Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-07-27
CAST-OEE EMERY.
What Ladies do with Costumes that
Have Made WOrth's Head Ache.

AeU ! OTih 0OUfWuC.
1t is a mystery tU.many peOple what
fashionable and wealthy people do with
the dozens of beautiful and costly dresses
they buy every year. A wealthy New
York woman who goes into society must
have every year at least six morning
dresses, six carriage dresses, a dozen
ball and dinner dresses, besides
tea-gOwns, reception toilet, wrappers for
her dressing rooms, fancy dresses and
dozens of light summer toilets, a fresh
one being put on every day during the
warm weather. The bOnnets and hats.
the half sOiled gloves, the lace and stock
ings and handkerchiefs needed by these
women of wealth are without number.
The lady's maid comes in for a great
share of the dresses, etc.; but there are
very few women who think of giving their
last years silk, satin and velvet dresses
to the French maid.
Many of them use their cast-Off dresses
to replenish their pin money. That is,
they sell them to second hand men and
women, who get rich on the ineXperience
of many of these women.
OF course they have common sense
enough to take off the lace trimming or
valuable buckles, ETC., that adorn the
dresses; but they sell them Tor a mere
nothing. The reason why they do this
is not ObviOus.t to any one but the woman.
She understands the solid satisfaction of
making bargain" and handling money
she has ''earned' herself.
A lady who lives OH Fifth avenue, near
Twenty-third street. sends all her cast-of
wearing apparel to her poor relations, of
which she has any number. Mrs. William
Astor sends most of her elegant cast-off
dresses to gentleWOmen in whom she
takes great interest, and quantities of
.beautltul undertaking, half worn, is
sent to the WOmen's Hospital, in which
charity Mrs. Astor IS greatly interested.
Mrs. A. L. Stewart is very gracious in
the giving away of her dresses. 1t is said
that she furnished from her own ward
robe that Of a beautiful girl who was
going on the concert stage, but was too
poor to furnish a suitable wardrobe her.
self.
y very wealthy lady living on Fifty
seventh street saves everything she buys.
and will not even give away a handker-
chief to her maid. She says some day she
may need them all, and if she does not,
they Will be lovely for her great-grand-
children in which to go to fancy dress
balls.
Mrs. John Bigelow gives away all her
cast-otf clothing to few families of worth
living in the lower part of the city. And
her daughters remodel them with their
own fair fingers to suit the poor people
they are given to. A lady belonging to
an Ola hnlckerD0cker family, but who has
always been poor since her marriage, has
saved all her dresses, and now they serve
admirably for her daughter, who Just
came out in society last winter. Many
of them did not require altering at all, as
they proved to be in the latest fashion, A
very beautiful fire-colored MORE antique
she wore to the Vanderbilt ball.
On Madison avenue lives a lady. the
daughter of an Admiral in the navy, and
all her bright cOlOred silks she cuts into
squares for applique embroidery, of which
she is very fond.
An old Hebrew and his wife make
speciality Of buying these cast-off gar
ments, and advertise in one of the dailies.
They have the monopoly of the trade
among the aristOcrats in the city, and late
in the evening or early in the morning the
old lady may often be seen sliding into
the basement door, with twinkle in her
shrewd black eye. Very often young
ladies who want to go to a ball, and ''don't
like to ask papa for new Dress" sell
several of their old ones in this way and
thus get sufficient to buy a new one. Wo-
men with an economical turn of mind.
even though they are wealthy, have their
dresses made over either for themselves
or younger daughters, and if they have
poor relations, the fashionable city clothes
always find welcome, even though thew
be a year old in StVle.