Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1897-07-28
WHAT MAY BE
Bellamy on Dress I'm the Twentieth
Century,

| ON Dress In the Twentieth
Century.
In his new and interesting book on
Equality" published by D. Appleton
d Co., Edward Bellamy takes the fol-
lowing glimpse into the future as re-
lating to the question of dress:
The extremely delicate tints of
Edlth's costume led me to remark that
the color effects of the modern dress
seemed to be in general very light as
compared with those which prevailed
in my day.
The result 1 said, lis extremely
pleasing, but if you will excuse rather
prosaic suggestion, it occurs to me that
with the whole nation given over to
wearing these delicate schemes of col
or, the accounts for washing must be
pretty large. l should suppose they
would swamp the national treasury if
laundry bills are anything like what
they used to be-"
Doubtless we could not do much
else if we washed our clothes" she
said; but you see we do not wash
them"
Not wash them! Why not?'
Because we don't think it nice to
wear clothes again after they have
been so much soiled as to need wash
ing"
We'll, l won't say that I am sur
prised," / replied; I'm fact, I think ?
am no longer capable of being sur
Prlsed at anything; but perhaps you
Will kindly tell me what you do with a
dress when it becomes soiled.~
I'VE throw it away-that is, it goes
back to the mills to be made into some
thing else
Indeed! To my nineteenth-century
intellect. throwing away clothes would
seem even more expensive than wash
ing it,"
"Oh. no. much less so. What do.you,
suppose. now, this costume of mine
cost?"
II don't know, I'm sure Dneyer had
wife to pay dressmakers' bills for,
but should say certainly it cost a.
great deal of money"
such costumes cost from ten to
twenty CENTS said Edith. What do
you suppose it is made OFF"
took the edge of her mantle. be-
tween my fingers.
Il thought it was silk or fine linen
l replied, "but see it is not: Doubt
less it is some new fiber"
I'VE have discovered MANY new
fibers, but it is rather a question of
process than material that I had in
mind. This is not a textile fabric at
all. but paper, That is the most COM
mon material for garments nova
days."
"But-but," L exclaimed. what if. it.
should come on to rain on these paper
clothes? Would they not melt, and at
a little strain would they not part?"
"A costume such as this" said Edith.
is not meant for stormy weather, and
yet it would by nomeans melt in a rain
Storm, however severe. For storm
garments we have a paper that is alb
solutely impervious- to moisture on the
outer surface. AS, to- toughness, L
think you would find it as hard to tear
this paper as any ordinary cloth. The
fabric is SO. strengthened with fiber as,
to hold together very stoutly-"
But in winter. at least, when YOU
need warmth, you must have to fall.
back; on your OLD friend, the Sheep"
You mean garments made of sleeps,
hair? Oh. no, there is no modern use
for them. Porous, paper makes gar
ment quite as warm as wooden could.
and vastly lighter than the clothes you
had. Nothing but eider-down, could:
have been at once so'warm and light as,
our winter coats. of paper
"And cotton.-linen!, Don't tell me.
that they have been given up, like.
wool?"'
'Oh. no;: we weave fabrics of these
and other vegetable products, and they
are nearly as cheap as paper, but paper
is so much lighter and more easily
fashioned into all shapes that it is gen
orally preferred for garments. But at
any rate. we should consider no, ma
terial fit for garments which could not
be thrown away after being soiled.
The idea of washing and cleaning
articles of bodily use and using them
over again would be. quite intolerabIe.
For this reason. while we want beau
tiful garments, we distinctly do not
want durable ones. In your day, it
seems, even worse than the practice of
washing garments to, be used again,
you were in the habit of keeping your
outer garments without washing at
all. not only day after day, but week
after week. year after year, sometimes.
whole lifet1mes. when they were spe-
cial1y valuable and finally, perhaps,
giving them away to- others. 1t seems
that women sometimes kept their we'd
ding dresses long enough for their
daughters to- wear at their weddings.
That woald seem shocking to as, and
yet. even your fine ladies did such
things. As for what the poor had to
do IN the way of keeping and wearing
their old clothes till they went to rags,
that is something won't bear thinking
Of
1T is rather startling 1 said, "to
find the problem of clean clothes
solved by the abolition of the washtub,
| although perceive that that was the
only radical solution"
Galen Clark. who has just resigned
the post of guardian of the Yosemite
valley. went there about 40 years ago,
expecting to die in year or two of con-
sumption. He is now SO years old and
| hale and hearty.
SCIENTIFIC SCRAPS.
1t has been estimated that an oak of
rs, A. CO. -