ably, who
greet each other by waving their arms aloft, who dance like Apaches or
jiggling music-box figures, and who scarcely suggest an assemblage of even
decent--let alone well-bred--people.

=SUPPER=

A sit-down supper that is served continuously for two or three hours, is
the most elaborate ball supper. Next in importance is the sit-down supper
at a set time. Third, the buffet supper which is served at dances but not
at balls.

At the most fashionable New York balls, supper service begins at one and
continues until three and people go when they feel like it. The
restaurant is closed to the public at one o'clock; the entrance is then
curtained or shut off from the rest of the hotel. The tables are decorated
with flowers and the supper service opened for the ball guests. Guests sit
where they please, either "making up a table," or a man and his partner
finding a place wherever there are two vacant chairs. At a private ball
guests do not pay for anything or sign supper checks, or tip the waiter,
since the restaurant is for the time being the private dining-room of the
host and hostess.

At a sit-down supper at a set hour, the choice of menu is unlimited, but
suppers are never as elaborate now as they used to be. Years ago few balls
were given without terrapin, and a supper without champagne was as unheard
of. In fact, champagne was the heaviest item of expenditure always.
Decorations might be very limited, but champagne was as essential as
music! Cotillion favors were also an important item which no longer
exists; and champagne has gone its way with nectar, to the land of fable,
so that if you eliminate elaborate decorations, ball-giving is not half
the expense it used to be.

=FOR A SIT-DOWN SUPPER THAT IS CONTINUOUS=

When the service of supper continues for several hours, it is necessary to
select food that can be kept hot indefinitely without being spoiled. Birds
or broiled chicken, which should be eaten the moment they are cooked, are
therefore unsuitable. Dishes prepared in sauce keep best, such as lobster
Newburg, sweetbreads and mushrooms, chicken a la King, or creamed oysters.
Pates are satisfactory as the shells can be heated in a moment and hot
creamed chicken or oysters poured in. Of course all cold dishes and salads
can stand in the pantry or on a buffet table all evening.

The menu for supper at a ball is entirely a matter of the hostess'
selection, but whether it is served at one time or cont