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    South Australia - Social Matters

    B47641

    Dancing and Other Sins

    Dancing in Colonial South Australia

    (Taken from Geoffrey H. Manning's A Colonial Experience)

    Introduction - Is Dancing Wrong?

    As I write, a debate is abroad within our community upon the alleged inherent sins of dancing and this controversy has waxed and waned since the early 1870s when the 'working class', aided and abetted by enterprising entrepreneurs, found themselves being attracted to 'dancing saloons' in metropolitan Adelaide and suffering consequential brow-beating from the pulpit, and elsewhere, for their perceived 'sins' against Christian dogma and transgressions against 'public decency'.

    The desire to add freshness and zest to the influence ordinarily exercised by the pulpit may, unless its occupant is ever on his guard, betray him into efforts which overshoot the mark and fail by aiming at too much. Whatever their defect, a want of plainness cannot be attributed to current clerical observations. What calls for attention, however, is not their plainness, but the question of justice regarded as a contribution to the criticism of life, and to a fair appreciation of the amusements of society.

    'The ballroom is a charnel-house, where those who attend brush shoulders with wantons.' 'Dances are the atmosphere in which the spirit of wantonness thrives.' These words have been used in denouncing a form of amusement which many regard as soul-deadening, and the question suggested by these remarks is whether there is anything to be gained by rhetorical exaggeration of this kind.

    My response would be that dancing is not only a strong instinct of the human mind but, as Herbert Spencer reports, has a religious origin. Did not Miriam dance on the shores of the Red Sea when the Egyptians were destroyed; and did not King David dance before the Ark? Mr Spencer, having diligently explored all religions, civilised and uncivilised, proves that dancing finds a place in the early history of them all, and was employed as a channel for the expression of devotional feelings.

    From Greece and Judea, to Abyssinia and Madagascar, proofs are multiplied that dancing was a form of worship. In a word, it is a religious exercise which has, somehow, forgotten its original inspiration and become, as some in our society suggest, unpleasantly secular. Though the dancing dervishes of Constantinople are conscious of a religious emotion, dancing, with the generality of mankind, has lost its power to excite any feeling other than one of mere physical enjoyment.

    A young lady who is experiencing the whirling rapture of movements to the accompaniment of the strains of the late lamented Strauss is probably unconscious of the religious genesis of her favourite amusement. As it seems hopeless either to abolish dancing, or reconquer it for pious ends, the question must be whether the exercise is to be opposed or guided wisely. The common-sense answer is obvious. Nothing is to be gained by careful treatment. Let dancing, like every other form of amusement, be treated as a matter of discretion and degree.

    Dancing in Early Adelaide

    By early 1839 an enterprising colonist, Mr Portbury, advertised his 'New Assembly Rooms' at Light Square in the following terms:

    In addition to periodical 'assemblies' he contemplated opening a dancing school and 'wished to treat with a professional gentleman with a view to ensure his services.' The subscriptions for the proposed school were such as to prevent membership within the working class. The first 'subscription ball' was held on 27 June 1839 when up to 'thirty subscribers [were] entered.' Paine's first set of quadrilles was danced twice, the Lancer's once and several centre dances, following which an announcement in the press said 'the company was highly delighted with the amusements and refreshments of the evening.'

    Thus, the upper echelons of colonial society were introduced to ballroom dancing and, without any utterances from the pulpit to deter them from their perambulations, Government House became a venue for fashionable balls, while citizens such as Messrs Jacobs and Thornborough opened 'superior' premises in which they conducted monthly balls. A band, supper and refreshments were all supplied for about six shillings a double ticket.

    These dances were generally referred to as 'quadrille parties', although the dancing repertoire included waltzes and Spanish and country dances. These social events usually concluded about 4 am with the old-time country dance known as Sir Roger de Coverley - unfortunately, this spirited dance is all but unknown today.

    Fancy dress balls were introduced by the wife of the Colonial Surgeon, Dr Nash, the first being held in a makeshift structure in Hindmarsh Square. At the outset these events caused the ladies to exercise ingenuity in respect of suitable costumes because suitable material was difficult to acquire but, according to reports, they 'seemed well able to sustain the characters they represented.' When the Queen's Theatre was established such difficulties ceased as costumes of all nations could be hired from that place.

