New-York tribune. [volume], January 23, 1910, Page 3, Image 53

About New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
HULA-HULA DANCES SCIENTIFICALLY INVESTIGATED AT LAST
Dr. N. B. Emerson says They Form the Sacred
Grand Opera of the Hawaiian Islands.
jjcft persons regard the "hula-hula"
Ranees " as exhibitions of savage license
which they would rather not take their
families to s*». The samples given on the
powpry and at Coney Island have not
• tended to remove prejudice, both moral
and aesthetic. But now it i.« asserted oh
thr authority of Uncle Sam himself (Bul
letin SS of the Bureau of American Eth
nolory of the Smithsonian Institution) that
.a grievous irrOBB has been done to t':e
"hula." ■w'hicrh is the sacred grand opera of
the Hawaiian Islands. Dr. Nathaniel B.
Emerson exi>ounds the facts at considera
ble length in a book under the title. "Un
written Literature of Hawaii: or. The Sa
<tt<l Sonjrs ■'" the Hula." Th*- frontispiece,
fhowinc a young Hawaiian woman garbed
mostly in cuticle, causes the reader to take
notice at the StecC and a further glimpse
.«f the contents makes him wonder why
tjje government gives away such an elabo
rate an treatise. However, the document
Is >, triad contrast to the run of govern
ment publications on bugs, beetles' and
livestock ailments.
The author sad his difficulties In tack
ling t*"' e subject, even for official scientific
. purposes. He saya that when one under
. takes to report "the songs and prattlings"
of the simple Hawailans and to translate
into the trrms of modern speech what he
has received in confidence, as it were, he
eitnost blushes, as If he had been guilty of
fpying on Adam and Eve in their nup
tial bower. We must really that we are
- the playground of the human
ra » and act accordingly.
"The iiula was a religious service in
wh:c:i poetry, music, pantomime and the
tsac« lent themselves, under the forms of
dramaTic art. to the refresament of men's
erne's."' Polynesian mythology supplied
the ir.a:n themes of these sacred operas.
Supremely religious and poetical, the poo
pie were also "the children of passion, sen
fuo-js. worshipful of whatever lends itself
tn pleasure." They could not help reft*
■■tine ' "•" love motive with a frequency
that onld-bloeded Anglo-Saxons would con
sider abandon. In a large proportion of the
:— -«= which purport to celebrate nature la
a TVordsworthian way there is an Ella
TTheeler "mieox meaning beneath the sur
feoe. This symbolism is usually quaint
and delicate, often too subtle for Western
comprehension. Compared with the utter-
Ar.r^F of Elizabethan poets, the savage
phraseology Is wonderfully modest.
TWO KINDS OF PERFORMERS
Th» hula in ancient times was a royal in-
Etft&tSon and was performed only by profes
sionals. There were two kinds of perform
er;., called The agile ones and the steadfast
lass The ns']f ones were the young men
and women who handled light musical in
*xnzzier.tz and did most of the •wriggling,
rosing and gesturing. whfle the eider stead
fast ores squatTed on the crround. working
the heavy eoun i drums and swelling the
chorus!
Performances were given in a hall afre
nallr btiilt. and here companies of young
*rt:si? were Trained for weeks and months.
'•Without a body of rules, a sTrict penal
<^4*"' "paye »!.. author, "and a firm hand
to hold in cTr?4-k the hot bloods of both
*--ses. It would have been impossible, to
krep order and to accomplish the business
purpose of the organization". The explosive
ferce, of passion would have made the gath
er:r;g a signal for the breaking loose of
rand»mcniura."
It was protwiblv the awe-inspiring tabu—
a puperstiruuous fear of the spirits— which
ultimately made the students in the hula
school behave tbemaatvas and concentrate
upon their religious tasks. The utmost pro
priety and decorum were exacted of the
pupils. Even married people taking the
course had to "live like celibates for th«
zTeaier glory of art. The penalty for a
bread] of the rules as to morality or other
wise was an offering of a baked pig with
a few quarts of awa on the side. After
ward the -- , ••• was reckoned on a money
SIXTY THOUSAND DOLLARS A WEEK TO RUN ONE SHOW
The Hippodrome a Striking Example of What
New York Demands in the Way of
Costly Entertainment.
