La Goulou and 'a fine big girl'

I went to the new Bal Tabarin last night. I think it is the only ball in Paris that is open every night.. I saw the famous ‘La Goulou’ there perched on a high chair at the bar; a round, vulgar, rather merry face, looking more like a bonne than a dancer and a dompteuse des lions [lion tamer]. With an expenditure of 7 francs on drinks with another ex-dancer, I learned something of the life of the paid dancers in public balls. They get 4 francs a night, et elles peuvent trouver de bons amis [and they can find good friends] said the ex-dancer, whose younger sister, a fine big girl with a clear complexion, was dancing the quadrille réaliste on the floor. The sister, I was told, made 5,000 francs besides her pay as a dancer during the short season at the Jardin de Paris last year.

                                                                 Journals of Arnold Bnnett - Tuesday, February 14th 1905