    By the late 1850s a 'Bachelors' Ball' had become a regular event on the social calendar and, in September of that year, over 350 ladies and gentlemen, including His Excellency, the Governor, and 'a great many influential families in the city and suburbs', gathered at White's Rooms.

    By the close of the 1860s the new colonial gentry had distinguished itself from the lower echelons of society by life styles 'based on wealth and an inordinate use of free time', and one of the requisite skills was the art of dancing Quadrilles, Polkas, Lancers and the Albert, besides the daring waltz, where couples danced at close quarters - this art was taught at various academies in and around Adelaide and nurtured at the palatial mansions of the upper class of colonial society. Again this form of recreation went unchallenged by the clergy and the 'Mother Grundy's' within our society.

    'Of course there must be a ball.' Such was the ultimatum of the ladies when, in 1869, the news of the Duke of Edinburgh's second visit reached the colony and, without any apparent concert, there was a wonderful unanimity on this point. Indeed, with the ladies a ball occupied the first place in fashionable amusements for at it they were able to compete on equal terms with the sterner sex - that is to say, they were able to compete in the same field with them; for beyond this the equality did not go in those early days and, in many respects, at the turn of the 20th century.

    At this time, man, with all his assumption, yields the palm when brought face to face with his rival in the ballroom. Indeed, it is impossible for him to do other than surrender without striking a blow. He yields obsequiously to immeasurably superior charms. It surely must be the assurance of mastery here that renders this kind of gathering so fascinating to the gentler sex.

    And it became all the more delightful to them from the willingness with which their reputed masters acknowledged their supremacy. It was a cheerful submission - a willing service. Both parties were satisfied with their positions and the demand of the ladies met with a ready response and prompt acquiescence from the gentlemen.

    The Dancing Saloons of Adelaide

    By mid-1870 the crusade against vice and corruption in our fair city was in full swing and, in respect of dancing saloons, I reproduce an account of same seen through the eyes of one of the 'crusaders'. Without in any way endorsing the opinions expressed I can vouch for his credibility with regard to facts.

    '[The dancing saloon] doors are open; their revelries can be witnessed by any casual visitor; their frequenters may become as well known to any one as they are to the police; and even the magisterial patrons behind the scenes, who grant the night permits, may be brought forward for the admiration of their fellow-citizens.

    'On Tuesday last there were two of the terpsichorean temples in full swing after midnight. Of course one of them was that degenerate daughter of the Muses formerly known as the Victoria Theatre, but now dubbed the Prado... Like her more reputable neighbours she was manifestly under the influence of depressed times... A sickly gas jet flickered in the lamp overhanging what used to be the entrance to the dress circle.

    'From a fruit shop at the opposite corner a pale reflection was thrown across the road into the side court, where the "gods" once disported themselves... The bar, where dramatic thirst quenched itself in the days of Solomon, no longer makes any outward sign... On entering it you obtain a slight increase of illumination, sufficient to disclose a large low-roofed lobby... For a resort of gaiety it looks and smells sepulchral.

    'And the attendance is not of a kind to enliven its natural despondency. There may be a score or so present, the males largely predominating; from half-a-dozen to nine is the varying proportions of the sirens. Some kind of a dance has been afoot, for the sound of music dies away as we enter the court, and two or three couples still linger on the floor...

    'The males - who for the most part are raw youths, not many of them being over twenty, while a few might be considerably short of that mature age - gravitate towards the bar and "shouting" is frequent. A group of girls are making a dismal pretence of romping with each other under a gallery, when they are hailed from the bar and rush off.

    'Drinks circulate rapidly and the romping is resumed with a suspicious increase of vigour. The girls are of a medium type, both in age and style. With one exception they do not seem to be young, but neither are they new to the streets or to the Prado. They bear marks of dissipation in their high colour, which is more purple than ruddy, and in the sensuality which is supplanting what may once have been innocent beauty.

    'Their liveliness is evidently forced and savours more of bravado than of light-heartedness. They represent what the ordinary prostitute is at from 20 to 25, before the shamelessness of the confirmed rep comes over her and she grows bloated with brandy-drinking.

    'The men are all of the working class - artisan apprentices or journeymen, most of them might be. Very few of them seem to have far to travel when they visit the Prado and that may partly account for their seeming so much at home in it. Had we expected to meet with "any citizens in high position" who are accused of patronising the Prado, disappointment would have been our lot for there were none present or visible in the neighbourhood...

