Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-10-16
SUPPLYING THE TABLE,
The Business Crockery Dealers Do
in LoanIng Dishes.

AHC DuSiucSS tEOCkcEy DcdlSES 10
in LOanIng Dishes.
The profits of the crockory and glass
ware men are not wholly confined to the
difference between their buying and SELL
ing prices. The renting of crockery,
china and glassware is a more important
feature in the bushes than is generally
known. These articles are rented mostly
for public entertainments, such as balls.
bAnquets and all public din ings and
winnings. A NEWS reporter questioned a
prominent dealer yesterday as to the
amount of this kind OF business done in
Savannah.
"Of cOurse,v was the reply, sit is to be
expected that we should furnish the
dishes for banquets ana balls and public
dinings and such like, but our business
in this line Is not cOntlned to these occa-
siOns. Many guests Mt private dinings
would be surprised did they know that
| the handsome china and glassware which
| looks 80 much at home on their hosts
table and Is so highly cOmplimented, was
| there only for that special occasion, and
would be soon returned to its quarters In
some crockerY store. This Is done by the
| very best of people, and those who keep
expensive and pTetentlous establish
meets. Nor is there anything out of the
way in 1t, for there are but few establish
ments that have always on hand a sufi-
| Client number of pieces to accommodate
an unusually large number of guests. A
| genuine china set and the accompanying
ware, such as the givers of small dinners
| like to have on their tables, costs a neat
| little sum, and IL is not every family that
keeps many more such pieces than their
| daily wants require. 1t is cheaper TO
rent a set for the occasion than to buy it,
| aud probably not have occasion to use IL
| no fuUn mr. ho
| year."
"Do you ever lose anything from break
ageg'
Eyes, frequently, but this ia generally
I at some public dinner or banquet. People
are more careless at these than at din
| ners. For this reason we never let our
| best goods 90 to public entertainment.
| 1t 10 very seldom We ever lose anything
that is rented to private party, and even
| il piece or two does happen to get broken
| the parties are more than willing to pay
| for it. We never rent set in which there
would be much difficulty in replacing a
broken piece. In some of the finer i'm
ported sets IL is almost impossible to get
a broken piece replaced"
| "Are people VINO hire crockery very
| particular about the design"
"QuIte as nuch so as IL they were pur-
| chasing instead OF only renting for day
or two, for the uniDitiated are supposed
not to know but what the articles belong
| TO the lady of the house, and for this rea-
son, as well for the sake OF good appear
| ance, the lady is Just AS particular as If
she were actually purchasing. Many
ladies' come three or four times before
deciding, ana, from the time they spend
| in looking and orIticising, one would
| think they were laying in stock that
they expected would be handed as heir
looms TO their posterity."
whats the prevailing style in china
| sets and glasswarep
"ln china the tendency is towards a
palmer and less decorative style. A year
| or so ago all the rage was to have the
| pieces highly Ornamented and covered
with attractive pictures and designs. but
this is all dying out BOW and the reverse
is becoming popular. Nearly all the
sets are decorated to some extent, but
the ornamental ton 10 much more subdued
and quiet. Plain and simple designs are
considered the thing. A popular craze
just now is TO have separate plates to cor
respond with each course. For instance.
here is a fish set. Each plate has "a diff
ferent kind of a fish painted ON il. When
the guest turns over his plate he knows
that the course next in order will be fish.
Sets are made on this idea to represent
almost every course that comes on the
table from the beginning TO the end of
stylish dining"
lin glassware there is great demand
for colors. and they are made in almost
every color imaginable, with q dozen diff
fereut colors in set OF as many pieces.
Subdued colors are more popular than the
brighter ones.
"The American glassware can't be beat
anywhere, and American china is i'm
proving and becoming more popular
evory year. 1t is just about as good
as the imported, and can be sold
considerably cheaper on account OF the
tue great loss in breakage in brin ging the
other across the ocean,"