Page:The Great Harry Thaw Case.djvu/55

 *ever, because of lack of tangible evidence.

One incident that contributed much to White's bad reputation and which illustrates forcibly his view of a "good time" was the "Girl-in-a-Pie" affair, which was later to come out in evidence at the trial.

The famed "Girl-in-the-Pie" dinner was given to several artists and men about town, with several notorious "fashionable" women in attendance. The spread cost $350 a plate.

At the approach of dawn, four negroes entered, bearing a huge pie, which they placed on the table. A faint stir was observed beneath the crust just as the orchestra struck up the air of the nursery jingle:

"Sing a song of sixpence, a pocket full of rye, Four-and-twenty blackbirds baked in a pie."

The pie was burst asunder, and from inside there emerged the beautiful figure of a young girl, clad in black gauze draperies. She turned her pretty childish face upon the astonished guests, and poised as a bird about to fly, while two dozen golden canaries, released by her hand, flew about the room.

Then, when the tableau was complete, a man forced his way to the side of the table and with a smile assisted the child to the floor. The man was Stanford White.

The young girl, a model, then 15 years old, lived with her mother, but on the night of the banquet she disappeared, and remained in hiding for two years. Efforts of the police to find her were unsuccessful.