or the sane, and let the idiots and lunatics run at large.

THE BALL. THE HOP. THE DANCE.

IT IS ALL THE SAME.

Well, the long looked for day has come; it is now 8 P.M., and the boys,
girls and young wives are in their rooms donning their new and costly
apparel, which has been bought, borrowed or _stolen_ in divers and
sundry ways. Some have been paid for, some will be paid for, and some
will remain open accounts until judgment day. The wealthy and those who
never pay their bills will be dressed in the costliest, richest apparel,
because only these classes can afford these luxuries. EXTREMES WILL
MEET. The young men go and bring in their girls, and when they get to
the door, they are met by the committee of reception, who politely show
the ladies a side room where they will go and lay off their wraps. The
young men go out into the corner of the yard or in the woods and lay off
their _wraps_--in the nature of a bottle of whiskey or brandy--or they
have left them in a buggy or carriage, or a room has been set apart for
this purpose, and the WRAPS have been provided before-hand, or they are
to be found in a convenient drinking saloon.

THE WRAPS ARE THERE.

The girls wear their wraps around them. The boys _wear_ themselves
around their wraps. These _wraps_ are brought into requisition as the
physical man begins to weaken under the excessive and unnatural
exercise. Unnatural, because the hours designed by God, our maker, to be
used in rest and sleep are appropriated to another and very different
purpose. Here the tempter discovers another weak point, and he makes the
attack. The great draw made upon the physical forces makes it
necessary--the tempter says--to use an artificial stimulant, which is
here often taken the first time, and which is not unfrequently repeated,
until many are so much under its influence and some get so drunk--no,
become so suddenly _indisposed_, that they have to be carried home.
These entertainments seldom break up until the light of the morning
begins to appear, but I will compromise on 2 o'clock, A.M. At 9 or 10
o'clock, P.M., the performance begins, and I propose we shall _candidly_
and _honestly_ examine this basket of fruit. Whether designed or not, it
is simply a fact that many of the girls and women are dressed in such a
way and manner as best and most successfully to excite the baser
passions of men.

If the style of dress often, yea, nearly always, seen at the
_fashionable_ balls and