County Balls are principally composed of a series of large parties brought by different ladies in the neighbourhood where the ball is held; but there are two classes of county balls, balls which are held in large and populous towns and attended by the principal residents of the towns, with only a small sprinkling of the county aristocracy and county gentry.
There are also Hunt Balls and annual Charity Balls which take place between October and February, and which are an amalgamation of both classes of balls.
The neighbourhood where a ball is held is a sufficient indication as to whether it is likely to be a smart one or not.
As a rule the leading ladies of a county lend their names as patronesses and supporters of a charity ball, although it by no means follows that they will personally attend it; but a long list of influential patronesses materially increases the sale of tickets, which is the result to be achieved.
A large attendance is not the primary object of a county ball, as the sum raised by the sale of tickets is only required to defray the expenses of the ball, although these are sometimes considerable, especially when the decorations are elaborate, and the arrangements on a grand scale, in which case there is not seldom a deficiency rather than a surplus, which deficiency is defrayed by the stewards themselves.
To ensure a good ball considerable unanimity on the part of the county ladies is demanded, and they usually meet and consult together previous to fixing the date of the ball, to take into consideration the fixtures of neighbouring county balls, and so avoid the possibility of the said balls clashing with their own county ball, and also with a view of perhaps attracting the house parties of their more distant neighbours to swell the numbers at their own ball.
House parties invited for a ball vary from ten to twenty-five, as the accommodation of a house admits.
It is not the province of the stewards of a ball to find partners for either ladies or gentlemen, and therefore, if a lady does not form one of a large party, but merely attends a county ball with a relative or friend, and has not a large acquaintance amongst these present, she has very little chance of obtaining partners.
Young ladies do not now return to their chaperons after each dance, or after they have been to the tea-room.
A gentleman should offer his arm to his partner at the conclusion of a dance to conduct her to the tea-room. In round dances, it is customary to take frequent pauses, and not to race round the ball-room until the music ceases.