine in more moderate numbers. ‘Through the courtesy of Mr. Dolver, the superintendent, I was allowed to inspect it just men the fray ne It is a large open apartment at the top of the house, reached by elevators, The fer is laid with white eucaustic tiles, and the walls are ceiled and lined with lustrous white enameled tiles. Three ranges are built out in the floor, snd the forty-two cooks skirmish on all sides. ‘This position of the range is approved in some Private houses, as it gives the cook greater com- mand of her resources, Between these ranges were two long tables and in the center of each ‘Was @ sunken square of tin or zine forated with holes. In these basins stood tin handle- Jess pails and around them water surged and splattered. These were in them all the cooking that requires no brown- ing or crust is done. COOKING BY STEAM. The question of fuel is now a very open one. In this kitchen every thing that can be done by steam is done, and as steam is required for the other purposes of the building. the fuel is prac- tically saved, not to speak of the lack of wear and tear in merely turning the wrist to let the steam off andon. Ata small but fashionable down-town restaurant all the cooking is done by gas. And while talking with Mr. Post, he recalled an engagement to go that afternoon to see some cooking done by electricity. Press a button and the pot boils. FOR BROILING AND BAKING. Bat steam will not broil, bake, or roast; this handicaps it greatly for private use. In this kitchen there were separate charcoal fires for broiling. A large brick oven in the center of the room for the pastry with gas-lighted peep holes for the pastry cook, and a tremendous upright grate with three tiers of spits before which fowls were now spinning and shedding i lori The spit and the upright e Inxury that private kite however unpretentious, should try afford. One need not be. so fastidious as the old Norman epicures who required their fowls to be roasted before apple-iree logs, but the kiss of the flames is certainly transforming and idealizes even the pig, as we have been delight- fully told. Every piece of furniture in the k special definite parpose to falfill, butchers oceupy one corner with their battle axes, The pastry eooks practice the fine arts on their own area, the men cunning with knives keep within their own barriers. Ever thing is caleul i team tables, and 1 copper pans cooks manipulate with the dity and ease of the tumbler in the cirens. the waiter, always in anguish between the wrath of the hungry man and the boot toe of the cook, the kitchen at the top of the honse is asaving grace. He never, by any chance, can encounter the cook, and leaning against the umb waiter while his viands descend, gets a few seconds to brace himself up to meet the thundering brow of his client in the brilliant restaurant beyond. The disadvantage, on the other hand, is that any inaccuracy in filling the order cannot be ascertained for some tine, but this way insures accuracy. THE TOP FLOOR. Something was said last week of the move- ment to rescue the top floor. This goes hand in hand with private elevators. There is also another movement toward elevating the kitchen dynamically. One of the most novel of the private is thet of Dr. Morton on 55th street west. All the household offices are on the top floor. The servant's bed-rooms are in front. Midway is the laundry with tiled floor and wainscoting; connecting with it is the servants’ sitting-room, and opening into it the kitchen, THIS IS A NOBLE Room, with windows that catch the first rays of the morning sun and the last rays of his benign majesty, and command the distant prospect right and left. One may well envy the cook her private domi irs. Morton, with more practical mind, siderabie saving of time, es the ashman, the ragman, the peddlers of all wares, soon discover that there is neither pleasure nor profit in the area, The humanitarian aspect of this elevated kitchen is worth n one considers the army ¢ r lives in base- to air and light. s that by o: ¥, less, not more, servants are t lift is used at stated in who m s the furnace; else is brought up servants’ stairway is screened off by a ement of spindles, The clothes d on top of the house and ina cold room above the perisbabie articles kep SMALL KITCHENS, It is nota misapplication of an adjective to call some of the kitchens in the handsomer apartment houses beautiful, These are small but calculated to a ni In fact, except when there is a staff of servants, it is a mistake ave a large kitchen. It wastes the time and 8 the strength of the cook to cover more space than is required. As these kitchens are placed in the least advantageous parts of the house, every care is taken to give them all the light and air possible. The floors are tiled. Tae walls are lined with enamel tiles, usually white, but sometimes made gayer with colored tiles, blue or pink. The sinks are porcelain lined and the fhucets silver-plated, The cup- boards and dressers are in hght natural woods and the glass unspotted. The cook feels as if she is in a jewel-box or is a precious article en- shrined in a cabinet, and the probabilities are that she strives