"■'-• immense amount of money laid out
each week by New York's playhouses to
6efrav expenses chows what a tremendous
ly Important part theatre and drama play
nowadays even with the great number who
attend merely for the sake of being amused.
for instance, the bills of the New York
Hippodrome come to $60,000 a week, a sum
•whose size is astonishing even to those who
know of its thousand players and employes
and Its lavish displays.
These is another reason beneath these for
*'"■« expense, far more Important In its
remaning and only revealed by those items
of expense which the public Is entirely re
sponsible for, and of which the public is
alnioEt wholly unaware. It Is the keen,
critical, luxury loving eye of the New York
Playgoer tnat cot only demands splendor
*afi correctness of effect, but wants per
fection of detail.
Theatregoers want, in fact, "the real
thing/ Bowery boys no longer are the
Indians of the stage. The Hippodrome has
recognized the public's desire for realism
by •ending to New Zealand for a troupe
of cixty Maoris, whom they brought to
New York under a contract for the season
for the sum of $50,000. At the end of the
season the natives are to be returned to
t^eir jungle homes, all at the expense of
S*» York's big playhouse— at*the expense,
ultimately, of New York's big theatre
going crowds.
theatre manager of the day has dis
covered that success lies in the way of ex
travagance, not garish, gaudy extrava
tance. but fine, luxurious extravagance,
» a few years, a decade or two. ago
***•« people dressed In imitation materials
and "lake" Jewelry, to-day they wear cloth
105 and trimmings that few of them could
** Ito wear off the stage.
the present Hippodrome show most of
£* costume* have been Imported from
ar fci&ii dressmakers and tailors, and some
°* t)io»» con as much as $150 apiece. The
**' worn by the companies of men and
'•»« who walk calmly down the steps
the magic lake and disappear last
cn »y three week*. Then, because they look
lplnew hat dingy, they are discarded, and
ew ones provided, although they cost 560
'Piece for the women's suits an 3 $T5 for
men's. The shoes that go with these
"*t=2jes are made of elk skin, especially
*** tcgether. and cost V6O a pair. These,
«*. must be renewed each thre« weeks.
-J* keep all the costumes clean and in
«■* t repair requires the constant work
aye tailors and thirty-two dressmakers,
rf cost. of the repair department alone
•*■ a week. All the trimmings and
T" 0 * 1*"1 *" u«ed in this work have 10 be !m
xi£ &a wen M the - perishable ' silk
Iz?"*' -In fact, the costuming: alone of the
' 2j ea ' l show cofcus $55,000.
*■ •*!* of the-Epiendor of their • attire.
basis. The average number of penalties
collected is not given.
The night before graduation day the en
tire company of hula scholar?, completely
nude, marched to the seashore and took a
plunge- to purge themselves of any lurking
ceremonial impurity. They were enjoined
not to look back or sidewise during the
trip to the ocean and return. "Nakedness
is the srarb of the gods," says thn proverb.
The next day a special dispensation permits
the scholars to get a shave, a hair cut or
otherwise attend to their toilets, which have
been negated during the weeks of artistic
study. Then they go into the woods and
adorn themselves with wreaths and blos
soms. After various ceremonies the.
scholars make their debut with the follow
ing ditty:
The huge roller, roller that surges from Kona.
Maxes loin-cloth fit for a lord;
Far-reaching swell, my malo streams in th«
wind ;
Shape the crescent malo to the loins —
The loin-cloth the sea, cloth for king's girding.
Here comes the champion surfir.an.
W hile wave-ridden wave beats the island
A fringe of mountain- high waves.
S]>ume lashes the Hikl -an altar —
A surf this to ride at noontide.
Glossy the skin of the surf man;
Undrenchrd the skin of the pxpert;
Wave-feathers fan the wave-rider.
You've seen the grand surf of Puna, of Hilo.
LOVE SONG OF PRINCESS.
An example of hula love song and answer,
said to have been composed by Princess
Kamamalu, is the following:
In the uplands the darting flame bird of La' a.
«bile smoke and mist blur the woodland.
Is keen for the breath of the frostbitten flowers.
A fick!a flower is man —
A trick this not native to you.
< cine thou with her who is calling to thee;
A call to the man to come in
And eat till the mouth Is awry.
Lo. this the reward — the canoe (body).
