The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1891-06-10
EMMA ARBoTI,s DRESSES.
Two Hundred Thousand Dollars Worth g
be Auotioned on.

DC Auciloneo Ou.
NEW York, June S.-Two hundred
thousand dollars worth OF the wardrobe
of Emma Abbott, what is left after many
sales and gifts in Chicago, is to be offered
for sale in this city by Mrs Lizzie Abbott
Clarke, sister of the late actress. Mrs.
Clarke came here from Chicago a few days
ago, bringing this collection of rare and
varied costumes in immense trunks. She
has engaged a suite of rooms at the Hod-
man house and will conduct the sale at
that place through personal invitations.
Last evening Mrs. Clarke, who bears a
striking resemblance to her famous sister,
talked about her sister and the wardrobe.
First l would like to say" she began,
that the reported burning of portion
of Emma's wardrobe after her death last
December. by order OF the heath
authorities, is absolutely untrue,
and it's only foun dation Is
the fact that the clothes and linen of the
sick room were destroyed as they should
be in case Of pneumonia. The entire per-
sonal and stage wardrobe of my sister was
bequeathed to me. What remains of the
stage costumes could not have cost less
than 500, coo. They are, ofcOurse, only the
latest and finest, for Emma put TO sleep
every year, as she used to say, thousands
of dollars worth OF clothes by giving them
away at the end of the season. Every
season she made an outlay OF not less than
$4,000 Tor new costumes. ! have with me
about $50 distinct costumes Each dress
has particular name and many have in
cidents connected with them. There is,
for instance, the 'Chickssaw' dress named
o. barn in, MaY,r,hT5
during her season there which was worn
with her famous Rising Sun mantle. The
entire weight of this costume is 80
pounds. / don't mind showing you the
mantle, because intend to keep il as an
heirloom. Here it is"
The garment appeared indeed marvel.
Ii is OF dark blue velvet, solidly and en-
tirely EN- embroidered with beads and threads
of gold and silver and other metals in
such way as TO represent one grand ris-
ing sun and eleven miniature suns. Its
size is enormous and its weight is at least
seventy-five pounds. Every one OF
Emma's stage dresses was made either by
Worth or Felix" continued Mrs. Clarke.
There are the costumes of nearly every
piece that my sister appeared in, includ-
ing short as we'll as trailing dresses. The
latest made no of the costumes were worn
III Aullt DOlclu.
THAT one worn in the second act cost
$1,000 and is an elaborate fac simile of the
Queen Anne costume exhibited IN the
Louvre. 1t is a pink satin, sOlidly en-
broidered with jewels in front, the train of
mOss-green brocaded plush, bOrdered with
pink applique. There are the sapphire
blue velvet hunting dress worn in the
third act, the ruby dress for the first act
and the white chiffon trimmed with
guipure lace. These are the Louis Blanc
dresses, the 'Ernani,' the Carmen, Rose
of Castillo and so on.
There has been so much talk about
Emma's costume, in which she was Gre
mated, that | will tell exactly what it
was. 1t was the five-thousand-dolar lilac
dress that she wore in 'Ernani' the last
time she appeared on the stage. Ii was
made by Felix, end was of heliotrope vel
vet and the heaviest white brocaded
satin, bordered with white and lavender
lilacs and green velvet. The cremation
of Emma's body was kept secret on &C
count of my mother. 4 portion OF the
veil worn by sister at the funeral has been
cut into small pieces and distributed as
souvenirs among her friends. Ii was the
gold thread in this veil, the other part of
which was over her face when placed in
the retort, that produced the globule OF
gold found in her ashes. The veil was
the one so often kissed in the balcony
scene in Romeo and Juliet