to be! 5 ler situation. aby Gay HumPHREYs. — FASHION’S FREAKS. Trout Cost Stezves are out of fashion, Very Lancz meshed net is used for entire gowns, Tue Use or Brocape for trimming dresses of plain material is increasing. Cuxre pe Carve will be largely used for after- noon watering-place gowns. Brack 18 Now stylishly worn with any color, from the palest to the deepest. Morne Rrpzoy is as much in favor upon lace gowns as it was last summer. Liac axp Wisrerta will be favorite flowers for ornamenting summer lace bonnets, Eves Extremists look askant at the handker- chie? of white silk with its rufile of black valen- ciennes—a freak of fashion not destined to a very long life. Hanpsome Tea Gowxs are made of two shades of the same material, one embroidered with gilt. Beswers Frouyces, pinked out ruchings are much used in the trimming of dresses of sum- mer fabrics, Some or Tae New big buttons have Wattean figures delicately painted upon china, and set in a metal rim. Ciora Powpenep with silk applique in wreaths and bouquets is a new and very hand- some trimming stuff. “SiLk Caarut” is a novelty, Itis a beautiful fine material, as light as veiling, but witha gen- uine silk woof. Jauxty Sumer Woon Jackets turn back with directory revers and do not fasten, but tay be drawn well over the chest. Tae Comstxartion of blue and black is now s0 much in favor as to seriously threaten the jong supremacy of green. Many or THE new silk wraps have a boa of Chantilly lace down the front and are heavily trimmed with fine cut jet. A Fearvnre in skirt trimming this spring is the straight panel hanging loose over one side and of a stuff entirely different from the dress, Minsvxrwen Gowns of white crepon, draped in most esthetic fashion over yellow, blue or pink silk, will be very much worn st seaside Fesorts, Tue Sasu is de rigueur with Worth, and his latest caprice is the putting of a narrow rib- bon beltwise around all waists, even those with sharp points, ‘Tue Tosca or Hercules net is the prettest material possible fora summer gown—either for street or evening wear. If black, of course it must be mounted on black moire or surah and ribbon run. Baby ribbon should be used, and each row may be finished by a tiny rosette. Woon GaeNaprNes now come straight from the loom with ribbon borders of velvet woven in the material. One of chocolate with broad bands of black velvet is very stylish, Tur Somsen darkness of the black grenadine is now lighted up by Pompadour stripes, in which may be seen every shade of pink from the delicate tint of the sea-shell to the deepest old rose. The beauty of this material is en- hanced when made up over an rose = dation of silk or ports = — New Dmmecrory Hats have long scarf ends caught together in front with a large, dasger completely covered with French bril- ni Suatt Cares of shot velvet trimmed with gold and marabout feathers are worn a good with carriage and afternoon toilets, New Lyons Gavzes come in lovely shades of evening colors witha pattern of woven silk braid running in vermicelli demgus all over the gauze. Svrers Srraysof French roses and other lovely blossoms and leaves, velvet, talle, net and ribbons in endless variety are all used for handsome bonnets and hats. 2 The difference between @ loose vague boast and an affidavit giving exact figures is a wide one, and of great significance to a person interested in the statement, Tu Star swears it circulation, This is a point of great im- portance to advertisers, n dumb waiters, | your mount, causing you to lose | mizing her | | there kitchen meats are bung and | \"“ | serious matter, as, in the proper way of riding, | she Written for Tur Evexrne Stan. HOW TO RIDE. The Disadvantages of the English Jockey Style of Horsemanship. SPURS AND SHORT STIRRUPS—WHAT HAPPENS WREN A HORSE SHIES—HOW THE AMERICAN SOLDIERS RIDE—AN INCIDENT OF THE PLAINS— AN ENGLISH HUNTER AND HIS AMERICAN GUIDE. The serious and nearly fatal accident which befelan Englishman recently while riding in Central park serves to “point a moral, to adorn a tale,” and furnishes another strong argument against riding in the English short-stirrup jockey style. The man was esteémed an excel- lent rider in the English style, but his horse, in fright plunging suddenly to one side, the rider “lost his stirrups,” and to save himself he clung with his feet to his mount, and in so doing drove the spurs into his sides and goaded him to greater desperation, Under these cir- cumstances it became impossible to control the agonized brute with the rein, and in his headlong dash he collided with a wagon and threw his rider violently to the ground. he been taught to ride with the long stirraps and to use the k: pressure the joss of his footing in the stirrups would not have been a You are not so dependent upon the stirrups for safety, for you maintain your seat in an emer- by pressing the knees with greater than ordinary force to the sides of th having this principle thorough), never cling with your feet foul the horse with the spurs. HORSEMEN OF THE ENGLISH STYLE have quite enough to contend with in sitting their horses when nothing ont of the ordinary | routine occurs, and when a sudden bound of