The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1890-05-11

Contrasts Between the Shops of Firth
Avenme aud DIvlsIOn Street.

Tor bonnet, but SnCh days are gone hpphrent-
ly, never to return. 1t Is seldom now that n
genuine imported bonnet costs moro than s)5
in this city. That certainly seems to be quite
enough for the frail, slight structures but no
one needs to pay more to get tho best in the
market. The causo for the decline in the price
Of the best bonnets lies mainly. according to a
leading Fifth avenue milliner. in tho evolution
OF fashion, by which woman is bound to buy
more bonnets in q year than size used to.
Tho fashions change SO rapidly nova
days. she said, that each season brings in
its special STYLE The result Is that even the
richest OF our society women cannot afford to
pay the eNtravagant prices that they once did,
and conf etitiUn in the retail trade has also had
its share OF influence IN bringing down the
figures. The reason why 1t costs so much, rs
1t does even to-day, to got an elegant bonnet
or hat lies in the materials employed. You
cannot make an elegant bonnet out OF cheap
material. Take tule. forinstanco. you can make
a very pretty bonnet Of it. but not an elegant
one. \ lady would know the difference at
once. That is one of the principal reasons why
we have to be so particular in our business
Most OF our customers travel In Europe every
year. They see the French and London Styles
and know rs much about them rs we do. In
fact To have to watch very sharply to Keep
abreast OF them. | go to Palis twice year.
and have u commissioner there all tho time
and even then ilnd my patrons usually rre-
pared for what have 10 chow them. They not
only know from observation what the prevail
ing styles in Paris are. but they are conf e'ent
to Judge at once as to tho materials enp'oycd'
DO not some of tho best styles come from
Vienna nowadays "
oh dear, no. Don't speak OF Vienna 1t is
mistake to suppose that even dressos or dress
in OnlOn
worth considering. Paris is the only town in
tho world for styles. The French have native
taste for decoration OF all kinds. 1t Is not
matter Of educali ion with them; it is natural
gilt. Next to the French in this respect come
the Irish. A young lrishwoman who has grown
up in fair circumstances VIII develop remark
n DO taste and skill in the trimming OF bonnets
even though she may never have seen Paris.
This is the cuso in dress as well us hat or bon-
DO fashionable women buy, made-up bon
nets as ruln or DO they have them madet"
Most Of them require the mnde.up impor-
tGtous. but there are those who have no native
perception 81 what Is becoming, These viii
not ucknQwlrl-;o tho fact 10 one of my clerks.
hut ii | happen to wait on them and cannot
hui anythin- in stock 10 suit them, | suggest
various notifications in the trimming OF some
model, or frame which Know VII become
such cases they get an imported uonnot with
imported trimming put together here. No eX-
What. I! zen. is Il that makes tho cost OF an
expensive bonnet"
"Tnroe things usually enter to fix the price:
the cost OF THO mo e the cost Of the trimmings
and tho work inS Owed in putting them to-
gcther Here. Tor Instance. Is bonnet that
Tho article pointed out rested light and airy
upon tho top OF a slender rod rising IRON the
might weigh as much a. IN ounce. and seemed
TO bc II cumrositOn OF an irregular rim Of
rlai'oG stun lot o! !llmy lace, and u few
Stril NJ ~. Y lpaVpS a
Tho first cost in this article co tinued tho
mil!in9r. Is tnG model or ilame It is OF what
cludcs a ~ per cent duty on tho laris price"
whcIeat she raised her hands and eyes in help-
less reseutlulne,s at the tHrM. AeNt comes
this spray OF flowers. also imported. which was
put on here. Tho spra; costs s., and tho bal
ancc, 50. covers cost OF labor aud design in
putting the bonnet together; Tho shapes. or
models, are designed auroah. sometimes by
men and sometimes hr women. Oi course. wo
may vary those models according to our In
genuity or the ta'!e OF our. patrons, Uut In all
cases wo keep within tho lines OF the prevail
ing Paris styles'
In Ito high toned shops no bonncts or hats
arc sold Tor less than - each. In marked
contra.t TO tho trade there are the millinery
walks here are alive WIN Eayy trimmed
bonncts exposed ii windows anu IN cases set
outside TIE doors. lhclG arc now thirty;Seycn
millinery shops on ,piv,si'n street, but that is
nothing there used TO IL atty: Of lato wears
trade has been driItinl; away from the ancient
thorouEhiare 10 Mndl on, Grand. and other
streets on the east side. In front OF zach
millinery shop on division street staud from
one 10 three iNviiS[S cGr[SsponqnG to the
hareheaGed young women who are said to
earn from 50 70 ~ awe'k, according to heir
respective establishments. The lowest priced
hat or bonnet in these places Is a 81 affair,
satcen pGi!od velvet n tho lin and crown, or
nnmented with Ileatgh lacG: Lesbos this
thore IS a boy Of si.k ribbon and ilowor; ac-
corying to tho taste q tho wearer, No bon
nets are sold in Division street at price
higher thar ~, This style consists OF Milan
straw. with eight or nine, fulds OF backed silk
velvet on tho rim trimmed with six elegant"
TIPS Of Ostrich ieatherS and a long nnne Of
the same VIII all ihIs seeming wealth OF
how. tsualy n dagger is thrust through tho
hat somewhere Tor tho sake Of ornament:
tho fashionable tylr7 cf the high toned streets
Hm oT E InS Et'soh 1H91 deSSTs say tmat
NOR in Sixth or Eiehth avenues. ' WV
There are patrons on tho cast side also who
order mats made e5ler."Iiy Tor them. For his
SOFT o customers ther" are well.trainod do
siEner6 cmplny0d who earn from SIS to $40 IL
week zach. Women who work In tho same
lines In Fifth avenue and broadway earn from
;Ij to 80 week. Hats or bonnets in tho
greatest demand In Dl;ison street arc those
priced from 50 to 81 each and the busy season
Is In the months lust succeeding Euster
The Division street mill!ners tell oil IL curious
feature Of their TRADE. They all say that many
o. Their Gus toners como down IN private car
riuges from tho uptown districts.
Perhaps tho carriages are not always pri-
Nhte,, huu ono OF tho lullllneTS hhreWdlY, Dnt
tho driver il always in some kind Of livery or
other. OF course, We understand the situation.
but we never let on. he customers are
anxious to get pretty bonnet without paying
too much. so We take 1t as n matter OF course,
and when they say that they want to get
bonnet or hR' for Z Child or servant rs git.
have. always notice, though that these
presents Tor servants are CAREFULLY tried on be-
fore q glass, and that as rule TIE customer
coming TO IetseL They do not al
ways pretend TO be bpying for 9th.
buy for thcmsolves they usually AJAX us to send
the article homo in box that II not marked
with tho doaor's nnmo or address only last
week lady came here In private carriage
and bought n hat which We sent according 10
directions TO one Of the biggest steamers that
was about to sail for Europe. oh! we don't de-
pend uGon the modest people OF the east SIDE
for our business. II We dad we should stare.
Tie quiet uptown trade AMI the shoppers
from tbs suburbs enahlo us to keep our placos
and supply pretty head gear for the neighbors
horeabouts at bottom prices
Another thing that perhaps contributes 10
low prices In Division street is tho fact that as
a rule, the millipers live IN tho same 1uildngs
In which their shops are situatod. Tho Fiith
avenue or Broadway shop consisting OF one or
nh m N