892 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



by patent lamps, as by a chandelier 

 in the middle. The furniture had 

 a resemblance to what I had seen 

 in fashionable houses in England. 

 The carpet was of red baize, with a 

 Turkish border, and figured in the 

 middle like a harlequin's jacket. 

 Theprincipal novelty was abluerib- 

 bon which divided the room length- 

 ways, the one side of it being for 

 the dancers, the other for the card- 

 players. The ribbon was supported 

 at proper distances by white staves, 

 similar to those of the court ushers. 



The ball had little to distinguish 

 it from the balls of England and 

 America, except that the ladies 

 danced with infinitely more skill, 

 and therefore with more grace. 

 The fashionable French dancing is 

 exactly that of our operas. They 

 are all figurantes, and care not 

 what they exhibit, so that they 

 exhibit their skill. I could not 

 but figure to myself the confusion 

 of an English girl, were she even 

 present at a French assembly. 

 Yet so powerful is habit, that not 

 only did the ladies seem insensible, 

 but even the gentlemen, such as did 

 not dance, regarded them with in- 

 difference. 



Cotillions and waltzes were the 

 only dances of the evening. The 

 waltzes were danced in couples, 

 twenty or thirty at a time. The 

 measure was quick, and all the 

 parties seemed animated. I cannot 

 say that I saw any thing indecorous 

 in the embraces of the ladies and 

 their partners, except in the mere 

 act itself; but the waltz will never 

 become a current fashion in Eng- 

 land or America. 



There is no precedency in a 

 French assembly except among the 

 military. This is managed with 



much delicacy. Every group is 

 thrown as much as possible into a 

 circle. The tables are all circular, 

 and cotillions are chiefly preferred 

 from having this quality. 



I did not join the card-players, 

 there were about half a dozen ta- 

 bles, and the several parties ap- 

 peared to play very high. When 

 the game, or a certain number of 

 games were over, the parties rose 

 from their seats, and bowing to 

 any whom they saw near them, 

 invited them to succeed them in 

 their seats. These invitations were 

 sometimes accepted, but more fre- 

 quently declined. The division of 

 the drawing-room set apart for the 

 card-players served rather as a 

 promenade for the company who 

 did not dance; they here ranged 

 themselves in a line along the rib- 

 bon, and criticised the several 

 dancers. Some of these spectators 

 seemed most egregious fops. One 

 of them, witiv the exception of his 

 linen, was dressed completely in 

 purple silk or satin, and another 

 in a rose coloured silk coat, with 

 white satin waistcoat and small 

 clothes, and white silk stockings. 

 The greater part of the ladies were 

 dressed in fancy habits from the 

 antique. Some were sphinxes, some 

 vestals, some Dianas, half a dozen 

 Minervas, and a score of Junos 

 and Cleopatras. One girl was 

 pointed out to me as being per- 

 fectly a. r Anglaise. Her hair per- 

 fectly undressed, was combed off 

 her forehead, and hung down her 

 back in its full length behind. She 

 reminded me only of a school-boy 

 playing without his hat. 



We were summoned to the sup- 

 per-table about three in the morn- 

 ing. This repast was a perfect 



English 