their monnts causes the loss of the stirrups they almost invariably are thrown, From. their habit of riding—short stirrups and toes turned outward, rendering the knees useless—they cling with the feet when in trouble and augment the dificulties by planting the spurs into the sides of the frightened animals and holding them there until dumped off at the side of the road. And tho English style of gcanbe of no possible service to an estrieune when in trouble with her mount. he New York Tribune in commenting upon the distressing mishaps to riders in Central park says editorially, “a whip may be a con- venience at times, but there is no excuse for the spur.” j This is all wrong. By the use of the whip for the horse that shouldbe punished, you may excite a dozen spirited animals near you, and if your own mount is a nervous ono the mere drawing of the whip may cause him toshy seriously, ‘Ihe spurs are the only things to use for the punishment of a horse in riding. You press them to both sides at the same instant. The movement is unscen by your mount or other horses in the company, and it is a sure corrective without causing fright. Your horse does not see, but feels and heeds it. With the spurs you can ride high-bred, spirited horses right over a field battery in full action, when. 1d you attempt it with whips they would ‘ainly fail yoa by “shying off.” THE ONLY THING, The spurs are thé only things to ride with, but men must know how to ride to use them with safety. But the saddle must be the uar- row tree and seat, with stirrups hung about nd unconsciously cer’ enough to compel you to extend the legs tc nearly their fall length and to slightly depress und you should ride with the f et | then | with the spurs should you let your fect | from the stirrups, At the sudden springing of you will naturally and involunt: knees still more firmly to his side. fect extended downward instead cela up against the already frig horse and thus unconsciously goading him with the spurs. A CASE IN POINT. Mr. Frederick Remington, artist and writer, who spent some time last year in our cavalry in Arizona, says in the April Centur, ‘One naked savage got up suddeniy from behind a mesquite bush, which so startled the horses that quicker than thought e made a violent plunge to one si ne of the trained riders seemed to mind this unlooked- for movement in the least beyond displaying a gleam of grinning ivories. [ am inclined to think that it would have let day ight upon some of the ‘English hunting seats’ oue sees in Cen- tral park.” HUNTING ELK. While hunting in the North Park, Colorado, during an October a good many years ago, my guide and I saw at a distance two horsemen in hot parsuit of a sma!l band of elk, in which was a huge buck, a doe and two spring fawns, As the band was running in the direction of the route we were pesatan, we put spurs to our horses and dashed on to intercept and, if possible,turn them back toward their pursuers, whom we thought to be hunters from our own camp. But we only succeeded in confusing and separating them, and in suddenly losing sight of the doe and fawns, The take tied antlered stag seemed not so fleet as the others, or else for a time he delayed his movements to attract attention from his family, and we finally succeeded in turning him at a right angle to his former course. is slight delay on his part, without bringing us near enough to fire with any hope of hitting, was enough to give the other eager hunters an advantage over the majestic beast, but, as at full speed they drew near, we saw ee were strangers—one an Englishman from ail outward signs of cordu- roys and toggery, and the other his guide, a lainsman, The latter kept in the run slightly the rear of the Englishman, so as to instruct him in taking advantage of the ground and make the *‘cut-offs” that would gain distance, and also for the purpose of telling him when near enough to shoot. (To the uninitiated it is difficult to judge distances on the plains.) Soon after passing us theguide ahouted fo the Englishman, ‘Halt, dismount, and fire! You're near enough!” At this the latter suddenly pulled rein, and, being mounted ona plaine horec, with a plains rig, including the terrible Mexi- can bridle, the steed halted as suddenly as though shot through the head, and the rider, equally as suddenly, shot up out of the saddic like a rubber ball. Fortunately he came down astride of his saddle again, but in fearful dis- order. He had “LOST HIS STIRRUP and was distressingly confused, and to make matters worse, in his dire extremity he drew both heels against the flanks of the unsuspect- ing horse, and, of course, drove the spurs into him, which sent the now new! ‘oused conrser off again ata tearing r. he Englishman scemed oblivious of the canse of this sudden and mad start, and, clinging only closer and harder, he doubled his body forward and em- braced the pommel of his saddle with both arms, in the execution of which movement he grasped one side of the rein much shorter than the other, causing the infuriated beast to dash around and around ina circle, man and horse the most ludicrous sight imaginable outside of @ circus ring! WHAT THE GUIDE Dip. The