The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-03-10

THE new spring woolens are the first
importations displayed. These are soft
and yielding, and, though OF pure wool,
have scarcely more weight than the
sheerest cambria. The greater number
are self-colored in the small neat figures
that have been so fashionable during the
winter, such as armures, basket-woven
designs, raised checks and blocks, stripes
with Quadrille bars raised upon them,
matelasse, and damask figures with open
lace like meshes woven around them.
Summer camel's hair, cashmere and other
twilled stuffs are shown, but diagOnals
are no longer novelties, and the small
figures will have the preference. EX
perienced merchants say that gray will
be more worn than it has been since
brown replaced it two years ago, and
that fawn, steel and drab shades will be
popular; also that the fancy for myrtle
green and navy blue will continue,
especially when these colors are COM
bined with white in tiny checks smaller
| than pin heads, and in various Oriental
combinations both of figures and colors.
De beges are no longer plain or mere
ly twilled, but are imported in the styl
ish small figures, armures, stripes, checks
and matelasse patterns in shaded gray
or brown. Raised irregular squares are
seen in de bege stuffs, and the fine cash
mere de bege with thick twill is pro-
vided in abundance in the blue steel
shades that were so difficult to find last
summer. These, will be chosen for the
first spring suits, and will be used as
travelling and morning dresses all through
the summer.
Checked woolens will be worn again,
but the best qualities will be finer even
than pin-head checks, because these very
fine checks cannot be copied by domestic
manufacturers. These will be chosen in
myrtle green and white, ink blue with
white, brown on blue, brown with white,
gold on brown, and Of course black with
white. These remain in favor for misses
and young girls, and will be displayed
in both double and single widths. There
are also checked stripes with solid stripes
between; thus cardinal checks on blue
with solid blue stripes between, or else
brown, cardinal and white are the colors.
The armure stripes are also very neat,
and there are stripes of two shades of
| brown or blue, with odd quaint dashes
of color in fancy.raised threads, making
strangely knotted grounds
The rough Knickerbocker threads
raised above surfaces of another color
are shown in various fine wooden stutfs.
These come in stripes, bars and plaids.
The grave brown and gray of last season
NV e., ~ 40 Of rIi nj
or blue, and sometimes the Knickerbock-
er effect almost amounts to tufting, as it
is so thickly woven in. These fancy
melanges are designed more especially
for children's clothing. Dark gray MKT
ures are shown in a variety of fabrics.
Black cashmere is imported in large
quantities, and promises to remain a
standard material; there are also many
colored cashmeres.
Conspicuous among the wash goods
are the pretty lawns of generation ago,
with white grounds strewn with sprigged
patterns in bright colors, and colored
border for trimming. These were re-
stored to favor last summer, but the sup
ply did not equal the demand, and this
year they are largely imported. The
borders are in unique designs, some of
them representing fringe and others lace.
There are also quaint striped organizes,
such as dark blue with red and gold
stripes, or else brown grounds with hair
stripes of blue, cardinal or gold. Other
organizes have diagonal lines that pro-
duce twilled effects. These are pretty in
blue and white, red with white, or brown
or else gray diagonals on blue ground,
and with all these borders are provided;
solid-colored borders are seen with many
figured patterns. These are to trim the
overdress and fomces, and are to be
edged with very narrow Smyrna lace.
The newest percales are in India de-
signs and dark colors like those seen in
Cashmere shawls. There are two kinds
of percales shown-that with the foulard
finish or high glaze, and the Alsace per-
Gales, finished like cottons, without
glaze, and soft for the needle. The col
ors are mixture of indigo blue with
cardinal, brown, myrtle, green, gold and
white The patterns are palm leaves,
arabesques and stripes so closely
twined and intertwined that they are in
desCribable. Some have the Greek
square all over the surface; others have
it in stripes alternating with plain
stripes; others have hair lines of gold or
red on ink blue, or brown, or green; still
Others have limitations of the basket
weaving in stripes, or perhaps lace eff
fects are given. Then there are cretonne
designs of small pale blue flowers with
woody stems on dark blue ground, or
else cream roses on brown, and with all
kinds the borders are provided The
Oriental patterns include japanese, Turk
ish, Persia and India designs, with most
oddly-contrasted colors; their quaint
olives and dragon blues are mixed with
cardinal, gold and white in tracery that
is without beginning or end,
For shirtings are cool and clean look
ing white percales, with colored Japan
csc figures, bias Ines and the very small
checks already described in blue, brown
or green; there are also round dots of
color as small as the tiny checks, and
much neater than the glazing polka dots
lately worn. These will also be used for
dresses in connection with solid colored
percales with the dull Alsace finish.
Ladies who make up their summer
wardrobes in February or March usually
begin with wash dresses, leaving their
| handsompst suits To the last in order To