The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1900-03-16
WE'LL DRESSED MEN.
ORDER OF THE CITIES IN WHICH
THEY MOST ABOUND.

and New York Trails Along Fifth.
I'D probably be discharged. mobbed
and have all sorts Of things happen to
me if / said this over in the big town,
| but / can name you at least four Amer
| lean cities the men OF which are bet
ter dressed year in and year out than
| the men Of New York. said a man
who travels for a New York merchant
tailor's supply house and whose terri
tory is the whole continent. IN name
| them in the order Of their standing as
communities inhabited by the best
dressed men: Denver, San Francisco,
| Chicago and Washington. How do |
| figure it? Just according to the rule
Of sight, that's all. I don't profess to
| know much about Egyptology, but l Go
know well dressed man when l see
! him.
mind, l don't say that all Of the
| men Of those four cities are better
| dressed than all of the men Of New
| York, but | do maintain and say any
! impartial man who knows the four
| towns mentioned as they are now VIII
uphold me in maintaining that in ratio
to their respective populations the men
of Denver, San Francisco, Chicago and
Washington are very much better
| dressed than are the men of New York
OF course this has been the case only
in very recent years. New York was
until, say, five years ago away ahead
of all its rivals as q city Of the best
dressed men. At that time if you want
ed to see hundreds Of perfectly dress.
ed and perfectly groomed men engag-
ed in doing business all you had to do
was to take an elevated train up town
in the neighbOrhood of 10 o'clock in the
morning and watch the men, young,
middle aged and old, who boarded the
train for the down town financial dis
trict
"Of course you'll still see slews OF
thoroughly got Up men down in the
financial district of New York, but nos
50 many by IS per cent as formerly.
On show occasions, such as Easter
Sunday afternoon, New York will still
turn out finely clad batch of men, but
Pm not talking about show occasions
now. I'm talking about men who are
we'll clad year in and year out and it
is in this respect that New York has
fallen into the also ram list.
"When you meet up town in New
York q genuinely sWagger man-not a
f1ashily dressed man, but one who is
thoroughly and properly rugged OUT
from his hat to his shoes-you are liza
BILE to turn around to get a rear view
Of him, and then the fact is liable TO
be slowly borne in upon you that he is
some member of q theatrical profess
sion whom you have seen upon the
stage. There are still plenty of fashi-
ly dressed men circulating around New
York, but q fashily dressed man never
will be a well dressed man.
'"The reason why the men Of Denver
are such q we'll dressed lot isn't entire
ly clear to me. It can't be especially
because there are SO many well off men
in that town, because there are myri-
ads Of we'll off men in New York.
A32ybe it is because, in proportion to
the population, there are probably
more men with large incomes in Den
yer than in any city on the continent
not excepting Helena, that used to
bear that distinction. You scarcely
ever see q badly dressed or an over
dressed man in Denver Shabby men
there are ia plenty, OF course, but /
don't call q shabby man q badly dress
ed man A badly dressed man is one
who, while having plenty Of means to
equip himself with q good make up,
hasn't the taste to do 1t ana therefore
makes his appearance as a SLOUGH
that's the word for it-slouch A shah
by man is simply man who is on his
uppers and makes no pretensions.
"The clerks and other men Of very
moderate incomes in Denver men who
can't afford to keep ia the push as far
as correct dressing goes, don't make
any effort whatever to t0g themselves
out in cheap, dismal imitation Of the
men with plenty Of money; but like
the young woman in the song they al
ways dress in black The business
men who run plants Of their own, how
ever, seem to pay just as much atten-
ton to the job of getting themselves
ready for business on weekday morn
ings as they Go to the task Of arraying
themselves for social functions Or
evening appearances.
t'Easterners who have gone out to
the coast. have often commented upon
the sweetness Of the average well fixed
San Francisco man in the matter Of
clothes. The San Francisco man with
an income certainly gets himself up
proper as we say, and he's got the
right kind OF q make up for every oc-
casion. Take the race tracks around
San Francisco, for example. Every
man who goes to. the races cut there
goes in 8 regular racing rig. from pad
dock coat to feIdg!ass and from the
top Of his dat crowned derby to the
soles Of his downs boCts, and SO do
the Frisco women, for tile matter of
that. Another thing, I'll venture TO
assert that nine ont of ten men in San
Francisco whose incomes are $4,000 a
year OF. over rig out in evening clothes
nvo7y night in the wear Summer in