Englishman's guide, without knowing the cause of this deviation from his well-ar- ranged program, halted but an instant, and then, true to his instincts and training, turned his horse again in the direction of the now fast-tlying buck, and with Beater specd and the cutting off of the angle his game had made soon brought himself within the range of his Winchester magazine rifle. Halting suddenly, and without dismounting, he groped the rein over the left arm and fired directly over the head of his horse, which, dazed and stunned by the concussion of the discharge so close to his head, reared upon his hind feet high in the air, and in the twinkling of an eye executed a complete “about face” before touching his front feet again to the ground. But his rider sat the horse as though he had wn out of his back, never for an instant taking his eyes off the wounded elk, and when the horse thus faced to the rear was again halted oe powerful twist of the rein with the left hand, the hunter, holding his smoking rifle in the right, still gazed over his shoulder in the direc- tion of his shot. L[t was magnificently done! If it had been rehearsed for months for exhibi- en i oaeldinct Se been im aeorse ie ie unter gazed but a moment ee! horse about he again dashed off at the fuil run, and to the front of the buck gave him the coup de grace with a shot in the head. EXPLANATIONS. In an incredible short time the guide came back to the luckless Briton, who then stood on the ground holding his much-spurred 5 We could atin omni how the mount had been made, so intent were we in AN man, I lost me know, by the sudden halt of this—beast?™” 7" "0" When the furth wot's the w | midway between bow and cantie and made long | | | polut to the probability of | a servic that beastly manner, anyhow, and then pein Roem as thongh he never had a sad- The guide, not a little stung at put tion against his fine hunter, =a He's as good a saddle-horse as thar is in the territory of Col- orado, but you don’t understand his trainin’, that’s all. “When you halt him, he watts!” After further accusations and explanations between the two, I asked the Englishman's guide as to his own exhibition of equestrianism and markmanship which we had just witnessed. With the greatest indifference he said: ‘Well, you see Ihave lately bin shootin’ a leetle too much over my critter’s head, instid of turnin’ broadside to my game, and I reckon as how I've stunned him a leetle about the yeers.” He had no boasts to make for the finest ex- hibition of horsemanship, and that in real every day life, I had ever seen. I envied the man his skill in the saddle. We have no apologies to make for our Ameri- can way of riding, West Point teaches it to our army cadets, and onr army officers taught there, than whom there are no better riders in the valry, and our cavalry and hes never been rated as rs, Our citizens will find y the best for all purposes, whether for pleasure, exhibition or busine: Perry. world, teach it to our _¢a is se Pagan Myths and Customs Said to Have a Rise to Egg-Rolling. To the Editor of Taz Evextse Stan: The egg myth has given expression to three different underlying ideas: That which is sug- gested in the egg decorations of Greek archi- tecture, and perheps in the egg symbols orna- menting the statues of certain eastern deities; the cosmical egg, symbolic of the creation of the universe, a myth common to China, India, Egypt, Greece and parts of our own country; and, finally. the solar egg, the latter an idea as widely diffased as the preceding. While the cosmical egg is the conception of a highly de- veloped intelfect, the solar egg, in which the sun is simply and actnally regarded as an egg laid by the sky, which is also conceived of asa great bird, ig an idea readily grasped by the simplest minds, and as readily accepted as accounting for the various phases of the sun’s diurnal and annual motion. With the solar egg is associated an immense eycle of stories thronghout the known world, ot which our Jack the Giant Killer, who steals the hen which lays the golden sun egg. isa fair type. This story of the different adven- tures ot heroes to release the sun egg from the clutches of the ogre night in some one of its many forms is familiar to us all. Another phase of solar egg is that in which the sun, having lain hid during the winter months, as in the far north, or lost its usual heat, as in our own climate, returns again in strength and health in the spring to vivify the earth and bring life out of death with its warmth-giving rays, THE EASTER EGG, It is to this department of the solar egg myth that belongs our Easter egg, reaching far back into antiquity, and it is probable that in com- memoration of the resurrection of the sun out of its winter nest the egg festival of Easter was celebrated by the northern nations, The color- ing of the egg is also in analogy to the bright color of the sun, and rolling of the egg down » green banks only a repetition of what the rreat solar egg was supposec 0 on its reap- pearance, rolling over the firmament above us on the return of spring. ‘There are many nalogous ceremonies of the rolling of hoops of fire and the like