AT THE KHAKI DANCE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 5, 1 October 1918, Page 3

AT THE KHAKI DANCE

LURE OF THE UNIFORM

i A SURPLUS OF LADIES'

(By "Sylvius.")

1 Six or eight months ago tho Mayor wiiK dubious as io ho-w tliu .soldiers lviio wero i.i> town for the week-end were to ■ be entertained. It was a little problem m sociology which His Worship had sot. himselr 'out to solve-solely In the interest of the meu in khaki. : J ho Rtory- ■ writers often refer to the "lonely-s-.irlier" element at the front or in liligiity. The same thins, in a- less form, existed here. Among tlio'iciis of thousniiils surging into the military camps tit. Trontliam and ■ l''ouiho'rston from the ends of New ' Zealand were many thousands who 'had . imver been to Wellington, and had no :' friends hero. When these men were : gu en voek-etid leave they had to set out to make- friends, and most of them found-no great difficulty in doing so. The street-corner groups any : or Sunday evening shout that at one. ... Perhaps that sort of free friend- , ship, was not the best for cither party, fl'he Mayor at any rate conceived the idea, that sometehing should be done to keep the men off the streets on a Saturday night.) At first free-and-easy smoke concerts were proposed, and the assistance of tho Savage and Orphan Clubs was invoked. A wintry reception was accorded the first. Some twenty-one men in - khaki stole on tiptoo into the big and otherwise empty hull, and, feeling lonely or out of place, gave the thing best after half au hour s trial. It was evident that the wrong su-itei had been jerked. .Before that time there had been soldiers' dances, conducted with fair. success. It was decided to ■•revert to the dance—and the dance has proved to be "tho tfhing." Enthusiasm for these Saturday night "hops"'has been increasing among the light-hearted soldier boys, who wade into the quadrilles and the lancers with just as much (lash and "pep" as they will make into our orambling enemies a few months hence. Hβ would not he a. man wlio would not like to whirl a pretty girl round tho /slippery floor. He even treads on her little toes at times, but she hides tine wince behind an indulgent smile—per'hap remembering that the poor hoy, mav be in for a good deal more than a pinched toe later on. But if the soldiers love the dance, its lure is doubly emphasised where the ladies are concerned.

"Do you have much trouble in getting partners for the soldiers P" I asked one of tbe supervising chaperones.

"Trouble—oh, dear no," was the reply, "there are always' three times as many ladies as there are soldiers. That's one of our;■ little troubles. "Troubles—how?" "Well, the men are supposed to bring ono lady. They are allowed to bring two, but it is nothing to see a man turning up witli four or five. Wo stood it for a long time, but now we are making it plain to the men that they must not bring moro than two. We look for the men themselves to help us in this matter." "But I don't understand—". "Well, it's this way—a man may lie bringing a couple of girls along. On the way down they meet two others, who make no bones about wanting to join up, so down they all flock. The men haven't got the courage to say 'No' to them. I don't blame them in a way, only it makes things a kittle uneven down here."

"Then the girls like it?" "Like it? Go and stand at the entrance there, just for fun, and see how much they, like it." ; . ' < ■ ,

1.-strolled towards- the.' big doors at the main entrance to the Town Hall. There were, in the portico, and on the pavement bejow, several girlis, sometimes in pairs, loitering about. The first thought to strike one was that they had made appointments to meet their'escorts' at the hall doors. Probably some had. Others were there purely on-"spec." I watched out ; A braw lad in khaki, puffing at a cigarette with enormous satisfaction, strode up the stone steps inta the portico. A girl suddenly confronted him. "Take ine in with you. will you?" she said, with a certain wistful eagerness. ■

"You I" said the man. "Why, I don't know you!" And he passed on.

Now the chances were that the man had no thoughts of being deliberately unkind. He had replied simply aad effectively according to his code—nhe code that at least demanded some form of introduction.

, The girl did not seem a bit disturbed at the rebuff. It was probably not the first - she had received, and ii omb , hardened her determination to get inside. . . . And'there was something to attract. Through the open doors o:-me flooding the voluptuous strains of the ."Pink Lady" waltz; in the ■ bright, warm light, passing in a .kaleidoscopic stream of humanized colour, the dancers tripped, swnyed, and glided—all more or less held by the magic ef rhythmical motion, and music ever so subtle and sweet. Someho'w I felfc sorry for the girl. "There's a few one knows that we'd like. to get rid of," said my lady informant. "They may be all right, and then again—we have names for them. These fellows are' so soft—most of them—soft in the ways of tho cities, but great chaps.' Look at them now--grand chain, off they go, pretty to watch them. ... It hurts ins sometimes to think where some of iheso good fellows will'be<six months henee. .. . But you mustn't think—just t-eep going. '. . . Oh, yes, some real good friendships spring up at, these fiances. Old Mr. Affinity is still round doing as well as ever. They meet—then there is Sunday afternoon; perhaps a musicalevening at the girl's home on the Sunday night. There are more week-ends. . . . Cupid gallops withal in war-tim«, and lots of girls have met 'thn only one in the world' here, I beliove. . . . Supper. . . . Yes, they get a. nit fif supper; nothing charged. Nice music, isn't it?" "Why, there she is dancing 1" I said in my surprise. "Who do you mean?" asked the lady. ''Why, tho girl who ." No. 1 could not give her away. It was the same one. nevertheless. She had worked tho oracle. Persistence is a line quality—so British, too. -

Ono of onr beautiful wmths' made up \nfli a'ppropriij.ie .-• »id ritrc flowrs will prove a, fitting tribute at the funeral of friend or relative. Miss .Murray's.' Viceliußal Florists, 3G Willis Strnct.-Advf.

All piirente are hereby cordially re{juesteii .to encourage Stationers and Storekeepers to push tbe sale of "Thinker" Brand Writing Tablets and "Thinlcpr" School Exercise Books for tho nation's good—Bannatyne and Hunter, Ltd., wholesale agents for the "Thinker." -Advt.

For a "glory girl" ot a "glory boy," Born of 'distinction, no ne«l to ask why. Born on the "slorious fourth of July." Iu Australian homes, any day the yoar round. Glad welcome for "baby" is beard to iesound; And amid the rejoicings babe's health to assure Warm welcome for Woods' Peppermint Cure.—Advt.