THE LADIES’ WORLD.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2678, 7 December 1909, Page 3

THE LADIES’ WORLD.

the man and his gifts.

Much humor lias been bestowed upon the unsuitable present from a woman to a man—the unsmokeable cigars from a sister, the impossible embroidered slippers with which the popular curate is supposed to bo bombarded by susceptible lady parishioners. Let me carry the war into the other camp. Once 1 knew a young man. apparently blessed with, intelligence, above the average, who was in love with a beautiful girl, who was—well, let us say, quite encouraging to his attentions. Her birthday arrived, and though they had not yet reached the engagement ring stage, all of her friends were wondering how soon they could begin to plan for the wedding. On the birthday morning tbe girl received by messenger a package. She realised at once that here was the young nian’s‘"present, and she lost no time in cutting the strings and opening the box. Within, swathed in many ( layers of cotton, and accompanied by the young man’s card, she found—a china dog. True, it was a reproduction of a delightfully knowing little bull terrier, and had been moulded and colored by a master hand —but. nevertheless, it was a china dog. True, it had cost the young man a neat little sum—but yet it was only a china dog. Instances may be multiplied indefinitely. Here is a man who gives a young woman an expensive purple shopping bag. when' her costume is bright red. Here is a man who presents as a delicate tribute to a musical girl a little toy piano, of Dresden china, lovely, but unmistakably what we call "pretty,” and that is all. These are tales of unmarried men. As for the married, ones, ask any woman yon know if her husband picked out that gold .purse he gave her on her birthday. Ask your dear young matron friend where she got her tur-quoise-studded chain, and she will tell you that Henry gave her an impossible brooch, and she took it hack and got something she really wanted. And many and many a woman wears accessories and jewels which she simply loathes because she loves her husband, and cannot bear to hurt his feelings by seeming not to prize and enjoy his gifts. One woman had been longing for a set of ivory toilet things in ivory, and everyone in the family knew it. Her husband, anxious to gratify her, went to a great jeweller to give tbe order. But be was not pleased with tbe ivory. He wanted to know if there was not something more elaborate and more expensive, and he came home with a set of massive. hand-engraved silver tilings, which Jus wife accented with every manifestation of delight, but which she wept over in secret. When the heroine of ‘‘What Every Woman Knows” says so delightfully of her husband, "Why, lie’s just my little boy,” there is not a woman in the audience, young or old, who dees not smile sympathetically one of those wise feminine smiles. The same feeling which prompts a boy often to save his pennies and give hi.s mother a cellulo:d handkerchief box which was a triumph of tasteless gaudincss prompts the man still when lie buys big silver brushes for bis wile, when she wants delicate ivory ones. She wants a simple white linen -parasol, and the man orders home two hand-painted silk ones. HINTS OX ETIQUETTE. Invitations should always lie replied to immediately. It shows a great want of tact and courtesy not to do so. It is an invariable rule in correspondence that an answer should be written in the same form as that adopter! by the first writer. Invitations to weddings should be sent out two or three weeks previous' to the day appointed for the ceremony to take place on. The bride should always despatch cards containing her new address to the wedding guests, and anv friends wlio were not present at the ceremony. She should have an "At Home” day; it should be inscribed thereon. It is very bad form to refer to anyone by their initials in either conversation or correspondence. Even with exceedingly intimate friends it should be strictly avoided. If a child misbehaves in any way before visitors only a few words should be said. Should”a scolding be thought necessary, it ought to be reserved till the guests have left. MRS LANGTRY AS NOVELIST. As-the stage, and the turf are -now declining attractions to Mrs de Bathe (the Lily Langtry of other days), she is tryin <]f a new field as a writer o( fiction. 0 Her first novel, just, published, has pleased the critics (says a London correspondent), and they tell her with varving degrees of compliment to go on and do still better. The' story, which frequently reminds one of tbe authoress’s training as an. actress, is an effort in tbe farcical comedy vein. It relates the adventures of a young married couple who agree to cross the Atlantic m the same steamer as strangers the husband, an Englishman of title, as a bachelor, and the wife, under an assumed name, as a wealthy widow. I heir purpose is entertainment in the .way oi flirtations, and they accomplish it, with many amusing consequences, the book could, without much difficulty bo tmiied into a play. It reveals -Airs ..Ue Bathe as a humorist—rather a cynical humorist—of considerable parts, there are probably some of her society acquaintances in. London who are wondering whether she will be tempted to emulate the success of Lady Cardigan as a writer of spicy gossip. She could, if so disposed, turn out some staitlin*, literary fare of that variety She is said to have been amused by the suggestion, and to have replied with tw inkling eyes and an emphatic shake of ' the" head. Lad v Cardigan s candour is not likely to be rivalled at Present—not perhaps until she produces the second volumfe which she lias been ask to write. The King, by the way, was among the first to send .for- a copy of the hook, nvhich she published" a few weeks ago. •