at this very period which heory. Anda ful one it is, although of heathen origin;a »ol which the Latin church has sanctified ix for the blessing of eggs ina ritual ot Pope Paul the V, in which the benediction prayer is: “Bless, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy creature of eggs that it may become a wholesome sustenance of Thy faithful servants, eating it in thankfulness to Thee, on account of the resurrection of our Lord, This ritual is in itself evidence that the church merely recognized a custom anterior to its own appearance; that its only defense was toappropriate the Easter egg to itseif as a symbol of the resurrection of our Lord by baptizing it, as it were, into the Christian re- ligion. is also an old miracle play in which the disciples at Emmaus are represented as eating up the Easter eggs, showing how quickly it adapted itself to the new dress, In England the eggs were called pace-eggs, a corruption from pascha, the Latin form of the word passover—our Easter, THE EGG BUSH, I will not attempt to give you an account of the Easter egg customs, for their name is legion, but will only mention one which I have seen in N England, curious because thi only other instance I know of is in Ireland; i is the egg bush, which is a bush of any kind decorated with blown eggs, the ong being passed over the end of the twig through one of the holes by which it is blown and left on the bush, Colored eggs and bits of rag are also used, The bush is decorated about the middle of Lent. You will find mention of a similar bush in Miss McLean's Cape Cod Folks, THE FESTIVAL, Now for the goddess Easter, or Oastera, who has given her name to the season and to the eggs. Her festival occurred in April. Proba- bly her sacred animal—that which was offered to her—was the hare, It has been supposed that eggs were offered her, and hence the ous- tom. But we have no evidence of any such offering, and it is even difficult to ascertain what was her precise character, It is much more likely that the Eostera feast fell in with some regular sun god fenst at the beginning of spring, and that the exe. which wonld in such acase have been a suggestive and appropriate offering, has thus come to be associated with her name, and, singularly enough, with the hare, for asa child ih Germany I have been sent out to look for the Easter egg in the hare’s nest. I have not bothered you with au- thorities aud reasons, bidding those who are curious in these matters to look into the au- thorities for the dry bones, which I have tried to articulate for you. — A Mourning Boudoir, the Upholsterer. ome upstairs until I show you my room. It has all been done over in the neatest fashion, and is too sweet for anything,” said a fashion- able widow to our sweet girl reporter. The handsome leader of fashion, who had been widowed for a y or £0, led the way toa large room on the second floor, ‘The door was thrown open, and the reporter took one glimpse and then started back. ‘The place at first sight looked like the inside of a hearse, “It’s the latest English, don’t you know, and so in keeping with my crape gown. I didn’t like it at first, but I do not believe I could sleep in colors again.” The room was furnished with a handsome suit of white enamel, and the bed-spread and pillow-shams were of black satin merveilleux, embroidered in black velvet applique with silver thread, the monogram of the widow being worked in silver on the center of both spread andshams, The toilet table and little escritoire were draped in the same manner, and at the windows were thin curtains of black liberty silk against white lace, “Look here,” said the pretty widow, and she threw back the bed-covers, displaying sheets of black silk hemstitched in white, and black silk slips on the pillows. “I dress in black from top to toe,” she con- tinued, “I wear black silk underclothes, black satin corsets and a black silk petticoat, and I even have my gowns lined with black. My friends tell me they would sleep as comfortable in a coftin as in my bed, but I find it a delight- ful resting place. “‘And do you know,” she continued, “a friend, who has just been made a widow, is having a room fitted like mine, only with black jet mon- ograms, A great many English women who are not in mourning have black rooms, and that is where I got my idea.” Then she led the way into the boudoir all furnished in vivid yellow, even to the two canaries that pipet in their golden Ss es “Yellow is next color to black, you know,” she explained, ‘‘and then my husband was a Baltimorean, and I have the oriole col- ors, black and yellow, too, you see.” —————10e- Miss paendlg — One morning when spring was in her teens, All ‘iorg wamote grays and greens, Miss Bessie and I went fishing. tumble clothes, or hat tipped down to her neve, tipped vice versa. her nose I with my reel, and my hooks, “And akan per lor taboheon' Frot > iy the bait of he: sly looks, r come! of her jon trewsen. Written for Taz Evexrse Star. ETIQUETTE AND MANNERS. What to do and What Not to do in So- ciety. ADVICE ABOUT LITTLE THINGS WORTH KNOWING— THE ETIQUETTE OF WEDDINGS—SENDING AN- NOUNCEMENTS — FLOWERS FOR THE BRIDE— WHAT THE GROOM SHOULD