The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1885-09-11
How Hats are Made.

NVV HAS hIC VuituCs
Philadelphia News.
How many persons know how a hat
is made? How little knowledge does
the world in general possess of this
browning piece of male attire. The
belated indulger who uses this article
for the transportation of traditional
bricks hat are manufactured by put
ting something in the mouth to com
nit larceny on that part which the hat
is intended to cover is totally ignorant
OF the many manipulate ons that pre-
cede its being. This notorious deposi-
tory for the stereotyped another
feather is almost as anc ent as the
plumes that were decorated with the
''eyes of argus"
Head coverings were first worn by
the crusaders in the eleventh century.
They cons ,sted of scarfs or loose caps.
beth that the adornmcnts of the intel
~lectual end of humanity were consid-
cred indispensable. Fine hats made
from the SIX n of the teaver and dyed
black were worn by the upper classes
in Great Britain. The growing diff
Guilty, however. of obtaining the skin
VI lHlS dullldl ltu ~ dltCllplS W HIM
headdresses of plush drawn overpaste-
board. but these were not what the
most unbiased minds would call a sue
cess, SO they were abandoned. Wool
or soft fur was then not much used in
making this little artificial habitation
that always has, or is supposed to have
brains for Il tenant.
In the wear 1910 beavers became so
expensive that it was necessary to i'm
provise silk hats. These consisted of q
body and brim made of two or three
thicknesses of cotton cloth, saturated
with varnish to give the material stiff
ness, and, as our forefathers seemed
to dislike water. to render the cloth
proof against dampness. These are
then nodded according to the prevail
ing style of the dav or the sweet
will' of the manufacturer. When the
proper form is obta ned the whole is
carefully covered with lac and dam
mar varnish, and before this is dry the
silk plush is applied with much care
lest the seams be exposed to view. The
rim is then ..bound round" not with a
..woolen string" hut with silk tape: q
narrow band IS then drawn over the
junction of the lody with the brim.
The hat is then lined with six and
leather; when that has been put in it is
ready for market. Many and varied
!, have been the shapes and styles of
these head coverings, which, though
they are supposed to decorate the
brightest terminus ofmankind, are Oft
en- more brilliant than the mob they
envelop. The Puritans III the time OF
Charles /. adopted u hat with a lofty
crown and no brim to speak of. The
Quakers in the seventeenth century,
went to the other extreme, and wore
very wide rims and microscopic
, crowns. The wonderful growth of the
t brims necessitated their being fastened
, up at the sides and in the front: thus
the cooked hat originated. Beaux, OF
, what in the phraseology Of the day
would be called dudes, varied the mo-
7 notony of the cooked hats by having
caps with brims. Such must be con
5 sidered the precursors of the present
round hat, to which finally all other
? varieties have given place. Another
common hat of the early part of this
century was the ''Chapeau bias" or
one so constructed as to be conveniently
, folded and carried under the arm.
T, This, in a slightly different form. is
, still worn BY the field officers in Euro
pean armies. The English clergymen
l of the Established Church wear the
t most peculiar of all hats. The crown
is extremely tall and the brim, which
: is proport, onately wide, is rolled up
l on the sides. The .'tout ensemble is
that Of a stove-pipe on a shovel.
The history of the Mackinaw and its
less a]ristocratic straw brothers is not
t so ancient or so interesting as the silk,
: en- branch of the same family. The
: straw for all hats except Mackinaw is
/ imported. The finest comes from Eng.
| land, Italy. Germany, Switzerland,
China and Japan. That from the lat.
| ter place is so like that grown in Can.
ada-the Mackinaw-that it very FIRE.
q%uently masqueradcs as such. and ar
) expert can hardly tell the difference.
, except in price. So much for Japa.
nese cheap labor After the grain
| is ripened the stalk is gathered, braid.
r ed and sent TIC its destination.
The plated straw is sewn into shape
! by machinery, and then pressed into
I shape and trimmed with a ribbon.
There are now many varieties of straw
hats. The most important is the Pan.
: anna. which receives its name from the
| isthmus where it was first made. Pan,
ANA straws are no longer much worn
The reason why" is like the answer
, given to DR.. Tell, II cannot tell
: Probably. however, the high prices
which ranged from $40 to $50, had
much TO do with their being ostracised.
The latest inquiry about church at