Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1896-01-06
A New French Petticoat.

A pettlcOat seen IN recent exhibition
of gowns of an uptown dressmaker will
do much, it is expected, to mitigate the
announcement of fashions arbiters that
dresses are still to be worn with volu-
minOus skirts. The expense and weight
of the stiffening fabrics that are usually
employed in the fashionably hanging
skirt are two serious detriments that
had to accept.
The petticoat in question is in general
appearance the ordinary silk or Saline
petticoat. with wide, faring ruff1e
around the bottom, which is held out by
continuous featherbone sewed in it's
hem. On the under side, however, it
it fitted with an ingenious arrangement
of ribbon steel, slipped into braid pockets
that with infnitesimal lightness but am
pie strength, hold the dress skirt, under
which it is worn, in perfect position. 1t
was the beautiful hang of the wide skirts
that attracted attention and elected in
quiry as to it's achievement.
The whole attachment weighs but two
ounces and half, and as no lining is
needed in the dress skirt it may be real
lied how great a saving of weight is
secured.
MY customers" explained the dress
maker, take two petticoats, one of dark
silk or Saline, for street wear, and one
of light silk, with lace-trimmed fiounces,
their wardrobes can go over any one
of these, and no stiffening of any sort
is put in the gown skirt. The petit
coats are cut peculiar shape to fit the
attachment, and the result is the soft,
perfect hang which has been noticed.
A loop on either side of the dress skirt
at the back side seams fastens to but
tons on the petticoat, SO there is no
swinging out of place, and there can be
no crushing of the skirt if it ais sat on
all day, as the elasticity of the steel,
made especially for this purpose, pre-
vents all that. Another thing my custom
ers particularly like abo1t it is that
one hand, grasping the steel curve near
est the waistband, holds dress up easily
and completely. Every woman has COM
planned of the difficulty in keeping these
full skirts clear of the pavement when
necessary"
The petticoat has a French name, and
presumably halls from the home OF cleV-
er devices Paris-New York Journal.
Finding Girls Vocation.
It is constantly impressed upon boy
during the four years of college train
ing that he must find out what he is
good for; he must either be fit or ready
to be fitted to do something which will
have a definite market value. But the
destiny of the girl who goes to college
is carefully concealed from nef. II you
marry you will need biology, the: sci
ences of life and reproduction; hygiene,
the wisdom to attain and preserve health;
sociology, the laws which govern indi-
viduals in society; chemistry, physics,
economies, all the sciences which may
help to solve the problems which the
housewife must meet literature and Ian
guage, the vehicles of poetry and in
spiration. No one has the courage to sug-
eest any one of these as suitable-nay,
absolutely essential-to the successful
fulfllment of her probable vocation in
life. Young women are turned blindly
adrift among a mass of subjects, with
no guide but a perverted instinct and
with many hindrance in the shape of
tradition and ridicule. In all ages men
have united in adoration}of the dignity
of domesticity and sacredness of mother
hood, yet any low g, foolish, unframed,
inefficient creature has been held to be
good enough to be a wife and mother.
We do not expect a man to become a
distinguished engineer or professor of
Latin by studying a little literature. his
tory, music and language; yet we eX-
pect a woman to undertake an occupa-
ton for which, in this age at least, a
certain definite kind of training is neces-