WEAR—TITLES. The following questions for answer have been selected for this week: Two gentlemen differ as to the propriety of wearing Patent-leather shoes during the daytime, Please state Af It is good form to do 80, Formerly patent-leather shoes were consid- ered in questionable taste at any time. Gen- tlemen of nice instincts dislike all excessively Polished surfaces, such as glossy cloth, dver- pressed hats or highly glazed linen. But recently patent leather has become much used for even- ing wear. Perhaps the fact that Lord Cole- nt visit to this country always wore pat ner on dress occasions may have had something to do with the fashionable revival of thus material, But to oar mind noth- ing is so suiteble for evening dress as shoes of fine calf skin or morocco, The latter is espe- and elegant. For the promenade § isin such good taste as shoes of fine calfskin, But in the country patent leather is convenient. Dust, dew or the friction of grass, either of which soon render calfskin unpresenta- ble, has no hurtful effect on patent leather; st is easily brushed off, moisture does not c' and the friction of the grass 5 ugh a meadow really improves the appe: e of the leather. With patent leather in the country one never needs the boot- black, and this adds much to one’s comfort on a rural visit. Isit proper for a lady to bow or speak first toa gen- | = ee: acquaintance in passing on the street, or The lady should always speak first, as we have repeatedly said. It is the lady's province to recognize an acquaintance or not, a8 she may prefer. 1. If a young gentleman should escort a lady home | froin an e neat should the lady thank in what manner. ty congratulate her sister and jaw upon their marriaze? | It} 1, Of course the lady should thank him, would be exceedingly ill-bred not to do so. It is underbred to accept any service or any kind- ness without acknowledging it by thanks. 2. Ifalady does not know how to congrat- ulate her sister or any member of her family upon her marriage, we doubt if any instruc- tions would aid her. Put your arms around our sister's neck, kiss her and wish her much appiness. Shake hands with your brother-in- law and wish him much happiness, CHURCH WEDDINGS. 1, Incase ofachurch wedding where there is a maid of honor, bridesmaids and groomstuan, how does the bridal party go from the house and how advance to the altar? 22. When it is desired toexelndgall but invited guests the church is it the custom to issue cards to be nted at the door, and it 80 how should they read? . it not, what course is adopted? ould more than one ipvitation be sent to a fam- fly Where there are sons and daughters in society? +. Which is the better form of sddvess, Mr. John Smith aud wife, or Mr. and Mrs. John Smith? 1. The bridal party should leave the house in the following order: In the first carriage, the bride and her father: in carriages that fol- low, the bridesmaids, Members of the family usually precede the bridal party to the church, At the church the ushers head the bridal party | tothe altar; the bridesmaids usually come next, and then the mai of honor, but_com- monly there are not both bridesmaids and maids of honor, Then comes the bride upon ar Pp 01 ‘al place of the maid or maids of honor, if there are also bridesmaids, would be after the bride, but individuel taste and preferences govern these details. very few marriages being in all particulars exactly alike, The groom and best man enter from the vestry and stand | at the altar, the groom in readiness to r e the bride from her father's hand. The brides- | maids take their place at the sido of the bride, and the maids of honor bebind her. After the | ceremony the bride and groom lead the proces- | sion out. 2. If it is desired to exclude all but invited guests cards of admission must be issued. Print on the card the name of the church and date and hour of ceremony. For each married couple in a family one invitation may be sent. Each single adult member of the family should receive an invi- tation. 4. . “Mr. and Mrs. John Smith,” always, “Mr. John Smith and wife,” nev WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENTS, Will yon kindly favor me with the benefit of your Advice on the following? 1, Tam about to be married and shall send announce- ments out to my friends. whom I hope will call upon ine. but being engaged in a business Which makes my evenings ut howe very uncertain, ny wife, who is & perfect stran, ave to entertain; How ougir the announcer to be worded—should it be “At | Home” or “Residence!” i p n one person in a’family, should eUt to exch person or to the head of the house only? And in cuxé of indies whose moth- éra lam not acquainted with, to whom should I send? . How soon after receiving these calls should we return them? 4. ifs person on whom you called ion, to wnich every Tom, Dick, and Harry was in- vi d failed to invite you, would you assume that he desired to cease the arquaiiitancer 5. Twas ceustired a few evenings ago, after a public dinner, because I used my fingers in eating Saratoga chips, winch appeared to me to bethe ouly matural mode of eating them. Was I wrong? 