The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-18
SOMETHING AnouT SILKS.
They Were Never SO Cheap, and There
Were Never SO Many of Them.
New York Times.

1t is a funny thing about silks this
year., said the silk man. AT one time
You could say that such and such a silk
was IN fashion because all the women were
buying that kind, but it isn't that way
now. Women are buying everything under
the sun in the way of silks. There are
brocades, small-pattemed silks, stripes -
everything; we can't say that we are SELL
ing more OF one kind than another. because
we sell them all.
Women like something different? Well.
| guess you are about right there. |
rad woman come in the other day and
say that her sister had bought such and
such kind of silk at another shop, and
she wanted a silk, but that it must be en-
tlrely different Well. l showed her every
thing there was in the shop, but the trouble
was she didn't know what she did want, ex-
cept that it must be different from anything
she had ever seen. That is the way
IL IS. AT one time a man had his regular
customers, who would always come to him
FOR what they wanted, and he could always
supply them But it is not so now. A
woman comes in and looks everything all
over, and then-takes a sample. 1t is hard
on a man who is judged by the sales he
makes, and the firm thinks he is no good
Why, I can remember the time, when
L went into the business as a boy, that
women were perfectly well satisfied if they
had only a few kinds of silk to select
from, say brown and green and blue
and few coors like that. Now you can't
get up new things fast enough for them,
and they are not satisfied at that. With
me competition, 1t means great deal.
You can't have few pieces of certain
kind of silk on hand, and where there is
g greater variety and a larger stock there
is more danger of loss.
Take light silks. At one time silks that
We're used for house wear in the winter
would do for outdoor spring and summer
wear. But there is nothing of that kind
now We have to have a special variety
of silk for the spring trade. Silks never
We're so cheap Last year they We're
cheaper than they ever had been i'm the
history of the trade If a woman doesn't
have a silk gown nowadays, it is because
she is too particular to find anything THAT
suits her Women are doing less of their
own shopping now than they used to- They
leave more of that to their dressmakers
now. Think of q girl letting any one buy
her wedding gown a few years ago. She
and all the members of her family would
make a business of shopping for it, but
there is nothing of that kind now. Perhaps
there is just as much sentiment, but the
bride simply tells her dressnaaker what she
wants, and she gets the goods, possibly a
sample first, if the girl has a great deal to
say about her gowns, but likely she will not
see it until the material is in the house.
Things are different, and we all feel it. The
competition is so great that the salaries OF
the clerks are not half what they We're, Cnd
now, where a man would a number of years
ago have had q small shop of his own end
make enough to support his family COM
fortably, he has to take half the money in
the employ of some one else. Oh, yes,
women spend more money than they did.
but they have more things for which to
spend it."