Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-02-02

49,
Tailor. I am not perfect gentleman. but
give you my word L have a few of the
instincts of one. What L want for my
down. trodden, dresS-ridden sex is a simple
black swallow tail of strictly conservative
cut and style, vest to matcn, PLAIN
skirt with a simple crease down the front
free from cores, godelets and gawdS or
every description. l also want the hem fin
iShed with some sort of snap-sprinS at
tachment. enabling one to turn 1t up
around the bottom in case 1t should ram
in London any night I may be going to
and from the ball. More than this L want
nothing from you but little information
concerning the best shirtmaker in town.
A Mems Furnishing store.
This really settled the matter, though
subsequently 1 learned that if a man has
the mind he can cultivate softening of the
brain, deciding whether his collar shall be
notched or a shawl. whether the length OF
his coat tails shall be twenty-seven and a
half inches or twenty-seven and three
quarters: also whether to have the cloth
one of half a dozen black stuffs that are
all alike till you get to thinking they are
different.
To actually start my reformed full dress
for women required the services of three
men, There was a ladies' tailor to take
my measure, there was a clerk to write
down figures and take notes of my new
philosophy, and the man tailor to direct
the whole.
From the tailor's I went to the shirt
makers, who, good, thoughtful soul, said
while taking my measure that he would
open mine all the way down the front, so
that / could get into it easier" Later
was to rebuke myself for not having fallen
upon this mans neck and thanked him for
his thoughtfulnesS. y gents furnishing
store is 50 foreign to the usual surround
ings of woman, / am afraid did not give
sufficient heed the pumbar of but
my shirt properly should show. Be
sides my mind was so engrossed consid-
erInS whether I should have screw or but
ton buttons, that the question of how many
escaped me in my my struggle to fix upon
the right kind. Then, too, there was the
question of the collar. Two and five-eighths
inches seemed by the tape measure to be
all my neck could stand, and yet there was
the mans argument that when l was all
dressed up Id probably carry my head
little higher, so We finally put it down.
collar 81.
Collars and Hats.
But whether thu shirt and collar should
he made tosether-aye, that was rub.
The man said you can usually wear one
shirt to two collars. My cuffs were also
made on the shirt.
When / finally emerged, worn and weary,
from the gents furnishing and turned my
feet toward a hat store, 1 was beginning to
TedIlZt lHStl HStu d liIiSldhe ali
life long in believing that the descendants
of Eve alone suffered from our errinr
mothers sentence. Men are not born dress
ed. neither do their clothes grow. 1t is
really an awful burden to dress like
gentleman.
ran down every halter in town looking
for a crush hat. / had it straight from
New York that gents will not, others must
rot, be seen at evening functions sans
crush hat Furthermore. l had jumped,
and all but cried murder at the thedter
night, hearing loud report discharged by
an ambassador. which on closer scutiny l
found proceeded from the crush hat he had
Just touched off, so that there was no ques-
ton in my mind of the headgear l must
have to go with my swallow-tail coat
Fit of n shirt.
My patent leather shoes. 1 may tell you,
are built on a mans last, and fitted out
with handy strap at the top on the back,
which will make lifting myself over
fence in case 1 should come to one in So
ciety a very simple matter. indeed.
My first fitting was had with a mans
ready made shirt, pending the finish of my
own. Right here 1 want to recall every
harsh word l have ever spoken about
mems temper and their common tendency
to profanity. When L stood for the time
being. and, believed. forever lost to life,
liberty and all / loved. with that reach
me-Gown shirt stuck fast on my back hair.
only the recollection that men have no
back hair seemed any warrant for neglect
ing to canoniZe every man who is in the
habit of putting his in the same way.
Then it was l realized all the charity-the
chiValrous impulse to protect weak wo-
man from the hardships of his own life
that had prompted the shirt maker to pro-
pose constructing mine on the NaSSar plan.
One girl and two tailors were required to
properly fit the only and original society
swallow tail for a lady. 1 don't want to
discourage my imitators, nor need L. since
those who come after me will reap the re-
ward of my pioneer effort in this field; but
to be fitted for N-shaped baSque-waiSted,
court-trained. gored petticoat ball gown is
the work of an electric button compared
with the serious, soul-disturbing, brow
wrinl1ing task. of fitting a swallow tail.
And OH 1 cannot tell you the horrors of
the narrow escape l had at the hands of
the ladies' tailor, who, but for the timely
interference of the gents tailor, would
have made my vest with TOUR buttons in
stead of three.
Wanted to Go in style.
1 had three fittirgs, and as the shapely
garments gathered art end glory under the
deft touch of three pair of the most skillful
hands in the profession, 1 remembered, to
be sure that clothes do not make the man,
and at the same time 1 was so improved
as to be glad 1 was not made to go with
out any.
However, my honest heart was troubled
with the copy-book moral-handsome is as
handsome does. What if 1 should not act
up to my clothes?
once narrowed by this thought, there
was no rest for me till I had been to
professor of dancing, Delsarte and deport-
ment. to get enough of the last to carry
me through a Presidents reception.
/ told the professor where L was going
and that L wanted to go in style, words
to that effect.
He seemed to grasp my meaning instant
ly. and assured me that he teaches all the
society girls in Washington just what
needed to know. The charges, he said,
would be two dollars for an hour, or one
dollar for half an hour. / told him that
while not meaning to assert anything of
my supply of department. l thought dol
lars worth would be all L would need for
one Presidents reception.
ThereupOn, We repaired to a dancing
hail. and he, representing Mrs. Cleveland,
with a chair beside him for the President,
stood up to receive me.
Reception Manners.
bad; very bad, indeed" was his iudg-