Answer.
Call to the man to come in.
And eat till the mouth is estopt;
And this the reward, the voice,
Simply, the voice.
When attiring themselves for the danco
in -short skirts and whale's teeth anklets,
the hula votaries sing verses appropriate
to each article of dress. There are few
verses. The short skirt is variously made
of a fringe of bark ribbons, banana fibre,
rushes and finely woven tapa. which may
b»» "of such volume as to balloon like th«
skirt of a coryphee." To put on the tapa
skirt is quite an art. says the author, and
on that account, if not on the score of
modesty. It Is done in a screened off part
of the hula hall. A verse of the skirt or
pa-u song follows:
Gird on the pa-u. garment tucked on one side.
skin lace-like and beauteous In staining.
That is wrapped and made fast about the oven.
Bubbly as foam of falling wat»r it stands.
Quintuple skirt, sheer as the cliff Kup*-hau.
One Journeyed to work on It at Honokane.
When putting the flower wreath or lei
upon the head and around the neck, the
dancers warble a stanza containing the
following striking line:
K.a-ula wears the ocean as a. wreath
A note of regret is sounded by the author
when he contemplates the difference be
twe-n the men and women hulaists. The
figures of the men are statuesque and
pplendld. but. "only at rare intervals does
one find among this branch of th«» Poly
nesian race a female shape which from
(too to sole will satisfy th«» canons of
proportion— which one carries in the
eye The springtime of Hawaiian
worranlv beauty hastes away too soon.
Would it were possible to stay that fleeting
period which ushers in full womanhood!"
DARWINIAN THEORY IN LEGS.
After which lament. Dr. Emerson mak^s
an ethnological, or social, inquiry to ascer
tain "the responsibility for this overthiek
ness of leg and ankle" on the part of th«
dusky queens, and surmises that the stand
ard of beauty which held sway in Hawaii's
courts for ages may have acted as a Dar
winian principle of selection. culling out
the thin legs and fostering the fat ones.
there is often discontent among the mem
bers of the ballet, who want still finer
things. To those who get used to Paris
ian dressmaking and to Parisian s Iks, It
sometimes seems incougruout; to be span
gled with "unreal" jewelry, even fin* 1 imi
tations of rubies, sapphires, diamonds and
the like.
"I think." said one member of the jewel
ballet to the head of the costume depart
ment, "that I would rather have one real
sapphire than five hundred fake diamonds."
But most of them like to glitter and
make various excuses to get more jewels
sewed on their gleaming garments. They
run to the costume director, offering sug
gestions as to effective places to sew on a
few more gleams.
"See, my shoulders have nothing over the
tops, and, you know, shoulders are meant
to show, especially in a jewel ballet. 1 '
A touching Incident of thia kind took
place before the opening of the season
when the cast was called to try on cos
tumes. These dresses had just arrived
from Paris, and upon being unpacked were
stored up in the "Jungle." as the room is
called which Is used during the season
aa a buffet refreshment room. The cos
tumes represent all kinds of jewel ideas
diamond dresses are whit*, sapphire* are
blue in tone, with blue trimmings, etc. The
trying on went merrily until the coral was
called. A little girl was listed for this
marine gem. and when the youngster canie
In and saw her pink costume quietly deco
rated with pieces of coral she hung her
hoaxl and grew wistful. While she was
being pressed Into the little glitterless pink
dress she looked sorrowfully Into the mir
ror, and then with a side glance at one
of the gorgeous sparkling arrays hanging
on the frames near by, she burst out:
•*Oh, gee: I wlsht I was a diamond!"
The'ncenery is painted by skilled artists
who draw saJxries of from $60 to $125 a
week, while the material on which tha
■cenes are painted is a fine quality of linen
which costs, even at special wholesale
price. 3* cents a yard. Three hundred and
sixty thousand square feet of it are used
in the present production.
An ' immense amount of lumber, costing
33u,000. and ! sent in from Maine and the
South and the West, was needed in setting
up this year's show. Only the selected
lumber, having few knots in It. can ba
used, and as the Maine lumber is begin
ning to run low, it was necessary to bring
It in, from other sections as well.
Th© paint, the smallest Item on the list,
coat JEW.