    'Across the square the green and red illumination of the Shamrock are glaring forth in the darkness... A narrow door admits the visitors into a filthy backyard and shuts out an inquisitive world behind them. Through pools of stagnant water and patches of fetid mud they scramble around to the rear of the premises on which the ballroom conveniently opens.

    'It is not much larger than a bar parlour - say 30 feet in length with about half that breadth... At the inner end of the room is a small gallery for the orchestra, into which the drum, the cornet and the fiddle elevate themselves through a trap-door.

    'The attendance here is about the same number as at the Prado, but the class obviously lower. There are more women, bigger ones and more brazen, all of them. Some have been notorious street-walkers the past ten years and they have thriven upon it while hundreds with weaker constitutions or finer sensibilities have sunk under self-consuming sin.

    'They have acquired the muscle of prize-fighters, possibly not without some practice of the art. They have passed the voluptuous stage years ago; they are no longer even sensual; the heavy, callous stolidity of their faces is almost brutal. Moral consciousness does not betray itself in a single look or gesture. The idea of shamelessness has ceased even to suggest itself to them. They are little better than animals...'

    Strangely, this malediction against the evils of dancing and attendant prostitution incited little comment from the public, apart from a letter or two concerning the 'social evil':

    However, within two years the proprietor of the 'Shamrock', Samuel Boddington, found himself defending the salubrity of his establishment following accusations emanating from Samuel Raphael and others, who complained 'that scenes equally bad as those described elsewhere took place around the Shamrock Hotel, the landlord of which has a number of houses adjoining which he let to prostitutes.'

    Mr Boddington, duly incensed at the calumny heaped upon him responded:

    To the best of my knowledge Mr Boddington's assertions were never challenged.

    The Clergy Intervenes

    In 1881 a youth hung himself 'under the influence of fear of detection of his peculations on his master's property' and it was alleged by Reverend F.W. Cox that 'the departure of this unhappy youth from the paths of rectitude was caused by his frequenting a dancing saloon in the neighbourhood.'

    The same gentleman went on to describe some of the places of amusement:

    He concluded a long epistle with a plea:

    Another correspondent, under the pen name of 'Reform', cast aspersions upon the Globe Casino which he accused of being frequented by 'young men of the larrikin tribe', who discussed points as to partners in the dance 'in a most indecent manner.' The proprietor, Arthur F. Mills, took exception to the general tenor of both correspondents and said that 'it was detrimental to my character that such insinuations should be thrown out, as I know for a fact that only respectable young men and women visit our room.'

    Further correspondence followed, some defending and others deprecating the existence of such establishments. Upon a careful perusal of the latter I found that they might fairly be divided into two classes - the one objecting to the existence of dancing saloons as inimical to the proper training of the youth of the present generation, and the other protesting more particularly against the gross indecency and the wrongful temptations to young people of both sexes, which were said to arise from the establishment of the saloons.

    In what follows it must be understood that I do not attempt to deal in any way with the point raised by the former class of objectors. I do not propose to enter into any controversy as to whether public dancing saloons are not, under any circumstances, injurious to young people. My mission was carried out solely with a view of ascertaining whether there was a truth in the allegations that had already been made as to the improprieties which were supposed to be carried on at the saloons.

    With this object I paid several visits to those saloons that were open to the public, and also attempted, but unsuccessfully, to gain admission to one or two which, if reports were true, were merely dancing brothels. As to the latter I have little to say. At one place I was refused admission and at the other, although I and my companion from the detective office, knocked a great many times, no notice was taken.

    The room was lighted and the sound of music and of pattering feet showed, however, that dancing was going on within. There were no two opinions as to the desirability of closing places such as these. They were undoubtedly the cause of great evil. As to the women who attended these places, it could not be imagined that any of them were pure. Leaving those unsalutary places of resort I proceeded to visit the public dancing saloons - they were three in number.

    The first was the Globe Casino, situated in Victoria Square, which appeared to be the best controlled of the three; next, the Crystal Hall in Bent Street and, lastly, an unnamed saloon in Pitt Street. They were open to the public three or four nights a week, being on other days simply available to young men who were anxious to acquire a knowledge of the art of dancing. On these latter occasions, be it said, there is no harm done.

    The language made use of is not always beautifully chaste, but it seems to be an indomitable failing on the part of young Australians of the lower classes to make use of big oaths and unpleasant ejaculations every time there mouth is opened. It is fair to say that this sort of language was not permitted in the room, although, of course, it was too plainly audible outside the dancing room. It was, however, not into shortcomings of this kind that I was particularly desirous of enquiring.

