The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1888-05-24
FASHIONS CLEARING HOUSE.
How Prominent Society Ladies' Dispose OF
Elegant Dresses.
Washington .Sta'.
"What becomes Of them :''

|
DWELL, this is Il confidential business,
Monsieur - and she shrugged her shoul-
ders high and looked with her head on
one side. Confidential, Monsieur, very
confidential" she repeated She was a
dealer doing e private business Just
around the corner, you might say, from
a very fashionable ncighborhood. Her
place of business in her private house, a
modest little dwelling. with no sign or
Indication that business Of any sort is
done there.
"I am sort OF clearing house Of fash
| ion," she said, after pause. ut is an
| exchange business. never buy any
thing; l act merely as agent. Some of
the most fashionable ladies in the city do
business through me. A great deal Of
business is done-all in strictly private
way. There is considerable money Of
the transactions ia considerable
considering Now, there is that handsome
dress Of Mrs. -. Oh, no, shau't tell
her name. Thst would be breach But
it was magnificent dress and sold well.
a great many magnificent Dresses come
to NO."
"No, lam not dealer in second hand
clothes. Not in the ordinary sense.
One lady can't..get all the wear of an ex-
rensire dress. Not fashionable lady.
The moro expensive, the more striking
and beautiful, the sooner it becomes COM
mon. A lady in fashionable life can't
afford 10 wear dress until it becomes
common. Some dresses that attract much
attention cannot be worn more than three
or four times. Then the question is,
what shall become of them? They must
either be laid aside until everybody has
forgotten them, and the material mixed
with soms other, ard remade in new
style, or else they must be sold. All the
good is not got out Of 500, 5000 or $500
dress in two or three wearings. 1t is q
valuable piece Of property after that.
The same lady cannot continue wearing
such G dress until it is 20 longer fit for
service, but another lsdy, not her person
al friend, aad 70, whiting in her circle Of
friends, may vear-a dress just like it!
Ladies often say they won't wear dress
again after they see one just like it J"
The dealer shrugged her shoulders and
looked IS II she might explain this
"whic," if she did not consider it more
prudent to keep still.
1T won't do for a fashionable lady to
appear in q ball or reception dress 100
often, bu. the SAME dress may do good
service By exchange. 1t may appear
many times in public without exciting
remark, if it is not always worn by the
same person and in the same company
"The way the thing is done is this
Ladies who spend thousands Of dollars in
clothes, going constantly in society and
always appearing in new gowns, dent
generally feel that they can afford 10 lose
the cost Of gown after wearing it a few
times. Yet they could not be induced to
continue wearing it. They sell off the
old dresses, and the money goes toward
getting the new ones. They arc sold for
very much less than they are worth, but
tie lady gets some rebate on them, and
the purchasers get good dresses for very
much less than they are worth. They
Get dresses that are just as good as new,
and can wear them without any danger
of,appcaring to wear second hand clothes.
Then they, in turn, sell them TO some
one else. These sales could never
be made directly between the principals
to the transaction. They must be made
through an agent, and both the purchas-
er and the seller remain unknown. They
are very particular about this. No ore
knows who buys or sells. They must have
confidence in tho discretion of the agent
before they will deal in any way with
her. They have their confdants in these
matters. There are number cfagents in
the city. Some are the dressmakers who
90 in the house to sew. Others, like
myself, do just the exchange business.
Some of my patrons both buy and sell
Through NE. Some sell only. must be
very di.creet. 1t would not do for me TO
exhibit dress for sale to the friend of
the Lady who last wore it.
81 nus: lie we'll acquainted with all
NY patrons, aud know ell their society
associations. See: do not buy dresses.
They arc left with me 10 sell. If !
sell them, sc. paid for it. If | fail
to find purchaser, return the garments.
1t is generally easy to sell a good dress,
but, of course, one must have vide cir,
Gle of acquaEtauceS 10 the pusillesS.
"It ID IN extensive business here in
Washington, and quite a number, mostly
cu!ored women, are engaged in ii. Some
very fine dresses are bought and sold, the
prices falling rapidly at each transfer.
A dress does full service in this way and
wears out its value. Many of the dresses
seen in fashionable assemblagea have
been worn by some one else than their
then wearer. Rich people even do not
buy clothes to throw away before they
have shown a fold from wear and
the fact that dress has been worn
by another at some time does not
condemn it to retirement, if it does not
show the wear. As soon as dress be-
gins to show its service in the least lis
sale in the upper circles is lost. 1t goes
rapidly down and is soon worn BY some
well-to.do colored person, Secondhand
clothes ultimately find their way on TO
the backs OF colored people, but they are
| rot tho only ones who wear clothes not