To operate the complicated stage ma
chinery it takes th« constant and com
bined labors of twenty-two skilled engi
neers, and forty electricians, their salaries
amounting to $1,124 a 'week.
-Another- heavy it*« •« expense i a the
XEW- YORK DAILY TRIBUNE. Sr^TDAY, .rAXTARY 2X 1910.
A GROUP OF HAWAIIAN HULA DANCERS OF MIDDLE AGE.
Dr. Emerson regret* the way they run to fmt on the legs w^en their fir«t youth is past, and speculates upon the reason
HAWAIIAN WOMAN PLAYING ON
THE NOSE FLUTE.
A popular hula love song, ascribed to a
native monarch, goes like this:
Love tousled Waimea with shafts of the wind,
while Kipuupuu puffed jealous gusts
Love i 8i 8 a tree that blights In the cold.
But thrives in the woods of Mahlkl.
Smitten art thou with th« blows of love:
Luscious the water-drip in the wilds;
Wearied and bruised is the flower of Koaie
Stung by the frosts and herbage of "Wai-ka-e:
And this — It is love.
The story of an abduction, a man flying
with the woman of his choice in a pirogue,
pursued by the clamor of parents and rela
tives, and the happy outcome, is symbol
lized in the following lyric:
The iwa flies heavy to nest in th« brush.
Its haunt on ■windy Ke-ula.
Th» watch-bird that fends off the rain from
Le-hu-a —
Bird sacred to Ku-hai. the shark-god —
Shrieks. "Light not on terrace of Lel-no-ai.
Lest Lnu-lau fiercely assail you."
Storm sweeps th« cliffs of the Islet.
A covert they seek 'neath the hills.
In the sheltered lee of the gale.
The cove at the base of Le-hu-a.
The shad; groves there enchant them.
The scarlet plumes of Le-hu-a.
Love-dalliance now by th<»-water-r«»eds.
Till cooled and appeased by the rain-mist.
Pour on. Thou rain, the two heads pros* th«
pillow;
I>\ prince and prints* stir in their sleep-
There is a ditty which tells symbolically
the love essays of an aged man whose
"physical strength is in abeyance." He is
o
A SECTION OF THE GRAND JEWEL BALLET AT THE HIPPODROME. SHOWING ONLY ABOUT ONE
EIGHTH OF THE TOTAL NUMBER IN THE CAST.
changing of the water in the tank once a
■week. The mere emptying and tilling with
fresh water costs $260 every time it is done.
In fact, the tank is In every way an ex
pensive thing to have concealed in a stage.
Last summer it was necessary to make a
few changes in the machinery which ma
nipulates it and in the part of the stage
connected with it, and the cost of the
work came to $30,000. This was done just
to produce a slightly more perfect effect.
The keep and care of animals, espe
cially the wild and jungle animals, are diffi
cult. Elepluinta. of which they have some
times ad many as thirty in the show, <-ut
mountains of food. Each of these beasts
toasss to his mouth from fifty to seventy
pounds of hay a day. and besides that, iw
often consumes a large tub of rice, a dozen
or two loaves of bread, a pile of nuts and a
tinlsli of caramels, chocolates or some other
kind of candy. Candy is. In fa.ct. food for
all the animal.", and frequently there la a
big candy counter in the Zoo down under
the sidewalk. The lood given to an ele
phant, particularly, la looked aft<?r with
great car*, and his menu is constantly
changed. If he Juts had rice for a day or
ho, lie gt-ts beun mash for a change and a.
tub of carrots, potatoes and onions nicely
cut up and served daintily enough for a
man to ear if they were not raw. Besides
all this trouble, tho water given elephants
to drink must be warmed with hot irons.
MONKEYS AND THEIR NEEDS.
A monkey in a fussy little creature, even
If not so sensitive aa an elephant. Mon
keys are vegetarians, and must have plenty
of fresh green vegetables and potatoes. In
winter, when thi;lr quarters are somewhat
cold, little jackets are made for them which
they run for and get into at once after each
performance. These jackets, together with,
a special fee»i of onlona, a vegetable valua
A YOUNG HULA DANCER IN ACTION.
enticed by the fragrance of upland lehua thn water: alas, poor me! I'm a coward"'
and puts a garland around his neck, but ; After this Dr. Emerson remarks: "As
the fruit of the neckpiece proves to be :he sugar boiler cannot extract from the
withered rubbish. "The summer has stalk the last grain of sugar, so the author
flown, winter has come," sighs the aged , finds It impossible in any translation to
Don Juan. "You shrink from a plunge in oxpr^ss the full intent of these Hawaiian
ble as a heat producer, keep the monkeys
warm all winter. Meat is never given to
them, because experiment has shown that
aa soon as they finish it they eat up their
own tails as a chuser.