    Taking the Crystal Hall in Bent Street, off the lower end of Rundle Street - We paid the modest entrance fee of one shilling apiece and were accommodated with seats on a form alongside a wall. One gentleman was beginning the first bars of a lively quadrille, accompanied by another on a fiddle, on which, to do him justice, he acquitted himself very well.

    Glancing around the saloon, we found that all the young men were on one side of the room. A rough lot, decidedly, with slouched hats on, trousers nautically tied at the knees, and wide open waistcoats. They were, for the most part, taciturn and gloomy while waiting to commence operations. An uncomfortable feeling appeared to prevail among them as soon as they entered the room. The loud talking and somewhat ribald conversation, which was carried on outside the hall, was instantaneously hushed on the young men entering the saloon.

    A somewhat peculiar arrangement prevailed as regards the feminine portion of those present. They were in a little room near the 'orchestra' from which they did not stir until warned by the music that a dance was about to commence. The young men then each slid to a place - it was a square dance - and thereupon the young girls issued from their place of concealment and placed themselves alongside of the young men.

    There was not, so far as I could discover, anything to regulate the choice of a partner. The dancing was rough and in some cases carried out with an attempt at extreme gracefulness which was very amusing to an unprejudiced observer. They all appeared to enjoy themselves amazingly, however, and when the quadrille, which was, we were informed by one of the gentlemen present, danced in the 'Adelaide' style, and not in the superior manner prevalent in Melbourne, the whole of the assembly appeared to be on very good terms.

    The partners hugged each other energetically and vigorously and it seemed to be absolutely necessary for each couple of about an equal height to dance with their heads closely touching. This, however, appeared to be done in pursuance of some fashionable dictate and was not regarded by any of the young girls - some of them presented a very decent appearance - in the light of familiarity.

    One or two people were smoking in and about the room - a proceeding for which they may, perhaps, be pardoned when we state that one of the proprietors was ostentatiously smoking a cigar in the saloon. As to the girls - of whom we had a good view by this time - the first thing that struck us was that they were comparatively children, who would undoubtedly have been better at home.

    Some did not seem, unless their appearances very much belied them, to be much more than 14 or 15 years of age. The major part of them were, we were informed, girls belonging to the factory class. A few were servant girls, while the balance were girls of no particular calling. I asked a decent-looking young fellow standing near me what character these girls had? 'They are all a decent lot', was his answer. I next asked him as to whether the saloon was properly conducted and he said that, 'They sometimes get a little bit wild if they stay on late.' This I could understand easily.

    By others, outside the building, I was told that various scandalous practices were indulged in after the couples left the saloon, especially if it were late. While I see no reason to doubt that this statement is in some degree correct, I feel bound to say that on returning later to the saloon, and remaining near the premises, I saw nothing to which much exception could be taken. Among some of the girls and boys there was rough larking carried on, but not of a bad character.

    I went on from here to the saloon in Pitt Street, off Victoria Square. It was, we were told, a private night and we were turned out, politely enough, but not until we had been able to get a good view of the interior of the room. Much the same thing was noticeable here as at the other saloon, with this exception, that there was not at the time we visited the place any smoking going on in the room.

    The girls and young men were apparently of the same class as those present at the Crystal Hall. On coming away from here we met a policeman who said that on some occasions very evil practices were current among a few of those who visited the room.

    I next paid a visit to the Globe Casino, which deserves a special notice. It was far and away the most respectable of all the saloons. The company consisted of well-dressed, sober young men and of nattily-attired young women, all of modest appearance. The dances were all conducted with decorum and there was no levity of manner or speech. There was a little fun, but of a perfectly harmless character.

    Dissension in the 1890s

    In 1892 the subject was raised in the public forum for a brief period and two letters were indicative of the prevailing disparity of opinions. Firstly, a 'crusader' aired his thoughts:

    In a spirited response, R. McCarthy of Wakefield Street said:

    Conclusion

    As I conclude this essay in 1902 the debate still rages within our community and I leave you, the reader, with a random sample of opinions, for and against the alleged evils perpetrated by the working class within the precincts of dancing saloons:

    Finally, I reproduce portion of letters written by Agnes A. Milne of Hindmarsh and a 'working woman' which reflect many of my thoughts on the subject of dancing:

    A correspondent to the local press made some pertinent comments under the heading 'The Badness of Goody-Goodness':

    Agnes Milne continued: 'The only difference is that one does it openly and the other under the cloak of respectability and religion. I hold no brief for hotels or dancing, seeing that I have been a local president of the WCTU... and therefore would not think of going against my principles, but here is the point.