6. Referring again to the subject of the announce- ments, What is doue in the case of business relations? I am not acquainted with the wives of many of my associates, Should I address to the geatieman only? 1, The circumstances you mention should not alter the form of the invitation, You issue your cards “At Home,” giving place and time, and this is all, g é 2. To each adult person (counting married couples as one). It would be proper and grace- ful to include the mothers of the ladies under such circumstances, 3. About two weeks, 7 4. It would bear that interpretation, unless the omission was by accident. 5, Saratoga chips can be eaten with the fingers in the same way that biscuit or cakes are eaten. In fact, there is no other way. 6. Insendirg invitations always include the wives of married men, whether you know them or not. 1. At an evening marrisgo at the church, if the bride is not to be given away, i» it customary for the bride to walk in with the grooil or kroomsmuat? 2. There are two bridesmaids and cwo groomsmen, Is it custe for the ladies to siand on one side and 1 on the other, or should the couples not ., What are the most fashionable flowers for the bride aud bridestasids? . 18 it fasiouable for the groom and ushers to wear What kind of neckties should the groom and ush- ers'wenr? As groom and ushers wear plain or pique MORE ABOUT WEDDINGS, 1. The bride should not, according to present social customs, walk with the groom to the altar. If she is not to be given away she must walk alone. Sometimes the bride is escorted to the altar by her mother, this, of course, when there is no male relative, 2. The ladies stand on the side the bride stands and the groomsmen on the side the groom stands, 3. Lilies of the valley, white roses, white lilacs, in fact, any white flower, 4. They may do as they prefer, 5. Ifa morning wedding white scarfs, if an evening wedding white lawn neckties. White satin or silk for a necktie is considered vulgar. 6. Plagn shirt fronts by all means, No kind of decoration for a gentleman's linen. THE USHERS, 1. Whatare the duties of an usherat a large wedding, ceremony in @ church, and reception at the house afterward. Is there a prescribed style of dress for an pF understand that it in expected of a ave @ lance re- to for the gloves and necktie of the “best man.” Is tits the usual custom? If 80, who makes the purchases. 1. To conduct people to seats, to the bridal party to the altar, and at house to introduce friends to the bridal pair and per- form generally the duties of a master of cere- monies. In dress an usher does not differ from other gentlemen, but a slip of white ribbon may be worn in the buttonhole of his coat as an eheevepiel ces schoeas 2, The legroom generally gives best man a scarf, and sometimes a scarf pin accom- panies it, but not gloves. VISITING CARDS AGAIN, Permit me to set you right in regard to the custom of the service as to the using of titles on visiting cards ie’ saree, in tne “ there is no rank . Ro below that ct captain, fs conaldzrad very ba 4 for an officer to address another as Heutenant it is al- Then or on duty, he would be called Heakoncatraes rn eee See of waa ema got gare $hgy do if, they do the right th which is as ee John = 8. A.” oe signing Rame or entering name upon hotel register, or any other kind of register, the officer then writes his name in this wise: “John Smith, Captain, U.S.A.” The form Upon & visiting card is always the form in which a man is addressed, and not the form of his signature. It is for this reason that it is proper always to put the prefix “Mr.” upon gentieman’s visiting card, unless be has some oy bak ss ar correspondent is right about eating peas, which cannot be done ‘except with the prongs upward. He is also right about the de- sirability of convincing people that it is vulgar to braid, as he expresses it, the fingers around the handle of a fork. How to handle the fork can be shown clearly only by the aid of a series of drawings, showing right and wrong methods, but a broad. generalization, which we hope is not ‘‘vague,” may be made as foll Asa rule carry the handle of the fork in the hollow of the hand, but when used in the right hand. with the prongs upward the handle may rest between the thumb and forefinger. THEATER TIC Isit improper for a young man to pay for her theater ticket? it is certainly a prevailing custom for invite youn women to goto the theate the ‘uckets and accompauying them without chap- If an invitation for the theater comes from the gentleman it is proper and customary for him to pay for the tickets, but when an invitation come: trom a lady, which may sometimes happen, it is proper for her to furnish the tickets, 1, Is it very improper at g dinner to cut green salad, ich #8 lettuce or chicory? It seems to me almost ssury. Whsti cheese is served as a distinct course, how is fo be esten? Is xt considered the proper thing bere 2 piece on ea he French do? . Ata boarding-house oF hotel should the geutie- ise when a lady leaves the f 1. Lettuce or chicory loses its quality by being cut. Therefore a knife should not be used unless necessary, 2. Cheese is not usually served as a separate course, but if it is, it may be eaten,we suppose, in the manner mentioned, But cheese is com- monly served with or after coffee, accompanied by crackers, It is the one article that may be eaten with a knife, according to some authori- ties. A small piece is taken upon the end of a silver blade = neatly carried to the mouth. 