Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-12
CRAVATS In CONGRESS
How Legislators Decorate Themselves
Under the Chin.
BIG BEARD AND NO NECKTIE.
The Evolution Of Neckgear-ThcC Congressman
Whose Stock Lasted Over q Month-Speaker
Crisp's Modest Tie-Mr. Reeds Aggressive
Black Sailor-white Ties for Evening Wear.



! CONGRESS Is UPON US ONCE MORE
~ and everything that relates to the members
Of this illustrious body is of interest to the
people Of Washington. 1t is knowledge OF
this fact that prompted writer for The STAR
| to investigate what is perhaps the smallest gar
mont that men wear and to see how the minds
OF the great statesmen Of the country are dis
played in this particular.
Cravat or necktie, which is correct? Cravat
is the more old fashioned, and to many ears it
sounds better, but if the thing that it describes
is not tied about the neck and by consequence
necktie, what is it? In old times this part OF
. mans attire used to be a neckkerchef or a
stock or neckcloth. In the same way the
neither garments used to be breeches or mex
| expressibles. Now they are pantaloons or
trousers, and even to some people pants. "
Similarly what used to DO always cravat is
now quite as often called necktie.
MEN WHO DO NOT WEAR THEM.
Should o man under any circumstances not
wear q necktie? That is question, but it Is a
matter Of fact that few of the men who may
be called statesmen do not wear them About
the lobbies, and, for that matter on the floors
OF Congress, one occasionally encounters man
who certainly thinks himself n statesman, and
| who is IA statesman in the eyes of some other
people besides himself. who wears a neat clean
collar and does not wear n cravat This indi-
vidual usually has long full beard and he
invariably fatters himself that no one
silk or satin back of it. 1t is a
delusion. There never was n beard 80 thick
| but what the turning Of the neck revealed the
presence or absence Of the cravat. Even Sen
ator Coke Of Texas. whose beard is as opaque
| as a beard well can be- could not hide his col
tn
| nately Is, by slender piece of neck adorn-
ment. His necktie is modest enough. and 30
| are the neckties of most Of our great men. but
some of them are self-assertive in this par
ticular.
Ex-senator Ingalls,, for instance, wears a red
| cravat Of fine blazing hue, neatly tied in a
| sailor knot and descending gracefully under
| his waistcoat, and Representative O'Neill of
PENNSYLVANIA has worn crimson cravat for
the last fifteen or twenty years-not the same
one, OF course, but as one wears out or be-
| comes soiled its place is taken by another that
might lie a twin brother.
A THIRry-TuREE DAYS STOCK.
But there used to be another member of the
House-poor fellow. he was showed under by
| an ungrateful constituency after two brief
| terms-that wore cravats of such variety and
splendor that they became the delight of all his
colleagues. Each day he would appear in a
| fine cravat and nobody would see it again for q
| month or more. He never appeared in the
same cravat two days in succession
| but once. and that when
| there continuous forty eight
hour session Of the House and he wasn't al
lowed to go home. One of the pages of the
House kept a record, and discovered that il
took thirty-three days for the ~ c. to 60
| through his stock OF cravats. On the
| thirty-fourth day he would be observed wear
| ing the same cravat that he had worn upon
the first day. Whenever he made speech he
selected his most gorgeous cravat TO wear on
that day, and the same mlschievous little page
that kept n record of his cravats used to be al
ways able to tell on what days tine member in
| tended to speak merely by looking to see which
one Of his thirty-three cravats he had on.
When he left there was no one to take his place.
and ever since then Congress has been reduced
| to commonplace stage that gives no pleasure
to the ladies gallery to the little pages who
play about the Speakers desk.
CRIsP's sILE TIT.
What can anybody tell Of Mr.. Crisp, the new
Speaker. by his necktie? Is there any severity
lurking in the neat manner in which this plain.
modest piece of silk is tied7 When people
looked at Speaker Reed sailor-knot cravat two
years ago it looked innocent enough. but before
Congress had adjourned it looked like every
thing else pertaining to Mr.. Reed--uncompro-
missing and aggressive Mr.. Crisps crayat is a
narrow piece of silk. neatly and tightly tied
| In bow knot His collar turns down and his
neck Is not at all bad one.
But how this ordinary and conservative neck
tie will be regarded in two years time 1t is
| impossible to say 1t may be a most popular
piece OF silk and admirers may beg for pieces
of it to keep and cherish, but it may on the
other hand be execrated.
WHO WEAR WHITE cRAvATs
The statesmen who wear white cravats are
not unusual. Senator Pugh OF Alabama wears
one all the year round, thus dsproving the
statement OF the late Josh Billings in his cal
| manax. where there used to be the assertion,
| under the month of June. mo cravats worn in
Alabama during this monitor any other >
Senator Pugh wears his cravas in Alabama as
| well as in Washington. 1t preserves its propcr
bearings, too, which is more than can be said
OF many oratorical bow knots Very often, as
| the speaker warns up to his work. his
cravat rises too, until 1t climbs up
behind above the coat collar, and ingenouslv
works its way around under the orators Left
| ear. No matter how fine the speech may be.
under these circumstances 1t IS apt to fall fiat.
An audience cares more about trifes of this
kind than it does about anything else Two
| things should a speaker be sure of before he
starts to make his speech. First, he should
| see that his cravat is tied and pinned and
| that it cannot get loose. and then he should
make certain that his cuffs won't break away
| when he begins to swing his arms.
SENATOR DAWES USRELIBLE CUFFS
Now. Senator Dawes OF Massachusetts wears
plain black necktis and turn-down collar
and diamond pin in his shirt bosom. His
neck is safe and he can get warm about the In
dams and talk with safety. so far as this is con-
cerned, but his cuffs not always to be de-
| pended upon. Sometimes they break loose
and the writer remembers some years ago
| seeing him wrestle with the cuff of his right
arm during q long speech in the Senate
in way that was painful to be-
hold. He would make an emphatic
| gesture to accompany an equally en-
phatic sentence and before the period would
be reached he would be desperately clutching
\ at that Grant cuff and endeavoring to get il
| buttoned, or at any rate to prevent its living
| OIL and striking the nose of the presiding
| officer. Such an accident would not be likely
| to happen to Senator Brice the new Senator
| from Ohio. for his cuffs certainly look secure.
He wears good cravat, too, and is altogether a
| fne-looking man.
| SENATOR PEFFER's NIcKrIE.
There is doubtless q great deal Of curiosity
about the famous Senator PETER of Kansas.
! man with such big beard might possibly
| fall into the deluson that nature has been kind
| to him and made il unnecessary for him to
wear any cravat, but decisions are not what Mr.
PETER goes in for, and he wears respecta-
| able necktic as any man in the Senate. But
1t Is small affair. and the collar. which it is a
part OF, is not high. Perhaps there was some
thing moro impressive about the appearance OF
i men when CrAyata wera larger and collare