Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1902-08-02

The woman with the washed out
polka-dot gown looked sadly at her
friend in the fresh looking tan linen
frock who had called to see her.
What are you looking so blue
about?" asked the tan linen girl. The
washed-out woman eyed her sharply.
Then she flushed.
Il suppose you mean my gown"
she replied. "No doubt you are sur
prised to see me wearing such raggy
looking thing-but I'm doing it as a
punishment"
The tan linen girl looked the washy
gown over. Are your sins as bad
as that?" she said. Il can hardly
believe it."
mo womanly woman should ever
bet on horse race!" announced she
who was being punished.
"Oh, | don't know!" said the tan
linen girl. Il won a hat and dozen
gloves and two pounds of bon bons
on the Suburban"
ooh, pouf! l don't mean bets like
that. You never have to pay if you
lose. ! mean real money"
Il never knew you were that sort
of a grill" said the tan linen one.
mo, | am not; that's the trouN'e.
| don't know anything about it. But
there are worse things. 1t all began
with this gown-this limp, spotty look
ing thing you see me wearing. This
is one of those alluring creations that
you see in shop windows on beauti-
full blonde wax lady with red finger
nails"
Just fancy" said the tan linen
girl.
you wouldn't notice the gown at
all except that you see it from the
street car You wouldn't see it ex-
cept that 1t has a big staring price
mark on the wax lady's chest or hang
ing from her elbow like theater bag.
This holds you and although you may
have the natural, Unborn antipathy for
purchasing goods that are marked in
windows, 1t fascinates you like a
Japanese crystal.
"In reality it is a regularly cooked
up trap for catching feminine Holsters,
and there is always lot more lobster
to feminine one than the other kind.
You stand staring at the gown and
say to yourself: Twenty-Five dollars.
Goodness. That's how some women
manage to dress so cheaply. Now |
should go to Chargem's and pay forty
five for ore no better
"You don't really think of getting
the gown, but you yield to the tempta-
ton of going in a shop that you've
never been in before. You are met
inside the door by an imposing speci-
men of masculinity, who smiles and
bows with certain magnificent UNI
bending of dignity and then almost
carries you to the elevator. When you
are projected on the floor designated
you are met by another man. He
usually looks as though he'd seen bet
Ter days and has that straggly sort Of
whiskers that you might call near
whiskers.
This man scrapes before you and
,all out young woman, 6 feet high
with a 4S bust measure, who passes
they have you landed In the basket.
You feel positively ashamed to have
come in for such a cheap gown. Ere.
quently all they have 10 do is to bring
out $50 or a 500 gown at lnis
stage and you order it."
"If you have the money, you mean?"
"And sometimes when you don't
have it. You find the gowns are made
up without any silk lining. That, of
course. reduces their value, but the
heavyweight girl tells you they are so
light for summer. Then with n sort
of Japanese wrestling tactics they get
one around you in some way before a
tall mirror and pull it down in the
back just as Warfeld does when he
sells a coat in the play and tell you
that all it needs is little alteration.
This is just what narpeLed to me.
| will say that the Juno girl seemed