Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1863-11-11
From the Chicago Post.
AMONG THE MILLINERS S.

Beau Haokett as Fashion Reporter.
was fowling in the marshes of Calumet
when received your note | was preying
rrmOrseiesSly upon the feathered tribe gener-
auy. with double barreied shot gun. Ny
emmunitioa was about exhausted. / had
started with quart bottle full of powder in
nv breast pocket, but that was all gone ex-
ccpt a sssnit.'' Ny shot pouch almost
empty, too, but did not care for that. A
man can hunt we'll enough without shot if he
only has plenty of powder-the kind that
flies to the head.
Your message arrived in good time to be
needed. had just got a splendid duck-by
falling off log into 4 stream of muddy water.
felt so much elated by my success that
was ready to quit. Only a few hours previous
to that had slain dozen of the plumpest
ducks | ever saw. Before | had time to col
lect them together the owner appeared upon
the field of carnage, and informed me that
thew were his ducks, and were not wild, and
never had been. The owners name was Drake.
You can imagine how | felt when | learned
that my ducks were all brakes. | gave them
up like a reasonable man, and charged him
nothing tor killing them. | can be generous
whenever | want to.
After so many repeated successes it is not
strange that felt ready to leave the field. |
read the cabalistic line of your message,
.scome up and do the openings" [ wanted
to come bad enough, but had no idea what
the missive neant. There are so many
OPENINGS in the world, many things that
can be opened. There are letters, for in
stance; ; letters that belong to you and letters
that DON'T and there is champagne that can
he opened so can ink bottles, so can bank,
50 can oysters (cdH oysters). When L arrived
at oysters l stopped awhile, and it occurred to
Inc that had caught your idea. Somebody
was going to open a can of oysters (the FIRST of
the season, may beg, and you wanted me to re-
port the affair. Accordingly | came to the |
city in great haste, my speed being accelera- !
ted by knowledge of the fact that my pow
der was all gone, aud there is no good powder
outside of Chicago. | was disappointed, not
dislgrecably, however. when / was Informed
that the grand season of opening millinery
and straw goods had arrived, and that was
wanted to make tour of Lake street, and |
make an article on the tall fashions.
felt cOmplimeutcd when was told that |
was the man fol the position, because had a /
more intimate acquaintance with miliners, |
and could get information from the fair sex
better than anybody else. | am susceptible
Of fattery, little, and | felt complimrnted,
hut mistrusted my ability. | have not had
much experience IN reporting. | wrote local
items for three days on country newspaper
six years ago, and some OF them are going the
rounds Of the press yet. / ought to have had
them copyrighted for they are never credited
ever wrOte-and which is reproduced in the
papers every mouth or two. Ii is pretty good
and will give you an inkiing of my style:
s'AcCuDENr.-Y Yesterday a team attached to
wagon rushed madly down one of our prin-
cipal streets a distance OF mile or two, and
were only prevented from running away by a
gentleman who. at tue hazard of his life
seized them by the reins and stopped them.
We are fearfully and wonderfully made.''
Ityou hear of anybody tnat wants to engage
a man to write that sort of items all the time
wish YOU would let me know it.
l commenced at the foot of Lake street to
do the fashions. l went through the great
Union depot from one end to the other and I
up stairs and down, but | could find no mil
inery store there. l then struck out boldly
up Lake street, and came to large house
nearly opposite large house on the opposite
Sdc OF the street. | am thus precise in Civ ,
ing localities that the public may know where :
The best millinery store is TO be found. \ re- (
hi'le gentleman, to whom truth is greater !
stranger than fiction, told me that the second ,
story Of the large house on the opposite side ,
oi The street was bonnet aud straw goods z
establishment. That was the information / :
was looking for, and bounded up stairs :
Like wild gazelle,''
!, may be allowed to institute comparison. +
~ this time was absorbed in deep medta- |
ION thinking how | should begin my article, T
anu whether | should puff anybody. | was =
distracted. think, and sailed up the stair r
way with my body bent forward about nineteen
gesFees from the perpendicular, pencil un- .
+eL my arm and a reporters book over my T
''sal ear. | reached the head of the stairs q
SyllaenIy inasmuch as | was going very rapid q
~ ana, as a consequence Of my distracted :
ness or something else, l drove my head +
f.uIip into bonnet that the proprietress was :
"o"lng TO a customer. | was terribly
..Ish.ened, and tried to stammcr an apology,
out il was no 20.
lhe pFoprietress looked reaping machines $
rL, NE threw my pencil down and begged D
t'auoh Tor smoking in her presence, thinking b
=, WAS was cigar. Told her l hoped | hadn't o
+5sIed anything, and she smiled a little and Il
~ ~ hadn't. Then ! felt better. and told Y
~ was reporter. Then she looked mlder n
''s ever and said, ssOh, indeed 20 and i'm a
i-a1i.1.ely aiterward she became insufferably
Iiliiss,'iVe, asked me volley of incompre-
r;,,s'oe r;r" questions, and stared at me all the O.
j., as though she was counting the plaits n
cbai5 SHrt rufiies, or the links in my watch II
AMI; OF the briliants in my breastpin, or II
!,,iIhg else you like. .,
assas are You long hand or short hand 20 she -
,n,e'her," said |; ssI am new hand, and n
got.n ''Ne the business, as far as Eve
P'opFletress conducted me through long W