"<All things that pass Are woman's looking glass."
The Spring Race Meeting.
The years fly and we fly with them with what appears to be the quivering rapidity of a cinematograph. Such was one of many casual thoughts that came into my mind during the Race Meeting, as I looked at the crowd of folks who were present, and recognised the fact that amongst them many familiar faces wore absent, whilst a large proportion were total strangers to me. The thought carried my memory back to the first Race Meeting 1 ever attended. in Shanghai, when I have a distinct remembrance of being told, not once but often, that "the Shanghai Race Meetings were not half such good fun as they used to be," and I felt rather inclined to resent the son given, which was said to be "the influx of new people." To-day I pathiso with the sentiment. Figurativ. speaking the Shanghai of yesterday is quite a different place from the Shanghai of to-day, and has every promise of being still more varied to-morrow, and its rapid development seems to mark the flight of time with an. emphasis that compels one to notice it. However, whatever fault there is to be found on that score none can be found with the management of the Race Meeting, which seems to improve all the time.
Never before have the fields that started in every race been so the riding 80 good, never ha such a wonderfully small number of false starts to tax our patience, And surely the minimum amount of complaints must have been reached, as there seemed to be a total absence of unpleasant discussions regarding the judge's decisions, which is partly attributed to the wise move made by the committee in lowering the lofty altitude of the judge's box. When I have mentioned the amiability. of the weather, and the unusually large number of beautiful gowns that were worn, I think I have enumerated the most potent features of what was undoubtedly a remarkably "successful meeting. was a white cloth gown embroidered with lo blue in the effective new fashion that looks so much like Madeira work. With it was worn x large black and white chip hat, adorned with white ostrich plumes.
'A happy mingling of old and new fashions Was seen ina smart white voile, the skirt of which had a deep festooned flounce round the foot similar to those worn in the fifties of last century. The bodice was made with a Ince yoke and" wide girdle. tiny rosettes of pale green velvet lending a pretty note of colour. A fit citcalar hat of puce chip was worn wih it, tilted very high at the back with a big bunch of dark red rosebuds, a tiny posy of which rested on the front of the brim, and formed the only trimming, prettily mad Ince yoke with iridescent embroidery on Brussels not. A dark-haired girl in a simply-fashioned white voile, wore " most becoming hat of gathered white d which was entirely guiltless of any trim: ming whatever.
The Second Day.
The dresses worn the day after included a large number of exquisitely beautiful white gowns, a description of which would fail to convey any idea of their elegance. Two tamboured Brussels net gowns were amongst the most effective; another, in a white silk fabric, embroidered heavily in a rose design, being stamped as a recent importation from home. Very Frenchy in appearance was a frock worn by a dark-haired girl of cornflower blue and grey checked taffottas, the skirt of which was short and full, banded at the foot with three flat bands of plain blue taffottas, which also formed a deep prettily-made waist band. The hat worn with this very exactly same shade of - blue, fective gown was circular chip, in
trimmed with quiltings of ribbon to match and white ostrich plumes. Two sisters were in dainty frocks of pink and white organdie muslin, and picture bats of white gathered tulle cotton dresses was of white worn with a hat Both gown and ed with apricot silk,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.