The rising flood of democracy and equality wouldn't
submit to any such barrier. I remember quite well one beautiful woman
standing for some time just the wrong side of the ribbon. She was so
beautiful that every one remarked her, but she had no official rank or
claim of any kind to enter the salon reserve--no one knew her, though
every one was asking who she was. She finally made her entree into the
room on the arm of one of the members of the diplomatic corps, a young
secretary, one of her friends, who could not refuse her what she wanted
so much. She was certainly the handsomest woman in the room with the
exception of the actual Queen Alexandra, who was always the most
beautiful and distinguished wherever she was.
The royalties didn't dance much. We had the regular quadrille d'honneur
with the Princes and Princesses of Wales, Denmark, Sweden, Countess of
Flanders, and others. None of the French princes came to the ball.
There was a great crowd, but as the distinguished guests remained all
the time in the salon reserve, they were not inconvenienced by it. Just
before supper, which was served at little round tables in a room opening
out of the rotonde, the late King of Denmark, then Crown Prince, brother
of the Princess of Wales, told me he would like to go up-stairs and see
all the rooms; he had always heard that the Palais d'Orsay was a
beautiful house.
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