The gander who has appeared for four
years on the stage of the Hippodrome Is
the most independent member of the staff.
The only expense he caused was that of
keeping him supplied with popcorn and pea
nuts. When Mr. Dundy was manager ho
never went to his big playhouse without
putting some popcorn in the corner of his
mouth for Dick. The gander, as soon as he
saw his friend, always waddled up to him
and, with his big bill, took the dainty from
Mr. Dundy's mouth.
Aside from the cost of feeding the ani
mals, which runs from $400 to Sjj.OOO a
week, depending on the number of them
there, the damage they sometimes do Is a
tremendous extra. The elephants especially
have sinned In this respect. It was a couple
of years ago that a herd of thirty elephants
appearing on the stage all at once became
confused, and, frightened by the scenery,
the lights and the music, stampeded. They
ran bacK of tile scenes, breaking the stage
fittings and the scenes Into splinters, rushed
through the back doors and out Into the
wide world. Some of them were caught on
side .streets, some on Broadway, and some
not till they had reached the banks of the
Hudson.
The repairs, not only to Hippodrome
property, but to that of many persons on
the line of march, cost thousands of dol
lars. That night was one of the nights
when the elephants got no iiandy for des
sert.
All kinds of publicity schemes are very
expensive. The streetcar and special ad
vertising costs $16,000 for a season, not
including the painted signs In the city and
the four hundred foot fence signs along rail
road lines, costing $1 1,500 a season more.
Regular bill posting eats up the additional
amount of $46,000, of which the printing of
pcrters consumed $23,000. Even the letter
stationery comes to $1,000, while 150.000
postage stamps are used in answering
queries, sending . tickets and Innumerable
other things. c v' ;~ : f
The weekly bill for electric lighting
amounts to $1,600. which does not include
the average of five hundred bulbs broken
each week and resuppli«»d at the expense
of the house.
The force of directors and of men and
women under them who work In various
capacities, from cleaners up to the clerical
force in the offices; the skilled workmen,
the stage hands and the uniformed at
tendants, total about three hundred per
sons. The cleaners alone, who go over the
entire Hippodrome after every performance,
cost the house $300 a week. During the
ten weeks of rehearsal previous to the
opening of the 'season- there are ■ great
many extra hands taken on. and especially
during the one week of dress and orches
tra rehearsals. For instance, the pay of
the stage hands who attended to placing
the scenery, lights, etc.. during the last
week of rehearsal for the present produc
tion amounted to nearly $13,000.
A HUGE SALARY LIST.
The salary list is the largest single Item
of expense, and it comes to $30,000 or $32,000
a week. This sum gives a fair conception
of the number of people that It requires
to produce a show and till the stage at the
Hippodrome. Perhaps, even a better notion
of the crowd on the big stage during one
of the enatrmblo scenes can be gained from
a < little incident which happened there a
short time ago.
. The cue had been given for the appear
ance of one of the circus men who was to
do aorae "bareback" feats on a horse. Tho
They All Portray Some Primal Human Passion,
but Most Frequently Love.
tnele (songs)." Perhaps it is Just as welt
that some of the sugar Is left untranslated.
Here is a colorful stanza:
Eva's lagoon Is red with d!rt —
Dust blown by th* cool Moa'e,
A plumage red on th« tarn leaf.
An ocaeroua tint In th* bay
A lover speaks:
Malua, fetch water of lore,
Glv» drink to this maman« bud ,
The birds, ther are sinking ecstatic.
Sipping Panaewa"s nectared lehua.
Beside themselves with the fragrance
' &xhal«d from the garden Ohnle.
Tour love comes to me a tornado:
It ha* rapt away my whole body;
Th» heart you once sealed as your own
There planted the seed of desire.
Answers the Inamorata:
Thought yen 'twas the tree of Hopoe. -
This tree, whose bloom you would pluck .
