Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-12-28

Prom the HOnr.


Many pretty woman goes about wrapped to
the dainty chin in fur without even knowing to
what comfortable animal she is indebted for her
very becoming and coy wrappings. There is
sort of ingratitude about this, failure of the
recognition of Indebtedness. that little infOr-
nation on the subject Of furs and their original
owners may assist in removing. Although graf
itude, being "a lively sense Of favors to come"
should fail in this instance, it is at least sea-
sonable subject. According to an English con-
temporary, even sable is no longer inimitable
Furriers have discovered a mode Of producing
comparatively inexpensive stimulation of that
winter dream of every nice woman sabie-taii
This cannot be distinguished from the real, ex-
cept by closest investigation. Those who de-
tect the false without an nstant's hesitation are
the possessOrs of the genuine sable-tail, and
even they are apt to Judge more from the style
of the wearer and Of her other garments than
from any popularity in the fur itself. Owners
of genuine fur deeply resent these close imita-
tions, Just as the pOssessors of good clteuetu-es
were annoyed when the fashion of wearing false
hair came in. "What is the good" they ask
''of having the real thing when everybody can
buy and wear the false?"
Sealskin is very well initiated in the seal
cloth now so much worn; jacket of which costs
from Sl5 to s35. not including making or lining.
both expensive items. The test is in the OdOr The
seal-cloth being only kind of plush, has no
Od0r. Sealskln has one peculiar to ITSELF and
not at all disa9reeabe, though far from being so
pleasant as that of sable. The best kind of real
seal is the Alaska. Other species are those that
come from. and are called after, LObos Island
South Sea, Victoria, South Australia, and the
Cape. The squirrels whose skins are used for
lining mantels and Jackets are Of different spe-
cies and various prices. The most expensive is
the Siberian squirrel the usual color of which
is blue, sometimes light, and sometimes dark
The darkest are considered the best, especially
when they show red band down the back
Millions of squirrels are killed in Siberia. In
Sweden and Norway they are taken in traps,
The Swedish squirrels are very large. There
are different modes of preparing squirrel skins
The Russian are cured with salt, withthe result
that III damp weather the skins contract an ap-
pearance of being wet. In Russia however.
where the air is almost always dry little incon-
yenence attaches to this. In GERMANY the
skins are prepared by the application of fatty
matters, such as butter, means that cannot be
employed in Russia, because the northern at
mosphere acts upon skins cured in this way by
making them stiff and dry. The center of the
trade done in this process has long been in Sax
ony. Leipzig has considerable fur market
principally at Easter when the great fair is held.
Hence they are sent to China, Russia, Turkey
and Greece Rabbit skins are commonly used
to simulate squirrel, and many purchasers of
winter coverings have been deceived by I'M
scrupulOus vendors. Needless to say that the
cost of the rabbit skin is much less than that of
the squirrel Every year great numbers of skins
of the common wild rabbit of the we'll known
silver grey color, are exported from England to
Russia, whence they return as 'Russian
furs-" The white Polish rabbit is the
cheapest of this kind of fur. Nor does the
g harmless, necessary cat escape the hands OF
the purveyor of fabricated furs. It dies a sud-
den death at the hands of the Partisan CARGO
tiers (where ignorance is bliss It's folly to trans
late the word! Don't look in the dictionary, We
who dine at eating bouses), and like many
another martyr. is rechristened after quitting
this life. st. Rabbit in France, st. Marten in
Holland, are some Of its post-Obit titles. In the
latter country eats are fed on a particular diet
with a view to fitting their skins for the drying
process. The Dutch keep this diet secret. but
it is guessed to consist principally of fish, Black
cats are more highly esteemed than those Of
any other color. and half the glCasy black mufis
We see encasiEg daintily-gloved hands belonged
originally 70 sleek and we-fed Dutch pushes
An erroneous impression has got abroad that
rabbits and cats are skinned ayei This would
be too horrible. and it is pleasant to be able to
contradict it. 1t would be almost an impossi-
billy to skin living cat, and the difficulty with
even the gentler rabbit would be very great
The operation is performed some hours after the
furry creatures receive the scientific blow which
has been found to be the most merciful as well
as the easiest way of putting an end to Them