The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-02-25
AN IDEAL BACHELOR.
AwRlTER WHO UNDERTAKES roTELL
ALL ABOUT HIM.

How IIe Must Dress and the Rules of Con-
duct lie Must Observe to BE Chased ms
Complete Bachelor"- His Manner
With Ladies' and Servants.
There are those who would say that a
bachelor has no business to be complete;
that 1t Is the duty of every young man
to marry ut the earliest practicable mo-
ment and so give over the selfish joys
of bachclorhood. But as long as young
men i'll their lamentable desire to be
comfortable refuse to look ut the matter
i'll that light there is need that they
should be duly instructed i'll the proper
ties OF their position, and what better
Instructor could they have than tho
anonymous genius who writes of things
AS Seen by Him. i'll that very fash
ionable publication, Vogue? 1t is he who
tells them what 1.-THE complete bach
elor' should be, and if they are wise
they will listen TO his words. All the
contingencies which arise in the social
life OF the bachelor are duly considered
First, there is the matter of his public
manners, i'll which many men who re-
gard themselves us well bred are woe,
fully deficient. They will smoke i'll tho
street, keep women standing on corners
while they talk to them, sit while wom-
Ell arc standing, carry sticks or umbrcl-
las at offensive angles, stare women out
OF cOuntcnance at thcatcrs or hotels.
and Ill general make nuisanccS of them
selves. Now, 4 bachelor who will do
any OF these things is wrctchcdly i'll
complete.
Then comes the question of clothes.
Nothing more distinguishes the gentle
man than what he wears Nor is it
enough, as many do, to be nice in the
matter of gloves, shoes or cravat.s and
owe largo sums to the tailor Dressing
is not so much matter Of money as q
matter Of taste. After II man has put
his wardrobe i'll proper condition he
may get along remarkably we'll on q
very small yearly sum. Our author does
not dlsdain to give economical hints,
to tell how the tailor around the corner
will do perfectly well some things for
which the ''swcll'' tailor would charge
roundly, TO explain how to get out of Il
suit the utmost possible service. Such
things are beneath no mans attention.
though he be IL genius or Il millionaire.
Until the art of dressing properly is un.
derstood, the moral progress of society
VIII remain an idle dream We need
not add that tho man who wears Il
made tie belongs i'll the outer dark
ness of barbarism. II is gratifying also
to note that the use of the Tuxedo, or
house coat, is earnestly recommended
Since every complete bachelor will in
variably dress for dinner, he will find
i'll the Tuxedo an economical and easy
substitute fer the more rigorous full
dress coat. and one that can be worn
not only at home, but i'll informal com
panics of gentlemen and at the thcatcr
Or i'll Il public restaurant. We note that
our author speaks IL good word for the
black tic with Tuxedo. though he does
not absolutely bar a white one This is
a question upon which no thoroughly
satisfactory ruling has ever been made.
For our own part we think that those
occasions Whcrc0n Il man feels il white
tic incumbent also demand Il ''swallor
tail' coat
The toilet is not less important than
the dress. ScrupulouS care i'll this re-
spect is certainly the mark OF IL com
pletc bachelor. That !, man should take
his tub every morning goes without say
ing. At the same time there is no need
to insist upon the rigor of the game and
say that the water shall be cold. Tepid
water is best Every man should learn
10 shave himself - These are golden
words y barber is occasionally ncces-
Sary no doubt, but there is something
offensive TO refined scnsibilitics i'll the
picture of Il long row of men i'll chairs
having Il part of their toilet performed.
Our author says nothing of the habit of
having boots BACKED i'll the street, lust
~ regarding it us one so bad as to be
unspeakablc. Patent tooth powders,
washes, pomatums and .nostruns of
every kind are condemned without re-
serve. This, too shows good sense The
care OF toilet articles is rightly insisted
upon. man cannot be u complete
bachelor unless he is yelling to take
some trouble. The custom of wearing
the hair long is disapprovcd
No point is too minute for the consid-
Grafton Of this thoughtful writer. The
etiquette of cards is matter upon
which lamentable ignorance is often
displayed, and i'll calling and dining
out there are those who show the lack
of breeding. The practice of grasping
or squeezing the hand of lady is (bar-
ring exceptional circumstances unad-
vlsable. "a MAN removes his glove.
from his right hand on entering the
drawing room, and holds this, with his
stick and hat, i'll his left. Tho hat should
he at an angle, the top about level with
his nose. " This is important But some
thing more than mere politcncss is re-