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Show Tfj J, TIPjPLING IN THE COUNTRY 3 3 5 PRACTICE QUITE COMMON I I M A N D DOES' W O H A R M ; 3 3 evenings spent in warm rooms and conservatories, and there is not the slightest abatement of the punctilious courtesy of the drawing room. Frequently Fre-quently after a tea. the guests wnl go home- on horseback, galloping . over country roarls and fields, taking fences and walls with ease, and the tenderfoot tender-foot among them who may have some old-fashioned notions as to the influence in-fluence of strong drink is apt to be left confused in. his logic. It is a long pause between 5 o'clock tea and the. fashionable S o'clock dinner. din-ner. . The time is consumed bv the wome'n in resting and drer-sr. v.-hlle the men lounge about in so-i-e and billiard rooms .with the u. .-izi : j.ore- While statistics prove that inebriety as a disease is on the decrease among all classes pf society, the habit of tippling tip-pling has become more fixed among the men and women of the leisure -class than jever before. This is largely due to the house party, par-ty, which has become a popular feature feat-ure of American social life. The country coun-try air lacks the microbe of continuous continu-ous excitement which is a part of life m town,. ad among the horsey set, both men -Smd women, this lack is made up f&- by the amazing number of bracers.'jappetizers and stimulants of all sorts . ... The outdoor pastimes, the drive and the gallop across country are all prefaced pre-faced and finished by some alcoholic refreshment of the "really smart" house partjf. ; In other words, drinking among women, playing against each other on an even footing as to sex, have brought abmt a condition regarding the drinking of wines and other refreshments;; re-freshments;; by women which ' a few years ago would have been considered extremely tax. s In other words, drinking among women has; become fashionable, but it seems toihave lost all of. its old significance sig-nificance as a vice. Neither among men nor among women is there any ten,de,ncy toward overdoing, for . the lines in this respect are drawn more strictly than ever In society as in the clubs.- The furoce that is frequently raised as to the 'increase In the habit of drinking among women is largely a tempest in -a teapot, for with frankness frank-ness in the inatter the custom has lost its importance. The hidden vice is always al-ways the dangerous one. At dinners a long list of wines is practically unknown, and men are no longer excused for discourtesy on the plea that they have beep dining. At the American country house the offering of refreshments to guests begins be-gins with the golf game, which usually If few! XX (4 "A Continual Service Between the Dining Room and the Guests' Rooms." dinner accompaniments in the way ofi cigars and refreshments. The dinner is marked by Scotch and soda and champagne and cordials, and when the guests stroll to the drawing ' room they find a hospitable punchbowl) in the hall. This completes a day of! strenuous tippling that would hava horrified our grandmotners, althougtt our grandfathers would perhaps sneer at an evening that did not end with many emptied bottles of port wine. occupies the mornings. While nearly all take advantage of the informal breakfast served in the rooms, few sleep late even after a dance, the magic charm of exercise in the open air winning folks out of their, beds when the weather is good. The men who play golf drink Scotch -vihlakyttro' gOM'- clubhouse apparently being too humble to produce a highball. high-ball. When the weather is bad -the clubhouse vis more popular than. 'the green. , While the women do not join in these libations on the links, they are included in the before luncheon appe- tlzer with sometimes another served 3fflBml;ej V. fWrW? . I m the rooms, where they may go to III 1 il I h j ML1 H i' smooth the hair after a windy journey III ' lili'i Wn wK' w A around the field f I if , fjW'' 4 When there is occasion for a ride or 4 " 'lllll? 'I1! y a drive in. the afternoon that occasions ' 'nf ' ':-'" wuJ a change of costume, there is a-con- ft ' v tinual service between the dining room ,CVl ' X and the guests' rooms, the maids as STy M ' y.;;-; well as the men being kept busy with , . . . 'tvi&' the laden trays. B - v' ' . -:v" Many hostesses now serve Russian , '" 1 "" tizer with sometimes another served in the rooms, where tney may go to smooth the hair after a windy journey around the field. When there is occasion for a ride or a drive in. the afternoon that occasions a change of costume, there is a-continual service between the dining room and the guests' rooms, the maids as well as the men being kept busy with the laden trays. Many hostesses now serve Ruseian tea and the men once more get back to their favorite toddy. The sandwiches sand-wiches served at the country house tea are of caviar, anchovies and other provoking irritants. . The continued imbibing of liquors at the house party leaves the partakers mildly cheerful, with no inclination to exuberance. The country has its influence in-fluence in quieting the nerves, the long stretches in the saddle, or at any rate, i the ODen air. are different from The Hospname Puncn Bowi.. Dancing, poker and whist fill out tho evening hours. There are no "mornings "morn-ings after," or regrets or headaches in the fashionable house party. The country air dispels the remorseful . symptoms that follow entertainment in the city, and the week-end guests- ' are always feeling better when they-go they-go home than on their arrival. They settle down to sober living iat town. |