In honor of the freezing cold winter weather, I'm returning to H. Layton Walker's Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912) for a pair of cotillion figures themed around the then-current news of the attempts by explorers Robert Peary and Frederick Cook to be the first to reach the North Pole in 1908-1909. At the time Walker's book was written, there was a lively conflict going on between the two men as to who could claim the polar laurels. Since then, both accounts have been discredited to varying degrees, but it seems to still be something of an ongoing debate among scholars. There's an interesting account of the two expeditions and the contemporary debate at the Smithsonian Magazine website, which I recommend for anyone wanting more historical perspective.
What interests me about these figures, along with generally appreciating ballroom silliness, is how, as with Admiral Dewey and the Spanish-American War, current events were turned into ballroom party games. It's also worth noting for general timeline purposes that, in a book published in 1912, so many of the figures specify the use of the two-step, which was then on the verge of being swept away by the new dances of the 1910s.
On to the figures!
The first makes it look like Walker was a Peary supporter, which is reasonable enough in the context of his era; Cook's claim was more aggressively discredited in the short term.
North Pole Figure
Divide the assembly into two sections. Have them take sides, one-half of them to be Dr. Cook followers and the other half to be Peary followers. The North Pole should be placed in the centre of the hall with a rope tied around it. When you blindfold your explorers, and have them placed at the ends of the hall, you must be sure to see that Dr. Cook is turned around twice, and then turned so as to face the end of the hall, while Peary is turned so as to face pole. The rope is tied around the pole, so as to move it in case Dr. Cook gets too close to it. Be sure and have Peary take the pole with him when he finds it so that it will be impossible for the doctor to find it. All two-step.
As far as I can tell, this isn't meant to be a complete free-for-all with everyone blindfolded and wandering around the ballroom looking for the North Pole, though that would be pretty funny to watch. It's not really even a dance figure, just an entertainment for the guests during a pause between dancing. The needed props are two blindfolds, a pole (with a base so it stands), and a rope.
I would interpret the instructions as being for two gentlemen only, representing Cook and Peary, to be blindfolded and wander around the room looking for the "Pole". The two halves of the group each cheer on their favored explorer, and someone uses a rope to pull the "Pole" around to make sure "Cook" can never win. The comic picture of the two gentlemen blundering around takes a slightly nastier edge at the end when, after "Peary" succeeds and takes the pole away, "Cook" is left (briefly, one hopes) to wander alone to general laughter. Mildly humiliating elements are typical of these sort of games, but one hopes that it's all in good fun, because then everyone takes a partner and two-steps.
The second figure also lacks a mixer element or integral dancing, but at least it's more generally participatory:
Trip to the North Pole.
All couples up and two-step. Signal from leader all march past favor table, each receives a small Japanese paper American flag. The leader then announces that the North Pole is located some place in the ball room. Each person is to write their name on the flag and place it where they think the North Pole is located. The leader will have a wireless telegram (form described below) supposed to come from Commodore Peary, which will be opened and read by the leader of the orchestra or some disinterested party. The person who has placed their flag nearest the point described in the telegram will receive the prize. All dance.
Steamship Roosevelt, latitude 84, by wireless telegraph, via Cape Race, Nova Scotia, June 9, 1909: The North Pole is located in the centre of the window sill in the northwest corner of hall.
COMMODORE PEARY.
Once again, it's a party game as a break between dances, but this one requires a large number of props: as many small paper flags (with bases, so they stand?), a fake telegram, and some sort of prize. Presumably, whoever prepared the telegram will not be playing the game.
The sequence is simple: two-step, march past a table for each dancer to pick up a flag, everyone places their flag somewhere in the room, the "telegram" is opened, and whoever's flag is closest wins the prize. And then they all get back to dancing.
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Neither of these figures is particularly dance-intensive, so what really interests me about them is the hint they offer to today's ball planners that, if working with a specific date or year, or a particularly specific theme, it would be clever practice to make any cotillion figures very, very topical by using current events of whatever time the ball is set in. This might require some advance education for one's ballgoers to make it meaningful -- I had to look up the details of the Peary/Cook controversy myself, to see what the fuss was about -- but if the dancers are willing to make a little effort, this sort of thing can be a big plus in establishing the proper period ambiance for a ball.
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