Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-08-17
FORTUNES IN TRIPLES.
PoeKETE0oKs THAT COST MORE THAN
THEY EVER CARRY.
Walking sticks with JcwsIed Heads-A
Rage for Articles in New
Kinds of Leather.
[Erom the New York STAR. /


Half the well-dressed women of New
York carry pocketbooks that cost more
money than they ever inclose. Just study
the ponderous, metai-bound leather cases,
which every woman grasps in her little fist
when she goes shopping, and you'll learn
something that few men have hitherto sus-
pected. The practice of carrying the
feminine purse high aloft in the fist will
not die out SO long as this furnishes a
chance to exhibit costly trifes in leather to
wondering world of men.
Nearly 500 for little bit Of gold-bound
leather that scarce fills the rosy palm for
which il was made? That is the price
The leather is a gold-tinted lizard skin
with all the scales shining, The gold is
richly chased. Everything within and
without is costly and beautiful. Perhaps
New York has not yet reached the point of
making silk purses ont of certain ma
terial proyerbiaily unfit for such use, but
very pretty pocketb0oks are made out of
the polecat's skin. 0dorous? Not in the
least; the beast has been slandered. Its
skin is beautifully grained, soft and plant
a famous concern in this town has recent
Iy been making odd experiments in leath-
ers. The result is that the American rabbit,
the, American elk, the peccary, the rein
deer, the anteater, the badger, the monkey,
the coon, the buffalo and even the elephant
have yielded up their outer covering to
crafty the within OF fair women. You
may buy an elephant purse for $50 or $50.
The skin looks like cork, being OF neutral
tint, with odd pin holes penetrating the
surface. Il is tough and marvelously dur
able. A few travelling bags have been
made Oh it. They weigh good deal when
shaving-case, brushes, combs and TASKS
have been fitted in, and they fetch rather
more than 500 apiece. Pocketbooks OF
buffalo skins are pretty, and the leather is
extremely plant though stout.
All these new feathers have driven out
the old-fashioned morocco. Everything
must be expeasively ornamented with sill
yer or gold. The lizard skins come in
twenty or thirty varieties They are
brought ready-cured from South America.
They are big enough, by careful piecing,
TO be made into small travelling bags, There
is popular notion that every scaled and
notified skin is that Of snake As a
matter of fact, snake skins are compare
lively rare.
The last elephant skin used in New
York was cured here, and very successfully
cured. 1t went into pocket books, note
books, portfolios, travelling bags and what
not. The thickest portions had to be split.
1t Is so tough that it has to be worked
with specially strong tools When all the
skin had been worked up one of the great
feet was made the pedestal of unique
umbrella stand. The great toes, looking
like big and badly brushed teeth, had an
odd appearance. The body of the stand is
of brass, with large elephants head in
front armed with fantastically exaggerated
nickel plated tusks.
Among the rich there is rage for
unique objects, such as pocket-books,
purses, travelling bags. These things are
made up for the general public in suffi-
ciently costly form, one would think, but
with the men to whom 5000 is trife,
costly things that have duplicates viii not
serve. Travelling bags costing 5000 to $500
are constantly made to order. They are
wrought OF curious leather. and the Gus
toner picks out siiYer-mOunted TASKS,
brushes, razors and the like 10 make up an
expensive dressing-case, which is fitted
into the bag. Odd and original designs in
hammered silver are made to order as
binding for leather pocket-books There
Is no limit 10 the cost of gold-netted purses
for ladies. Some Of them have a great
jewel in the bottom. A tiny one to serve
as watch-charm and, perhaps, to carry
car-fare, is marked $l6 while $50 is not
high price for larger sizes.
Walking sticks are made the excuse for
curious indulgence of extrayagant tastes.
Nobody buys gold-headed canes now except
to present to public men who nevery carry
the snowy gifts. Much costlier canes
however, are those ornamented with en-
amel or gold. One has a small head of
Etruscan gold enameled in garnet and
three shades of blue. Not many buy such
sticks for SIS. Another has head of red
rhodonite in a network of gold. 1t costs
more than 500. Still another has for a
head deIicately wrought golden coronet
topped with brilliant rhodonite in imi-
tatlon OF RED velvet. A ccstlier one still
has a great star sapphire let into head of
rich Etruscan gold. 1t sells for $500 A
head made of a cluster of children's heads
IN silver, sells for 500. Prices then run
down to $50, $40 and $40. On such sticks
the heads have more OF less familiar de-
signs.
The costliest sticks are of malacca a
certain variety of small diameter brings,
unmounted, more than $50 per stick. Prices
then run down to 81 per stick. An odd
stick is of wood completely yeneered with
tortoise she'll 1t looks like solid stick
of shell.
There is something Of rage for turning
relics into heads for umbrellas and walk
ing sticks One man had the handle Of
handsome old dagger placed on an UNI
brella. Ancient coins also, are turned into
cane heads.