A Lady's Letter.

Manawatu Herald, 21 April 1896, Page 3

A Lady's Letter.

Wellington, April 18, 1896. There is vety little in the way of amusement going on just now, t must add with the exception of the Pollard Opera Company* who have been attracting large audiences at Opera house every night for more than a week past. Last Wednesday Mis» Medley and the Messrs Alfred and John Hill, gave another of their enjoyable matinees, and the audience, though not large was very appreciative. Miss Medley played several pianoforte solos in her usual clever and finished style, and also accompanied Mr Alfred Hill's violin solos, some of which were really excellent } the performer was certainly heard at his best on this occasion, and was loudly applauded. Mr John Hill added enjoyment by his singing of two or three pretty little songs. Miss Medley was wearing a neat drab holland skirt and short embroidered jacket and soft pale silk vest. The Autumn Flower Show ia to be opened next week and I hear there are a very large number of entries. I hope more ladies will enter for the bouquet and table decoration Competitions this time than they did at the last show. If I remember rightly, there were only two entries for the table decoration then, and neither of them were particularly pretty and certainly were not original. Writing of table decoration reminds me of a very pretty and quaint design I saw the other day, made for that purpose, in the absence of fresh flowers. The foundation was a piece of thick paper, about a yard long and a little over a quarter of a yard wide, this was covered with a pretty sage green crinkled paper, and all round was a double ruching of the same coloured paper, and paper of a delicate sea green tint. Then placed on the mat at two opposite corners Were artistic clusters of large water lilies, with their buds, and a few sprigs of natural feathery grass. The flowers, which were also of crinkled paper, white, of course with yellow centres, were most beautifully made and what is more looked so natural, in fact the whole effect on the white cloth was as pretty as anything I have seen for a very long time. Now if any of my young lady readers are clever with their scissors, and had the ac^ companying amount of patience, they could easily make a design somewhat similar to what I have just described, and would, I am sure, feel well rewarded with the effects of their labour. There are rumours floating about that the Birthday ball is not to be given here this year, but in Auckland, where the Australian Squadron will be in port. If this rumour is true, great will be the disappointment here, for we always look forward to the Birthday balls which are the largest and most brilliant affairs of the kind given here during the year. However, there is some consolation in the fact that what we lose others gain. I hear that the N.Z. Tennis Association are thinking of sending a team over to Australia to compete at the May tournaments which are held in Sydney every year. Let us hope that this is true, for I fancy that New Zealand will not be very far behind. Winter is fast coming upon us, to*day is quite cold, and makes one at once begin to think of furs and warm clothing. The newest styles of jackets which will soon be all the rage, are of a pretty and graceful shape, tight fitting baok and loose double breasted front, which fastens high up at the throat and is surmounted with a neat close fitting turned down collar of velvet ; the the front is buttoned over with two large buttons only, one high up on the left side near the neck, which has a corresponding one opposite, and one down just below the waist in the centre, bo does not require another to ballance it, the sleeves are full and of the leg of mutton shape* I saw a very pretty jacket the other day made in this style of plain goblin blue cloth trimmed with velvet of a darker shade. Sigka.