Meaning, probably, that the lover made a
mistake in regarding her as the sacred tree
of Hopoe, whose blossoms no man dared
to touch.
A charming little hula poem, called the
"Song of the Tree Shell," is thus rendered:
Trill a-far.
Trill a-near.
A dainty song-wreath.
XVreath al*ole«.
Kolea. Kolea.
Fetch me some dew.
Dew from pink akolea.
The tree shell Is a snail-like creature In
habiting trees and supposed to make a
chirping noise, while akolea is a fern and
kolea a red-breasted plover.
Among the musical instruments used in
the hula- orchestra the one or bamboo-nose
flute is the oddest. The performer holds
the- instrument to his right nostril with his
left hand, stopping the other nostril with
his thumb, and manipulates the three stop;
on th« flute with his right hand fingers.
Air Is driven through the nasal passage
with force sufficient to produce compara
tively powerful tones.
Although the hula music of to-day is sup
prsed to be built on the diatonic scale.
which was early introduced m the Ha
waiian Islands, it continues to be savagely
elusive and defies attempts at precise
transcription. There are embroideries, frac
tional tones and color effects of a subtle
character. Moreover, there are great vari
ations In the rendition of a song.
Music does not come spontaneously to the
Hawaiian, it is said, but is *he result of
careful and studied art. First came tfca
poem, then the rhythm of song to math
tUs words. Not from a mere bubbling up
of undefined emotion does the native cam I.
but because he ha? "omething to say and
can say it best in metrical form.
Describing the dance feature of a hula,
the author says:
•■The motions of the hand?, arms and of
the whole body. including the — which
has its own Deculiar orbital and sidelong
swing— in perfect sympathy one part
with another. The movements were so fas
cinating that one was at first almost hyp
notized and dlsaualified for criticism an 1
analytic judgment. Not to derogate from
the propriety and modesty of the woman's
motions, under the influence of her Delsar
tlan grace one gained new appreciation of
"the charm of woven Daces and of waving
hands." . - - The hands of the hula dan
cer are ever going out In gesture, her body
swaying and pivoting itself in attitudes of
expression. Her whole physique is a liv
ing and moving picture of feeling, senti
ment and passion. If the range of thought
is not always deep or high, it is not the
fault of her art. but the limitations of her
original endowment." ...
Hula gestures are largely fixed and have
a wide range of meaning. A precipice, or
an obstacle of size, is represented symboli
cally by the hand vertically posed on the
outstretched arm. palm outward. To show
that the obstacle is surmounted, the hand
is pushed forward and does a climbing act.
Walking or travelling is expressed by a.
forward undulatory movement of the out
stretched arm and hand. An open level
space is meant by extending the hands with
palms down. The act of putting on clothes
Is shown by placing the hollow of each
hand over the opposite shoulder with a
sort of hugging action. Hands with palms
up, edge to edge, little fingers touching, In
dicate union or harmony, while one hand
turned down and the other up signifies
disunion or divorce.
THE DEVOURING OF DEVILS.
An illustration of the simpler imitative
or mimetic gestures was given by a per
former, who indicated how a goddess rid
the earth of swarms of little devils. The
artist went through the motions of seizins
each devil with the fingers as if it were a
shrimp, biting and swallowing it. A gest
ure signifying contempt— not unknown
among little girls of civilized lands— is to
stick out the tongue.
Pele, the goddess of the volcano, is cele
brated in epic fashion in a hula of which
the following is an extract:
4
Prom Kahlki came the woman, Pele.
From the land of Pola-pola.
From the re<l cloud of Kane,
Cloud blazing in tho heavens.
Eager desire for Hawaii seised tha woman.
Pele:
.She carved the canoe. Honua-i-a-kea.
The lashings of the god's eSBM are done.
T«e canoe of Kane, the*«r!il-^ik-'r.
The tUles swirl. Pele-honua-mea o'ermounts
then: ;
The sod rides the waves, sails about the
island;
The host or little gods ride the billows.
Ku and his fellow. Lono.
Disembark on solid land:
They atisrht on a shoal.
Lo. an eruption in Kahiki!
A flashing of lightning O Pi -
Belch forth. O Pele!
An instance of inveterate symbolism in
hula poetry is a ttanza which tells of an in
dividual who while bathing In the ocean is
seized and devoured by a monster shark.
