The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1870-10-21

The Flynt dress making case which, is on
trial before a court in Boston for the second
time exposes some of the ex!ortions practiced
by fashionable dress-makers upon their Gus
TONERS. We select something from the testi-
mony before the jury on Wednesday.
Mr.. N. B. Wiggin, dry goods dealer, was
called as an expert to testify as to the value OF
goods in the dresses. The 10 2 yards of silk
charged at $146 was worth not over S., so in
the spring of 1869. The II yards of hernani
charged at 500 were not worth over $50 or
sos. The tea-rose silk charged at SIS was
not worth more than halt that. The purple
silk, 16 yards, at $4,50a yard, was not worth
over So. We had in the spring plenty of the
hermann here shown, double width.
The Bonne silk here shown is nice silk,
but not the incest. DO not think the tea-rose
silk here shown stands so high in the market
as some other colors of the same fabric. Sew
eral OF the silks are not Of the very highest
cost.
Mr.. John Charles States, of 25 Winter street
whose business is pnking, etc, was called.
He was asked to look at the purple silk dress,
the piDkins tor which was charged in the bill
at $15,75. He SAID that this was done with a
plnkins iron and not cut out by hand. He
charged three cents yard Tor pinking. The
195 yards OF pinking on Ibis dress ought not
to cost more than So or 81. The basting and
pinking would not occupy much more than a
couple of hours. There is but little addition
al work.
Weston HI. Lewis, was called. He is a
member of the house of Lewis, Brown & Co.
Summer street. He was shown the laces on
a black silk dress or waist. First, his atter-
| tion vas called TO the broad lace,-charged in
| the bill as 12 yards, 1883. Not a great
while fIic VIC hrouubt 10 tor
and l was asked the value of this lace;
| stated it at $3.50 yard, wholesale. The
counsel then accompanied me to G. G. Hol-
brooks store, and we saw MIR. Lewis N. Tuck.
| er, wac fixel the retail price at "a to 81 25.
The attention of witness was next directed
| to the narrow lace, which was charged in the
bill at S23 tor 6 2-3 yards. Mr.. Lewis fixed
the value OF it at 81 yard. The broad lace
is a pretty pattern, but It is not remarkable
Witness said he was in the habit of marking
| the sale price on goods and was we'll acquaint.
| ed with these articles.
Mr.. w. Il. Storms, the Summer-street dry
goods dealer, Mr. Robert Glchrist of the firm
| ol Churchill, Watson & Co., and other prOmi-
nent men in the dry-ooods and dress-goods
trade. were called and testified to great dis
! parity between the charges made for some OF
the articles in the bill and their real worth.
Mr.. Storms, among other thi.gs, testified
that the purple cloth (1G yards at $72) was
worth $3.50 to $2.75; so did Mr.. Henry Ad
ans of Shepard, Norwell & Co. Mr. Gichrist
fixed it at S2.75 to SO.
Mr.. Adams thought the 2S-inch tea rose
silk was worth 81 a yard (charoed SIS
yard). Hermann, plenty in spring, 1869, h,
fixed at S5 (chareed at $7.50). Had dealt il
Silks all his life. Did not think the articl,
here called Bonne was that silk thought it tC
be a Lyons silk.
Mr.. Storms set the hermann at 81 to $3.50
yard.
Mrs. II. S. Smith, of 25 Winter street. fo,
seven years dressmaker, tour years of it il
Ler present place. My work is only of the
best. Have % employees now. Dresses &C
all over the country, as far even as San
Francisco. To make the lace Overskirt and
ficnu here shown, would be worth $6 (charged
SIS in the billy. Would make the rose lor
morning dress for $l3, Charged $25). The
black silk long dress, to make and trim, was
worth $25 Charged 500; the waist was
stitched by machine.
The black silk suit, to cut, fit and make the
trimmings, and make the Dress was worth SAC
(charged S203). This is is in view of the
TACT that the scallops are double. I do no.
know any way of cutting scaops except by
| marking them out. make Just as good work
as any of that here shown.
To m Ike, trim and finish the poplin suit, /
should have been willing, last year, to have
charged $40, charged in bill $45 and SIG, in
al $l6l,) There is machine work in both
dresses. There is nothing peculiar about
either. Have made suits OF an equal amount
/ of work.
The blue cambric should have been made
for SIS charged at $45.) The seersuckei
suit SIS (charged at 500. The white piqut
be made and trimmed for SIS to SIS
| Charged at $55). And so on with the rest o
the charges.