    'This stream of foulness and evil must come from some source. There must be a fountain head. Cleanse the fountain and the stream will be pure, but it is impossible to cleanse the stream while supply is constantly being given them from the fountain head. Stop this supply and you will at once stop, to a large extent, the immorality, especially among our young people.

    'Let employers see to it that the cause does not lie with them. Let a living wage be given and that will help in a large measure... A gentleman, whose reputation is above suspicion, tells me that no respectable man can walk down Gawler Place without being accosted by more than one girl, and there are scores of such; but not from the dancing saloons.

    'Now come the question - Why should the rich try to deprive the poor of perhaps the only enjoyment they get through the week? These rich people go to their parties and balls two or three nights in the week, but, oh, it is a crime if the poorer people do such things...

    'I question very much if the ladies of the Women's National Council care very much how the poor live but, of course, you know they must do something to keep in line with other philanthropists the wide world over. I trust that this correspondence will touch some woman's heart, so that she may ask herself the question - Am I my sister's keeper?'

    The 'working woman' said: 'It is odd that the National Council of Women... should have made its first effort in the wrong direction... it should be a forceful association, but it tilts at windmills. There are many crying evils in Adelaide which need to be fought, but these are left unheeded, and the dancing saloon, the existence of which as an evil seems hardly proven, is attacked. Would it be fair to suggest that in this there is no vested interest involved?

    'Should the NCW attempt to help the sweated workers in factories, shops and domestic service, there would be at once an outcry. The sacred rights of property must be safeguarded. The NCW cannot touch politics, it is said. It is supposed to be educative, but so far we have learnt nothing except perhaps to distrust the wisdom of women folk and their vague assertions.

    'There is a petition going about which asserts that "much of the immorality of Adelaide is distinctly traceable to dancing saloons." This statement is one of the vague assertions referred to, which requires proof before one can sign the request that all these halls and places where dancing is carried on shall be under inspection... The causes of immorality are far deeper down than dancing classes, which it appears the so-called saloons mostly are.

    'Our amusements reflect us. If our standard of conduct and manners were high our dances and other amusements would necessarily be pure and refined. What of the balls of the classes where the wine flows and there is luxurious food, sensual music and decollete women. At the dances of the people there is no wine; the girls wear high frocks; the fare is plain - sandwiches, cake and coffee. There is none of the philandering in corridors and verandahs such as obtains in the upper circles.

    'But though the factory girl would not be seen in the low bodice of her rich sisters, she is not always, alas, any more refined than they are. What chance has she of learning beautiful manners and refined and courteous ways. Could not some method of social intercourse be discovered where our girls and boys could learn courtesy and true gentlehood.

    'There are girls' clubs and the YWCA, but these all hedge off the girls. The natural God-given human life keeps the sexes together for mutual help. Why not cooperate with nature instead of, as seems invariably the case, trying to do better and failing in the attempt?

    'No decent home life is possible in the wretched houses of the under-paid worker. The only social life possible for the boys and girls is the life of the street and the public house, and so long as we allow this to be the case, so long will we have the difficulty, expense and disgrace of immorality crime and disease. There is much work for the National Council of Women to do if it be ready, but it seems to me that although the work is there the workers are lacking.'

    Also see Adelaide - Clubs

    General Notes

    "Dancing in South Australia" is discussed in the South Australian Record,
    15 January 1840, page 15c.

    Mr Jacobs advertised his first "Monthly Ball" in the South Australian,
    12 February 1847, page 3d.

    A Bachelors' Ball is reported in the Chronicle,
    17 September 1859, page 5c.

    "The Colonists' Ball" is described in the Register,
    18 February 1869, page 2e.

    "The Dancing Saloons and Night Houses" is in the Observer,
    2 July 1870, page 7e-14f,
    "The Dancing Saloons of Adelaide" in the Chronicle,
    5 November 1881, page 11a as "schools as prostitution for girls..."; also see
    Advertiser,
    21 and 24 September 1881, pages 7f and 6e,
    25 October 1881, page 6a.

