Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1873-10-16

very prominent ana useful church
member, and stated the case without
reserve. We'll, You see, said the pa
rent, Fanny never had any figure. |
shouldn't be surprised il the lacings
were drawn little too tight. Her
waist is naturally SO large that it is all
most impossible to make anything fit
genteely on her. How is your class
prospecting, Miss -? l hope you
are drawing many souls to Christi
----------. -
DRESSES FOR RENT.
A Woman Pr0nting BY her X now q dye
OF the tagaries OF her Sex.
From the New York Sun, October 81
"Ladies Dresses for Rent"
These words are placarded OH the
door Of 46S Sixth avenue. Tho build
ing commences with store. grows up
ward into residences. and is all new
ness and brown stone. The sign QUO
ted is on the door leading to the resi-
denccs. The writer read it and enter
cd. A carpetcd stairway and a hall
brought him to another door upon
which the inscription is repeated. A
rap brought out lady. She was un-
der thirty years old. above the average
in personal attractivencss. and well
dressed. She was "a lite surprised at
| male caller. A slight lifting of the
br0ws said SO.
"Will you walk in. sir? 2" and her
| lips assumed a business smile.
The writer entered a neatly furnish.
cd room, somewhat Uttered with dress
making. The lady moved chair to-
ward him, and sank gracefully into
| another. Then she laid one hand gen
tly over the other into her lap, inclined
her head coquettishly to one side, and
looked like apolite Interrogation point.
The visitor told her that the novelty of
her announcement had attracted his
attention, and that he would like to
talk with her about her unique bust
ness.
She needed no questioning, but soon
| showed herself good talker, as we'll
| as a woman OF refinement and cduca-
| ton.
81 am tle inventor Of this business"
she said. "If you know ANYTHING
about women you know that most or
them have not only passion for dress,
but weakness for novelty. The wo-
man with one calico dress wants two,
aud the woman with ten silk ones
wants eleven. Another thing women
don't like to wear the same dress to
| moro than one or two parties or balls
in one season. Now, it is upon these
female characteristics that thrive
You would naturally guess that only
poor ladies hire dresses: but that ism I
so. Rather the reverse is the case. A
good many Of my callers ride within a
few blocks of here in their carriages,
and walk the balance of the way. 1t
should not do, bless you, to be caught
hiring dress: but can assure you
that many borrowed one is worn at
fashionable gatherings. Sometimes,
too, a lady from out Of town wants to
60 to a party or to the opera. She has
| only travelling dress with her, and
borrowed tinery is her only recourse.
The business, however, is not entirely
confined to renting party dresses
+, There is occasionally call for street
dress, sometimes by shop-girl who
| wants TO indulge in an afternoon walk
on Broadway. Once in a while an &C.
iress suddenly called upon to play o
part out of her line or for desire for
u greater variety than her wardrobe
affords, rents q dress for week; but
they usually want dresses that are two
snowy, or TOO peculiar, or pronounced
in color and make up for my business.
GLOW is that? Well, i'll tell you.-
II would half kill a lady to be caught
wearing hired dress. To protect
them against such terrible catastro-
phe must alter the appearance of
dress every time it is worn. So you
see the colors must not be too odd nor
the styles too peculiar. Women beat
the dickens for remembering what
other women wear, but by little in
gcnuity manage TO disguise my goods
so that they can't be recognized. AsI
have said, ] use cOlOrs that are not too
odd. alter the trimming, too, every
time it is worn. A slight change in
this respect is enough to destroy the
identity. OF course, if you saw a
dress one night with one kind Of trim
ming and the next night with another
kind, and worn by different lady in
a different gathering, you would not be
apt to recognize it simply because the
cut and color were tue same. Besides,
! usually have two waists for each
skirt, so rs TO be able to fit different
sized ladies, and these are not cut in
the same style. Here, for instance, is
a purple silk skirt and two waists
One is low neckcd and very short
sleeyed. That is large enough for
tolerably plump lady. The other is
for slender form, and is only cut out
square in the neck, and the sleeves are
long. Naturally the plump ones want
the first kind, and the slender ones the
other. If all my patrons would grow
of a size il would save a vast deal of
trouble.
What do charge well, from So to
Us for party dresses, and less for street
dresses. If they get spotted, torn. or
damaged beyond reasonable amount
Of wear, charge for that. You sec
nice dress is an easy thing TO spoil.
A spilled cup of coffee, or big grease
spot, and it is gone; but have an adj
vantage that the drcsscoat renter has
nit can make over my damaged
goods, aud often turn them out rs good
as new again. Yet, with all the expe-
dicnts, nice dress is done for in about
one season, so yOu sec the profit isn't
so great after all, when yon consider
the constant work of altering and re.
trimming. It's awfully worrysome,
too. Women are SO particular. A
dress never exactly suits, of course. and
the patience OF Job is needed to please
them.
What security do ] have against
losing the dress? Well if the lady
gives her name and address, ! insist
OH sending the dress home for her,
That gives me an opportunity to learn
whether she has given her right name,
aud il she has, why that is security
enough. l never ask any more ques-
tons than ] can help, and l seldom
know where the dresses are worn I'M
less thcy volunteer the information =
Now, here is a white silk that was hired
last week by girl who had been in
vited to fashionable wedding. She
was young and pretty, and imagined
that she was a poor relation Of the