The shark, we are assured, is love, and the
author remarks that this "tierce idyl" casts
horse was led in at the proper time by a
couple of attendants, but the performer did
not appear. They waited until it was plain
ly apparent that something had gone
wrong; they looked for the man. but m
vain, and were obliged to go on with the
rest of the act without him. It later trans
pired that he had misunderstood what door
he was to come through and had come ia
the wrong one. The crowd of people on
the stage was so dense that he could not
make his way through It to the footlights
where his horse was waiting for him. and
he had to give it up.
The sum of $3,000 or $6,000 a year is 3pen:
in photographing groups and members of
the cast for advertising purposes, and .1
varying amount. In the neighborhood of $300
a week, is spent on printing. Other kinds Of
advertising are undertaken, expense hard-
Iv seeming to be considered at all. Hippo
drome primers, which cost $4,000 to get up.
are being now distributed among school
children by the thousand, and the enthu
siasm of the children marks the success of
the idea. In fact, from the point of view
of the boys sent out to distribute these
primers, the children are altogether too
demonstrative. The boys come back to the
sheltering walls of the Hippodrome with
their clothes liter. uy torn to pieces after
they have been down to the lower East
Side public schools. Little Benny, one of
the regular office boys, came back one
morning last week hatless and with three
long scratches across his face.
"Gee! they mauled me" he cried. "Don't
send me down there again." A new hat
for Benny and some salve and bandages
fur his face were more expenses for the
quit© =. light on the imagination* of thY
primitive Hawaiian*, "Hawaiian poot.<« dirt
rot indulge in landscape painting lor lbs
own sake." says Dr. Emerson of another
apparent nature lyric "As a rale they
had some ulterior end la ▼low. and that
end was the portrayal of some primal
human passion— ambition, hats. Jealous*,
leve— especially love." <l%
Of the many kinds of hulas or operas
there Is one which depicts the doin«st-«f
animals, especially the scandalous ad
ventures of a hog god who was enamoured
of Pele. the volcano goddess. In anothsr
opera the performers take a gymnastic po
sition on the floor, supporting themselves.
while almost reclining on their backs, by »
band and leg. and using the free limb* ta
sweeping or agitated gestures.
A peculiar form of hula Indulged in ay
amateurs is a sort of betting game, wits
forfeits of kisses and embraces. Th«r»
used to be forfeits that went beyond the
limits of Western taste, and the game woe
often got up as a supreme expression -of
hospitality, with results that would .sod
in. this country to a divorce action.
Still more unlicensed was a hula is
which "Two men armed with wands, tar
nished with tufts of gay feathers, pass up>
and down the files of men and women,
waving their decorated staffs, ever and
anon indicating with a touch of the ward
persons of the opposite sex -who under the
rules must pay the forfeit demanded of
them."*
OX THE BOARDWALK
The Snore King Has Not In
vaded Atlantic City.
Atlantic City. Jan. 23.— There has ooaa
no snow at Atlantic City for over two
weeks, during which time every bis; city
in the East has been buried under huge
drifts. The week-end crowds have beet,
large in consequence: antossoMles ■.»■•
Cashing over clean, dry asphalt, and *&•
Boardwalk throngs are promenading la tie
sunlight.
The temperature during the middle o# t l^
week was springlike, and even the ovut—
gale of wind which overtook the yarM
Misr and drove her on to the beaah vmm
a warm wind apparently from the OaW
Siream.
Boardwalk visitors have been watenms|
with increasing interest the boildtas; of tka
huge new Hotel Strand, which towers as>
into the skyline along with the Chalftsrte.
Traymore anad Mar! borough- Blenheim. It
ts a structure of red brick, with stoao
trimming, and architecturally an exassato
of the best taste. It is absolutely uibuiul.
and overlooks the steel pier and wide ex
panse of ocean from every apartment.
At 1 h<» Traymore, Harold Binney. a* Now
York, owner of th« wrecked yacht Mat.
has be<»n staying with Mr. and Mrs. "W. I*
Darnell and their tittle daughter, who were>
r>n the unrortunaie vessel. Mr and Mrs T.
