Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-05-24
ONE WOMAN'S TROUBLES

eff I ever move away from Washington
to another city 1 am going to save myself
lot of bother in my new place of abode
by doing two things-first, I'm going to
buy a cute little gag for my husband.
and, second, I'm going to soleInnly de-
clare to all Of the women friends
that 1 make that 1 can't sew a stitch for
the life of me- said clever little matron
who moved to Washington from Chicago a
few years ago THE gag will be used TO
prevent my husband from Dragging about
me, and the declaration to my inability
to sew stitch do anything handy with
my hands will help me out in accomplishing
my purpose, hope.
Before my marriage in Chicago. you
know, l was in the millinery business. l
learned the millinery art from the begin
ming to the end of it, and, of course. I've
always made my own hats. L never meant
to have that fact known when 1 came to
Washington. not, of course. out of any
feeling of silly pride, but because 1 was
perfectly well aware that if the fact got
cut among my women friends here I'd be
pestered to death. AS matter of fact, L
never did say a word about being mifliner.
but, of course, couldn't keep my husband
from Dragging about the hats that l made
for myself
Now. what dye think of that lid? he
would slangily say to friends that we met
while out walking, pointing to some new
hat that had recently fixed up for myself.
Made it herself, and isn't it a peach?'
After the EXPLANATIONS of delight on the
part of the women to whom he would thus
brag of my skill as a milIiner, he would go
on to say some ridiculous things about my
being able to so down town and pick out a
lot of hat gear for 40 cents or SO, and with
these things rig up dream of a hat that
would cost SO or $50 in millinery estab-
lishment.
q tried several times to make this hus-
band of mine see that he was liable to get
me in lot of bother by his telling every
body that was such a wonder maker
or feminine hats, but one might just as well
| try to stem mountain cascade with a toy
sieve as TO stop the praises Of ones hus-
pand when he starts in that way.
The result is every woman friend that
We got in Washington knows that 1 am a
mllllner, and their various ways of avail
| ing themselves of this information is the
| thlng that is keeping me thin I've had a
| particularly hard spring of it on that ac-
| count this year There hasn't day passed
| for l don't know how long that one or more
| of my women friends haven't dropped in
to ask my advice about their new spring
| hats.
Asking my advice is always the way
they put 1t. They begin that way, but
| their asking my advice invariably leads
| on to an accumulation of work for me-
I haven't the least idea in the world
how to have my new hat trimmed. is one
| of their regular stock beginnings and YOU
| have such perfectly lovely taste you
know and then they leave the sentence
| uncompleted, waiting, of course. for me
to fill it out by volunteering to help them
| in their selection. If 1 fail to do that-and
| I'm bound to say that I'm not nearly so
| obiiging in that respect | was before
my women friends began to overdo the
| thing-they are not the least bit bashful in
| coming right out and asking me to accam-
! pany them down town to the millinery
stores to help them choose their hats.
| What possible chance have 1 to refuse
| such plain requests without appearing dis
| obliging and ungracious? 1 despise shop-
| ping of every kind and character and do
| all of my own purchasing in a very swift
| and haphazard manner because shopping
| tires ME So yet l am compelled to spend
| hours down town with women friends-who,
| to my grief, have such tremendous reliance
| upon my ability to pick and choose head
| wear for them.
Some of them really want me to help
| them select ready-made hats but these are
| IN distinct minority. Most of them have
| thelr little plan of campaign all marked out
! IN advance OF dragging me TO the millinery
shops with them, and they decidedly mean
| that l shall make their hats for them
| All of my efforts to induce these women to
| buy made-up hats are, of course, of no
| avail. and when l select their hat frames
| and trimmings for them l am always pre-
| pared for the next move on their part
How IN the world l am ever to make
| up this hat, declare I don't know is what
| they all say. finger to lip, after the frames
and trimmings are duly bought and then
| they calmly wait for me to step in and
| offer to help them. Helping them means
making the hat from beginning to end. If
| L don't make this offer they pretend to be
| greatly embarrassed over the little thing
| that they're going to say, and then they
| say it something like this
:" Dear me, if you would only make this
| hat for me, Mrs. T., after your own per-
| fectly cute and lovely ideas as to how it
| ought to be made, why. 1 should be willing
| you know-and l know you're sensible
| enough not to be offended for my mention
in hat how
| pay a regular milliner to do the work, you
| know
| Now. most Of them know perfectly well.
| as I've told them. that L couldn't think of
| entering into any such transaction-that
my husband would simply swell up and
| er-well, explode over the very idea Of
| such thing. So you'll perceive how nice
| ly they corner me in the matter as thew
| deliberately intended to corner me from the
| beginning What else can l say, except to
! repeat what they Well know, that 1 could
| not think of such a thing as taking money
| for trimming friends hat, and to tell
| them that L shall be delighted-heaven for
| give me for the number of times I've said
| that!-to trim their hats?
Then they fix a morning upon which
| they'll run over with the things to get
| trimming suggestions from me- and when
| they run over on these mornings with
| the things I've helped them to buy it's
simply case of my Pumping myself down
and making hats for them that they would
| really have to pay eXtravagantly for if
| they bought them made-up or had them
| trimmed in the regular millinery shops
In asking me to .he1p them pick out
frames and trimmings not few of the
women actually expect me to get my own
| Tiiliners discount at the shops for them
and, would you believe it. some of them
have really pouted over it when 1 haven't
| done this!
And are they really grateful for the
work that one does for them and the money
| that one saves for them in this way? Oh,
| ! MOT l.,oer 7
| from meeting of the euchre club to which
| l belong. The women of the club got to
| talking of the pretty hats they declared 1
| always Wore. Then spake up a woman for
| whom L have repeatedly made hats, and
| she said. in an exceedingly cutting and
| snobbish way, as l was told this:
| 'Er-hum-ya-as, she WEAKLY ought to
| be able to make hats, y'know-she was a
! millinery gy-url in a shawp. | u~A=~stsnd,
| in Chicago, or some such place, fore L.
| married her. y'know