Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1878-11-28
: HOW LADIES CARRY PURSES.
Peculiar Uses Of the Feminine Pocket
~ -: book. .'-'H 40 ,-'N::' .~v'


dress, convenience, and an ornament at
the same time. 1T would be an excep.
'tional curiosity to hear Of a lady going
out without her purse, even if she had
but ten cents in it, and no immediate de-
mand for that, nor any use for it, so far
as she knew, while out.
That such wonderful variety of purses
are manufactured yearly, establishes the
fact that they are g. necessary or popular
part of the feminine dress, and that there
is demand for the taste and attention Of
purse-makers in the great world of fash
ionable trade that is of no meager im-
portance. A lady's purse is presumed to
be designed fer the purpose Of carrying
sums of money, but the majority of them
are miniature curiosity. shops. >~...~.
It is safe to affirm that nine purses out
of ten owned and carried by ladies con-
tain dozen or more articles foreign to
money.
Go into any Of our fashionable up town
retail bazars any day, and watch the
process of the opening of hundred
purses, more or less.
First of all, the manner of getting at
the contents of her purse is a woma1ly pc.
culiarity, really (udicrous and interesting
From the amount of delving and diving
Of the feminine fingers, the lahorous dig
ging into the compartments, it would
seem as if all the money was glued fast
to the uttermost corners.
=: Why women have so much Trouble in
getting at their money. particularly small
charge, is good deal of study.
: A man whisks out his pocketbook and
unclasps it with enterprising energy, and
seems to alight on the money he wants
the first thing, as ii. it was full to- the top
and running over. He gives it sort Of
emphatic bang and snap as he clasps it.
and thrusts it back into his pocket, ID
less time than lady consumes in fishing
hers out Of her pocket. .>.. - :
With woman the hard work seems to
be In getting hold of the money, shallow
as the purse may be, for it seems to be
stored away in marvelously secure and
secluded manner.
Ladies frequently suffer the greatest
annoyance when trying to make change
hastily in 9 crowd or paying car fare in
hurry The. pennies wont come out in
spite of the eager, nervous scratching they
keep up inside the mysterious purse. The
next and perhaps the greatest object OF
interest attending lady's pocket-book
is it's contents, apart from it's storing Ca
pacity for money, 49, - &
Examine one of. them, and it will be
found to contain bits Of dress goods :
small samples of ribbon and woods, a
broken machine needle, piece Of lead
pencil about an inch and half long, with
the point broken off; lock Of hair in a
piece Of white paper, a photograph, a
recipe of some kind, generally for cake
dalr-dye, or some new .cosmetic;a marri.
age notice rom some paper; two or three
addresses, mostly Of spiritual mediums
fortune. tellers and dress makers; a button
or two,,a dried verbena. leaf, a broken
earring and a wishbone. :. -... ..
Is it any wonder they have such diff
Guilty in finding their chapge2 Yet, in
the darkest night, and , on the shortest
notice, if necessary, they could go to
that purse and find any one of the articles
it contains The majorityEof these purses
are carried in an outside pocket or in
their hands, and generally half open. 1t
is remarkable that ladies are not more
=frequently~robbedz of their pocketbooks
than they are. The purse at home has a
wonderful knack of never being in the
same place twice, and never can be found
quickly: When it is wanted grand
search is instituted; from all the pockets
ID all the boxes, drawers and hooks IN
my lady's chamber" 1t seems to be
forever on the, wing, getting behind the
big Bible or under the large cover, be-
hind the bureau, into the work. basket,
under the bed, on the mantle, and in the
baby-wagon. -.
If there are any bills in the female
purse thew are generally crumpled up in
to mysterious wads, or rolled around q
ten-cent piece and a few pennies. With
the masculine pocket bookit is, quite the
reYerse it is always, carried in . particu-
aHpocket=@H itcontafns bills, they 5are
generally we'll folded, although there are
exceptions; when-a man has but little
money, the more carefully it is folded
up. But the feminine portmonnaie is al
ways demoralized-no matter what de-
nomination note may be- a five, ten or
twenty, it is all the same, admirably
crammed into the little receptacle.
It appears to be the general impression
that ladies have more; difficulty in keep
ing money inside the purse; than gentle
tlemen. It has faculty of being always
at low tide and at all times hard to be
got out by force, but evaporates in a
mysterious way, perplexlng to the owner
and annoying to The furnishing agent. q
No woman;s purse is literally empty
even if it contains no money. There may
not be ''millions in it," but in ninety
nj nine cases out of hundred there will be
assinali variety stock for private use with.
in it.
"A little fellow, at whose home hens had
been kept but q few weeks, visited 1
neighbers 70 find o. playmate, when be
was informed that his young friend was
suffering from the chicken-pox. The
fadv Of the h0naa in fnnoo ne cnr;oa;<x,