    "Mrs Grundy in South Australia" is in the Register,
    14 May 1877, page 4f.

    "Dancing and Calisthenics" is in the Register,
    28 November 1881, page 5b,
    12 December 1881, page 5c.

    A juvenile fancy-dress ball is reported in the Observer,
    4 November 1882, page 31b.
    Sketches are in the Pictorial Australian in
    September 1887, page 129,
    November 1888, page 110.

    Some pitfalls of dancing saloons are discussed in the Register,
    26 and 28 April 1892, pages 6c and 7f.

    "The New Dance of Death" is in the Register,
    22 September 1894, page 7f.

    "Dancing in a Sunday School" is in the Register,
    20 April 1895, page 5c,
    Observer,
    27 April 1895, page 30c.

    "The Dancing of Today - Is It In Decadence?" is in the Express,
    30 April 1898, page 5e.

    An editorial headed "Is Dancing Wrong?" is in the Advertiser,
    9 June 1899, page 4h:

    The "pros and cons" of this activity are the subject of lively debate in the Register,
    3, 14, 20, 25 and 29 October 1902, pages 8d, 6g, 6h, 3g and 2g,
    1 and 8 November 1902, pages 8c and 8i:

    "A Dance Which Hypnotizes [Two-Step]" is in the Register,
    14 May 1904, page 3g.

    "Dancing Girls" is in the Register,
    30 August 1904, page 4e.

    A "Crusade Against Dancing Saloons" is in the Advertiser,
    30 August 1904, page 4f.

    "Dancing Saloons - Do They Lead to Immorality?" is in the Advertiser,
    25 November 1905, page 13g,
    2 December 1905, page 12d.

    Also see Register,
    25 November 1905, page 6c-f,
    "Young Men and Dancing" on
    8 May 1906, page 4h,
    15 May 1909, page 8c:

    "Young Men and Dancing" is in the Register,
    8 May 1906, page 4h.

    Photographs of "some of the season's debutantes" are in the Observer,
    23 June 1906, pages 29-30,
    at a University ball on
    22 June 1912, page 29.

    "Dancing Condemned" is in the Register,
    1 and 7 August 1906, pages 4h and 8i.

    "Dancing and Divorce" is in the Observer,
    3 August 1907, page 53c.

    "Dancing" is in the Register,
    15 May 1909, page 8c.

    "America's Crazy Dances" is in the Saturday Mail,
    4 May 1912, page 1f.

    "Is Modern Dancing Indecent?" is in the Advertiser,
    28 June 1913, page 7a,
    "Is Dancing Wrong?" on
    10 September 1913, page 22a,
    "The New Dances" in the Express,
    13 September 1913, page 11c.

    Photographs of "Floral Sets" at a District Nurses' Ball are in The Critic,
    17 July 1912, page 11,
    "Kismet Ball Groups" on
    23 July 1913, page 12.

    "The Tango - How to Dance the New Step" is in The Mail,
    13 December 1913, page 13f; also see
    10 January 1914, page 8c.
    "Troublesome Tango" is in the Register,
    7 January 1914, page 12e,
    "Tivoli Tango Team" is in the Register,
    2 and 7 March 1914, pages 6h and 14h,
    "Tango Dancing Denounced" is in the Register,
    16, 17, 18, 21, 23 and 25 March 1914, pages 13c, 8g, 4g, 11g, 7h and 6d,
    29 May 1914, page 13d.

    "Dancing and Decency" is in the Register,
    4 December 1913, page 6d.

    "Dancing as a Fine Art" is in the Register,
    16 January 1915, page 8d.

    "Dancing and the War" is in the Register,
    7 May 1915, page 10e.

    "Young Folk and Dancing" is in the Register,
    11 June 1918, page 6g.

    "Dancing and Religion" is in the Register,
    30 December 1919, page 7g.

    A correspondent complains about "Immodest Dancing" in the Advertiser,
    12 October 1921, page 11d:

    "Off to the Dance - Adelaide in Grip of Jazz" is in The Mail,
    3 June 1922, page 13c.

    "Modern Babylon" is in the Advertiser,
    23 August 1922, pages 7d and 12h.

    "The Light Fantastic" is in the Register,
    9 September 1922, page 5b,
    "These New Dances" on
    23 February 1923, page 10e,
    "Is the Dance Deteriorating" on
    26 June 1923, page 7d.