H. Heakston are at this hotel . also J. T*.
Haa* and M. JL Murphy
The Mar!borough-Blenh<»Un is entertain
ing a number of goif plarers from New
York, Philadelphia and other neighboring?
places. Among N<»w York guests there are
A. S.Higgen. A. S Brownell. J. H- Be«.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles A. Hall, Mr. and Mrs.
W. F. Merrill. Miss 11. W. Bruce. H. B.
Tr^maino. Mrs. W. ::arf>ncp Martin.
G. M Martin and M:ss Martin.
Among New Yorkers at the Dennis aroj
Mr. and Mr?. John P. Butler and Chaxle*
E. Blood, an.! Mr?. B. Buch. At the Chal
fom*. Mr and Mrs. William H. Johns.
Richard C ' »wt on. E. C. Jenkins and
James A. Day.
Amon; >h* visitors from Xew Tork at
the St. Caariav, are Mr. and Mrs. Thomas
W. Walsh Mrs. J. W. Toung. Horar*
Lecor. jr Mr?. Samuel C. Dunham. 3fr.
and Mrs. T. A. Mage** and Carl Edward*.
Among the guests at Young's Boardwalk
Hotel Hi fIM Hon. Ronald Mac Donald. an
author. lawyer and former member of
Par-lament, who is making a tour of the
L'nited States. Morris Gest. of New Tork.
is registered here.
The Rudolf is entertaining, among ethers.
Mr and Mrs. Max Plats and Mr. and Mr*
William Ronayn*. of New York. Th»
guests at the Rudolf axe looking forward
with pleasure to the charity ball, to be
held there on January 26 under the au
spices of Atlantic Lodg* 49* of the- lade
pendent Order B nai B'rith. »
Among the New Yorkers regfatefwJ at
other Atlantic City hotels are:
Wiltshire— Mr. and Mrs. B. Levy. John
D. Rap* lye G. V. Vlselli. E. I. Senteme, L.
Ser.teine and A. W. Forbes.
Monticello— J. R. Carr. L. Shnman. Will
iam Mac Donald. Thomas Giilan. W. J.
Toden. Mrs. F. Bin* and Henrietta, Bins.
Continental— Mrs. Josephl. Mrs. Reed.
Miss E. Joseph. Addle Engel. H. Hartmaa.
W. Soden. A. Chrlsman and A. Campbell.
Pennhurst— Mr. and Mrs. M. Miller. T.
Wise. J. C. Kinigan and Mr. and Ha
Louts Davis. •
Haddon Hall— Mrs. Henry D. Nawsan,
Horace D. Newson. W. M. Stretch. Mr*.
Paul Brauss. W. M. McKenata and J. I
Carpenter.
Morton— Mrs. Edward Hon. WUUaaa
Robinson. B. J. Drevlin, Mrs. E. Wari
and Miss Gasper
Kind Man— Madam, won't you take this
s*-at?
Lady— ' cannot deceive you. but lam a
suffragette.
Kind Man— Then sit in my lap.— Ufa.
hunted treasurer of the big show house.
Dressing rooms are everywhere betas
improved and things in the furnishing of
them that used to be called luxuries «ra»
' now necessities. Back of the Hlppodr
stage has been Installed even the last
nil dam improvement, a hospital to talk*
! care of the injured, the over-fatigued, or
! the suddenly 11L Two physicians and a
trained MM are in attendance, the nurse
being always on the spot to administer
ready relief. Her services are much tried
| and much appreciated.
But she found that "bracers" at thai
Hippodrome were dreadfully practical.
Especially to those stage managers and
stag* people generally who come from
abroad the spirit of elegance and luxury
which la sweeping over this country, is
astonishing. While It takes their breath
away, they condemn it. They call It rala*
and unreal because it makes every one ltvs>
in the atmosphere of palaces, even those
who are themselves poor. They call Ameri
cans an unreal people and say that they
like to make believe. Some American's
themselves agree with this. Even a few
days ago a quiet but elegantly arrayed
woman standing in the corridors of tJ».»
Waldorf, talking to another about sum*
violets she was wearing, said:
They are artificial, you know.**
"Really!" responded the other. "They
are certainly exquisite, and they are per
fumed, too. I never saw such beactlfui
ones."
"I always wear a spray of fine artificial
violets," laughed the drat woman, - as *
symbol of my country— a land of high ota*»
..Urn. ,7
'■ •