Evening star., 1900-07-25
the nail exactly on the head:

Narrow-Shouldered Directors.
To the Editor of The Evening Star:
l see by your paper that there few
male salamanders who are vigorously op-
posed to the ON with your coats move
ment, and 1 am truly sorry for such un-
fortunates. It's cookies to doughnuts'
that they're a sort of n-the-manger"
lot that have narrow, ugly shoulders and
wouldn't any more think of going without
their padded coats than a girl would go
without her-well, 1t really isn't necessary
to bring the girls into the subject. But
anyway, it's just pure vanity which makes
a few narrow-shouldered men howl about
the coatlesS man being undignfied.
ETHEL MACK.
Another Man Answers "A Man."
To the Editor of The Evening Star:
Since the opening of the coat off, cru
sade in your paper there have been many
arguments pro and con, but none as foolish
as the one signed "A Man" Judging from
what he writes. as he seems to live solely by
the rules of the grand conventionality. This
conventionality is not attacked by man
who sheds his coat in weather like that of
last week, for there Is nothing indecent to
any right-mtnded person in going without
a coat At least there is more trans
gression in this line by the man than there
is by the woman in the shirt waist The
delirious rawlings mentioned have at their
back the desire for comfort of 10 per cent
of the masculine population of this country.
The statement that no gentleman would
discard his coat and vest and appear in a
half-clad condition is the purest bosh, for
taking off ones coat is not reducing ones
self to a half-clad condition.
The coatfess man is not an abomina ton
and he will be tolerated just as much as
the rainy-day skirt or the golf suit is now
tolerated in any weather. Nor is 1t to be
deplored that the ladies favor the idea
IT l.. ~ifrIf tn -iner haf
their voice will have great deal to do
with the decision. and it is greatly to their
credit that they have enough regard for
the comfort of their husbands, brothers,
sons and fathers to countenance the inno-
walton.
Refrigerator objects to the coatless
man on the ground that coat covers the
"unseeElly suspenders and soiled shirts.
She seems to go on the assumption that all
men wear unseemly suspenders and dirty
shirts. This makes one feel sorry for the
men she is acquainted with, for the ma
jority of men don't come under her impu-
tation. A man with a clean neglige and
a belt looks fully as gentlemanly as one
with a crumpled office coat, and certainly
feels twice as comfortable. Therefore, let
every man that is a gentleman and cares
for his comfort shed his coat during the
next hot spell. ANOTHER MAN.
Takes Issue With Refrigerator.
To the Editor of The Evening Star:
In reading over the letters in The Star
of Saturday on the coatless man, and par
ticularly the one signed Refrigerator" 1
would like to state that that lice box"
has indulged in some remarks that are
certainly not complimentary to the male
sex, either coated or coatless She says
in part: THE coat Of a few ounces weight
(?) - covers the unseemly suspenders,
the soiled shirt and the surrounding atmos-
phere is less offensive and more sanitary.
Now, in answer to that, among the labor
ing classes and during the hours of labor
those conditions most surely prevail, but
little quiet investigation on the part Of
the lice box among the other classes,
will convince her that the so-called un-
seemly suspender is not such an unseem-
ly object after all, nor are the shirts soiled.
THE ''Refrigerator's' solicitation for our
manliness is really touching, but by leav-
ing the question to be settled by the men
themselves she will confer great favor
upon US, and you can rest assured that we
will settle 1t to the best interests of all
concerned. without losing a spark Of our
manliness c. E. B.