    "Evolution of the Modern Dance" is in The Mail,
    5 May 1923, page 20c,
    "Modern Dancing" in The News,
    14 March 1925, page 7d.

    Biographical details of Miss Minna Bauer, dance demonstrator, are in the Register,
    19 February 1924, page 6d.

    "Lure of the Dance" is in the Observer,
    14 March 1925, page 48a-60a,
    Register,
    6 and 7 March 1925, pages 9d and 9g:

    "Methodism and Dancing" is in the Register,
    23 March 1925, page 12d,
    "Methodists and Dancing" is in the Advertiser,
    30 June 1925, page 18b:

    "Ban on Dancing - Decision of Methodists" is in the Register,
    1 June 1926, page 9h:

    "Dancing and Methodism" is in the Observer,
    16 March 1929, page 44e:

    Also see Religion - Methodists

    "Dances Criticised" is in The News,
    3 February 1926, page 4d.

    "Dangers of Dancing - Highland Fling Exempted" is in the Register,
    18 March 1926, page 9f,
    "Youth and the Church - Dancing and Sunday Sport" on
    19 March 1926, page 9g.

    "Lure of the Dance - Miss Wanda Edwards Home Again" is in the Register,
    20 April 1926, page 5c.

    "Old-Time Dances" is in the Advertiser,
    22 April 1926, page 19b.

    "The Charleston Critically Analysed" is in The Mail,
    15 May 1926, page 17b; also see
    5 June 1926, page 14e.

    "Middle Age Reflections" on dancing is in the Register,
    26 July 1926, page 3g:

    "Conduct at Dances" is in The News,
    27 September 1926, page 10e:

    "A Clergyman on Dancing" is in the Register,
    29 September 1926, page 8f.

    "Cleaning Up the Dance Halls" is in the Observer,
    4 October 1926, page 63a.

    An editorial on "dance parties" and other social activities is in the Advertiser,
    15 November 1926, page 8g under the heading "Make Sure of Your Facts".

    "How to Yale" is in The Mail,
    6 August 1927, page 17e.

    "The Floating Palais" is in the Advertiser,
    11 August 1927, page 11e,
    28 November 1927, page 8b;
    a photograph is in the Chronicle,
    22 November 1924, page 38,
    of its demolition on
    16 May 1929, page 58.

    "The Movie Ball" is in the Advertiser,
    2 September 1927, page 15d.
    Also see Moving Pictures

    "To Attempt Dancing Record" is in the Advertiser,
    10 December 1927, page 14a,
    "Continuous Dancing - New World Record" in the Observer,
    31 December 1927, page 14b,
    7 January 1928, page 17e.

    A series of articles entitled "Ballroom Topics" commence in The Mail,
    5 May 1928. page 14b.

    "Modern Dances" is in the Advertiser,
    14 August 1928, page 18e.

    "Adelaide Dancing - Graceful and Dignified" is in The News,
    8 November 1928, page 10d.

    "Ballroom Dancing - South Australian Champions Chosen" is in the Advertiser,
    25 October 1929, page 30h.

    "Dancing and Drink" is in the Advertiser,
    9 May 1931, page 16b,
    "Liquor at Dances" in The News,
    19 September 1931, page 1d,
    "Stopping Drink at Dances" on
    1 March 1935, page 1f,
    "Drinking at Dances" on
    8 August 1935, page 1g.
    Also see Temperance & Allied Matters

    Photographs of debutantes at a University ball are in the Chronicle,
    9, 16 and 23 July 1931, pages 31,
    11 July 1935, page 33,
    at a Catholic ball on
    21 and 28 June 1934, pages 35 and 38,
    20 and 27 June 1935, pages 37 and 36,
    25 June 1936, page 34.

    An article on "marathon" dancing is in The News,
    5 January 1932, page 4d.

    "Dancers Await Something New" is in The News,
    25 February 1932, page 12d.

    "How Dancing Makes Money Dance" is in The News,
    8 May 1934, page 4e.

    "Brilliant Dances in Honor of Royalty" is in The News,
    24 September 1934, page 4e.

    "Dance Liquor Ban" is in The News,
    6 November 1937, page 1b,
    "Dance Hall Liquor Bill Rejected" is in the Advertiser,
    25 November 1937, page 19c.

    Information on the Osborne Hall Ballroom is in The Mail,
    17 April 1937, page 19f.

    Social Matters - Choose again