Star.
London, England, 1829-12-30 00:00:00

HABERDASHERS.
-0.--

"0,

It is curious to trace the rise, progress, and decline of
scream branches of trade in say great and populous city ; but
ineee pink:slaty so ins mighty capital like use overgrown metro-
s; in some descriptions of trade, particularly those neatened
with lagory, the proems is for a time so slow as to be scarcely
perceplable, when suddenly some whim or caprice of fashion gives
sods is Impetus to It, as raises it to a state of prosperity at ono
:Me= beadier` or tgliteetresticat ankh—theaidttlizzze,
,or as they were anciently called,* " ldilainers," which appalls-
tiOn was given to them in conotapence of their dealing largely in
I wares imported immediately from Milan. That at present ag-
eless of traders. was Is die early part of unsnap of lain.
Mrmsearettly known in Leaden. tithe feign of her .
' Edward VI. there were not more than forty shops E=1113:O
this description of small want duelers In the capital. With the
glories of the Virgin Qteen's reigns however, trade both foreign
mod domestic, &ranked, fashion made rapid program' compared
with former days, and luzary followed close in bee traits. We have
already said, that in the reign of Edward, Elizabeth's brother, the
trade was scarcely known la Leaden, yet so rapidly did it human
within the spaced a quarter of a century, that we are told by
Stowe, that in 1580, " the whole street from !hoods:ea was
• crowded with them." These sawn are represented by the biota-
' rise as having presented a mom misadid and iniMeat oppeonmee.
—They were the mart for all the toys and idle@ • iMportoil from
abroad ; and we are told by an spriest teener, that abs all
of
goods in the vanity-fain was so tend.that nendrin of the
young and thoughtless were thereby to make Impend em-
Wresting purchases, to the IniaSy• tied @irises . disarm/meat of
their fortunes. A writer of thin days...a,* re the subject,
makes the following observation. when waft of these fashion
able repositories :—" I marvel," with the. mitt! la "rodeo " no
man taketh heed of it. what number of tales emaWkititet; from
berm& the seas. that we might either clean we, ie she make
them within oar Own realm, for which we either Fr/ loesdambie
treasure every year, or else ezehen ge substantial wares and neces-
saries for them, for which we might receive great suite
That large sums were spent with these dealers la *small wares
I may be assumed from the recorded fact, that In the' early part of
gh
OM reign of Elizabeth, for the' article of pins imported, up-
words of £60,000 a year was . Previous to the commune-
smog of Elizabeth's reign, the ladies used .to fasts* their
drams with points, or skewers thorns, Ste. the snaking of which
furnished a very lucrative broach of trade. Leos before the ez='
Oration of Elizabeth's reign, however. pins were made in this
country, end in the reign of James I. sO much • bed the JingSsit
Improved in this branch of manufacture, that theyincelled all their
foreign competitors in the production of this useful article of I
•
lady's toilet.
It is curious to notice the various articles la which the baber-
embers of the days we are speaking. of desk. Amos *eau
we may enumerate. swords, daggers, . bromine% aim, Ilpitibb
girdles, French cloths, Milan caps• glasses,
ins eartheisdais
tables. cards. balls, puppets. ink-herns,
pots, pins and points, luetk's.beils. sak-sellers,. spouse, halves, eat
tin dishes. The milliner. or hoberdasbers who lesbians& et *el
Royal Exchange, Immediately after its meekly hone the faro*
articles, also enumerated by Same as feeneloomyt of the sesolt•:
" They mild," says the bismoitia, " inisset • iiiiisresi seer
War, esouse-trappes, bird aloes. alkiiimphimefi, Mithettaf. mil
a 1 Jew s truatpes."
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