3. This is hardiy expected at a boarding- house or hotel table, but some boarding-house tables are of the nature of Private tables, and in such cases it would be a graceful thing to do, Tue Avcraor or “Don’t.” ——— eee. The Little Things. Thave often vaguely noticed 110W the lesser things ot life, Overcome the great and mighty, Witnout argument or striie. Note the tack upon the carpet, When its poiut projects in space, How with lightning speed it alters ‘The devout, religious face. ‘Then the skin of the banana, As it lies upon the curb, How, as if by sudden magic, Manly pose it doth disturb, Mark how dignity and culture ‘Throw their courtly manner by, As tney lavish warm expressions On the merry litie fy! How the sanctity of worship Melts before the rapid breeze, And the violent explosion Of an unexpected sucezet How the all-wise man of science Shakes in undisguised alarm, As some fond, aspiring mother Lays her baby on his arm! - How the normal, gracious nature Fumes with rage, nor counts the cost Of the damage done, while searching For a collar bution lost. And how many self-respecting, Able-bodied, stalwart men Have been knocked completely over By a stylographic pent Drake's Magazine. —Lavra W. SHELDON, ———— = REWARDS OF CHESS-PLAYING. Even the Best Players Must Fall Back Upon Something Else for a Living. From the New York Sun. Ina large room at 8 Union square, where the chess congress is holding its tournament, twenty expert chess players spend from six to eight hours out of every twenty-four in earnest play, Hour after hour they sit looking steadily at the chess board studying intently the posi- tion and concentrating all their intellectual powers in each move. This they have done almost daily for one month, and will continue to do foranother. When it is all over the win- ner of the greatest number of games will re- ceive $1,000, and the others proportionately less, until the five or six who rank lowest will get perhaps #100 cach. It is highly probable that the same amount of intellectual energy directed toward any other achievement would earn at least double these rewards. Neverthe- less every player in the tournament would rather earn $10 in a game of chess than $20 in any other manner. lany lovers of the game, especially in Eng- land, have bewailed the fact that chess is such a nis At profession. Of the men who have devoted their lives to chess, but few have man- aged to make a comfortable living, and none has yet arrived at the degree of prosperity en- joyed by a professional base ball player of any repttation. Mr. Chas. Anthony, of Hereford, England, who is an ardent lover of the game, Ae who was the promoter of several tourna- ments, wrote a letter on this subject to the Lon- don Times a few years ago. In it he said: “At present the professional chess player is not, as a rule, treated with as much considera- tion as his talent, perseverance, and self-denial ought to secure for him. He is left more to his own resources than even a cricketer or a cham- pion runner, and yet his triumphs are won by the intellect, and not by strength of lung or limb. Itis certain that in the last few years there has sprung up throughout the worlda number of professional chess players who have attained high distinction without deriving the slightest material advantage themselves. A great master may be even illustrious, while his family may be actually suffering in conse- quence, With regard tothe objection that chess is not sufficiently developed to be looked upon as a regular profession, { would say that this is very much the fault of those who think somuch, and who consequently withhold from it the aid which it isin their power togive. After the evidence of recent years, the frequent inter- national tournaments, the development of chess literature in every form, the rapidly increasing number of clubs throughout Great Britain, to say nothing of the interest so widely felt and expressed in the forthcoming match between Messrs. Steinitz and Zukertort, it is simply im- possible to deny the existence of a profession of chess—a profession, that is to say, of men who prefer a certain intellectual, inexpensive, and unostentatious game to any other, and who, excelling in mental power or aptitude, are led by the keen appetite of victory “to shun delights and live laborions days.’ It follows, therefore, in this not less than in any other rofession, that all who cultivate the art are bound in fairness and honor to see that such as are its mainstay—always ready to play, to instruct, to illustrate a theory, or to analyze a position—shall not be unduly handicapped in the struggle for existence. As it is, many of our professional chess players are compelled to engage in some other calling, which distracts the mindand more than doubles the mental strain. si the utmost ability is scarcely rewarded at all. 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