THE OUTLOOK by Editor

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Apr 29, 1913

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 40, No. 17.

THE OUTLOOK

By Editor

"Watchman, what of the night?"

A Charity Ball

If the wealthy people would use even a portion of what they take for their own pleasure, and give it to charity, charitable objects would fare much better than they do now. They would receive much more of the mere commercial product of some of their parties ostensibly held for charity. For instance, there was held in January in Chicago a gorgeous costume ball. One lady who attended it said, "Never, I believe, has American society flaunted its wealth in such magnificence." It was a "charity" ball. All the display of jewels and dress was professedly for the poor. The sparkle of jewels, we are told, was literally blinding. One woman wore a costume which looked as tho it were all made of pearls. Another, a heavy satin costume embroidered with gold, the coat being made of cloth-of-gold covered with blue chiffon. One string of one lady's pierced diamonds and emeralds was worth a quarter of a million dollars. "And they danced the tango, and all the other ragtime dances that society has stolen from the tenderloin." "One society leader remarked that the jewels alone in this parade cost ten million dollars,—diamonds and rubies and emeralds and sapphires and pearls. Women wore rings upon every finger, as well as the thumb, and one or two had huge rubies or emeralds on the backs of their hands. They wore anklets of gem-studded gold; and almost every waist, whether large or slender, was girded with precious stones." It is said that the wealth of families represented at that ball for charity was $500,000,000; that the cost of the jewelry worn was $10,000,000; of the clothing, $1,000,000; that the cost of the fancy costumes unusable after the ball was $100,000. Total receipts were $43,000. The expenses of the ball,—rent, lights, orchestra, etc.,—were $29,000. And charity got out of all that expenditure the sum of $14,000.

Copyright by Underwood and Underwood, N. Y.

Our correspondent who sends us the printed account, written by a lady, well remarked that it seemed to him that the feast of Belshazzar would be next,—the hand of doom will be seen upon the wall, and the great judgment will declare—if not the words—"Weighed in the balances, and found wanting."

— ** —

The naval estimates for Great Britain for 1913-1914 are $231,546,500. This is an increase of a little more than $6,000,000 over last year. The new program provides for the building of five battle-ships, eight light cruisers, sixteen torpedo-boat destroyers, and a number of submarines. England will have under construction on April 1 eleven battle-ships, three battle cruisers, thirteen lighter cruisers, thirty-five torpedo-boat destroyers, and twenty-one submarines. In the year past, she has completed four battle-ships, three battle cruisers, five light cruisers, fifteen destroyers, and three submarines. The British admiralty has also been making investigations among motor boat owners around her coasts of what use could be made of all these small craft in case of war. There seems to be an indescribable feverishness among all the great nations on this question of being prepared for war, for what Great Britain is doing is only illustrative of what all the rest are aiming to do.