the panic in
Wall Street.

DE W. R. I assure you, Mrs. Bagley-Willis, it begins a new epoch in our
social history. [To LORD ALDERDYCE, who enters, left, with GERALD.] How
do you do, Lord Alderdyce?

MRS. B.-W. Good evening, Lord Alderdyce. Good evening, Gerald.

LORD A. Good evening, Mrs. Bagley-Willis. Good evening, Mr. Riggs.

GERALD. Good evening, Wiggie! [DE W. R. and MRS. B.-W. move toward
left.] I suppose that old lady's taken to herself all the credit for
this evening's success!

LORD A. Well, really, you know, wasn't it... ah... quite a feat to make
society swallow this adventurer?

GERALD. How can anybody stay away? When a man spends several millions on
a single entertainment people have to come out of pure curiosity.

LORD A. To be sure! I did, anyway!

GER. [Gazing about.] Think of buying all the old Vandergrift palaces at
one swoop!

LORD A. Oh, really!

GER. This palace was one of the landmarks of the city; all its
decorations had been taken from old palaces in Italy. And he tore
everything off and gave it away to a museum, and he made it over in
three months!

LORD A. Amazing. [Music and applause heard left.]

MRS. B.-W. Mazzanini must be going to sing again.

DE W. R. Let us go!

MRS. B.-W. Fancy opera stars to dance to! A waltz song at a thousand
dollars a minute!

DE W. R. Ah, but SUCH a song!

[They go off, left; half a dozen guests enter, right, and cross in
groups.]

RUTH. [Enters, right, with PLIMPTON; looking about.] An extraordinary
get-up!

PLIMP. Appalling extravagance, Rutherford! Appalling!

RUTH. Practically everybody's here.

PLIMP. Everybody I ever heard of.

RUTH. One doesn't meet you at balls very often, Plimpton.

PLIM. No. To tell the truth, I came from motives of prudence.

RUTH. Humph! To tell the truth, so did I!

PLIM. The man is mad, you know... and one can't tell what might offend
him!

RUTH. And with the market in such a state!

PLIM. It's terrible! Terrible!... ah, Lord Alderdyce!

LORD A. Good evening, Mr. Plimpton. How d'ye do, Mr. Rutherford?

RUTH. As well as could be expected, Lord Alderdyce. It's a trying time
for men of affairs. [They pass on, and go of, left.]

GER. They must be under quite a strain just now.

LORD A. Don't mention it. Don't mention it! I've invested all my funds
in this country, and I tremble to pick up the last edition of the paper!

MRS. IS. [Enters, right, costumed en grande dame, much excited.] Oh,
Gerald,