Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-03-29
Observation-Disclosures
THEORY OF RELATION BETWEEN
HOUSES AND HEADGEAR.
Proposition Advanced by an Architect
in Honolulu-RoofS of Homes
and Heads.
From the Honolulu Advertiser.

From the Honolulu Advertiser.
Hats and Houses was the subject of a
novel twenty-minute Illustrated talk given
by Edgar Allen Poe Newcomb. the archi-
tect, in the rooms of the Young Womens
Christian Association. Mr.. Newcomb's adj
dress was intended to show the relation
ship of the headgear of various peoples in
both ancient and modern times TO their
habitations and public buildings. In forty
large colored illustrations, designed per-
sonally by Mr.. Newcomb, the similarity
was made striking. The designs were ar
ranged in pairs, one to show the hat and
manner of wearing. and the other the style
of architecture based upon it.
The speaker began by saying that his
talk was upon Hats and Houses. or Head
gear and Habitation," but which should
come first In order was difficult to deter
mine. as difficult as 1t is to determine
whether primitive man wore clothes before
he chose his cave. He said that every
nation under the sun has its own style of
architecture, as we'll as certain kind of
headgear peculiar to its people. Helmets,
turbans, miters, bonnets, hats and wigs
seemed to bear a certain likeness to domes,
spires, turretS, pagodas, gables and from
tons, but just why this should be he was
unable to say.
Examples Shown.
In some of the examples shown Mr.. New
comb called attention to the fact that the
headdress bore the form of the whole
building. as in the Hawaiian. Laplander
and Egyptian styles; In some it resembled
only the browning point Of the building,
as in the Grecian, Roman, Russian and
Turkish styles. and in others the form was
only carried through the detail of the build
ing, as in the Rocco style. Speaking Of
the ancient styles of architecture he called
attention to the grass house of the Ha-
waiian Islands, which seemed to have been
the prevailing style long before civilization
placed her frigid finger on the natives and
turned their attention to clothes. What
the natives first took to he was unable to
say but he knew that the Hawaiian hat
as worn today was one of the charac-
teristic things now made and worn here.
He showed an illustration of the lei-be
decked hat and also a companion picture
of an old-time grass hut. the similarity of
appearance being remarkable. Mex. was
shown a picture of an Egyptian wearing
the peculiar headgear which is seen in the
architectural features of their temples-a
fiat top with the sides diverging. The tall
pagoda-shaped hats of the Chinese showed
a remarkable likeness to the pagoda tenn
pies of the celestial empire.
A Greek shepherd of ancient times was
shown wearing hat shaped much like the
triangular roof on the public buildings and
temples, the glory of the ancient Grecian
architecture. round helmet worn by
Roman soldier hitting closely to MS head,
was of the shape of the great domes upon
the old Roman buildings. A picture of a
Turkish turban resembled the domes upon
their mosques.
Crusaders Helmets.
The crusader wore a tent-shaped hat, sur
mounted by cross with havelock attach
ments; the tents which the crusaders used
in their journeys to the Holy Land resem-
bled the hat. In medieval times ladies
wore a long conical hat, and in those days
tall. graceful spires were the chief archi-
tectural feature of the churches. Kings of
old France wore huge curly wigs which
were shams and often covered bald heads;
the architecture of their times was also a
sham, consisting Of ornamentation which
covered plain background. The ornamen-
tation had much the appearance of the
curled wigs. This Is especially noticeable
in the Rocco style. In Spain, caps, with
wrinkles in the brims, are worn by women,
and the houses in which they live and the
churches In which they worship have tied
roofs looking much like the wrinkles in the
hats. The Indians OF North America wore
feathered headgear: their wigwams and
tepees greatly resembled these odd hair or
lamentations. The Puritan conical hat
found its resemblance In the steep,es
which were invariably erected over the
rude churches of early New England.
The plain and severe sunbonnet of the
grandmethers of sixty and seventy years
ago found fits reflection in the plain au-
stere and architecturaliy ugly houses of the
frontier. Even in Ireland, Pats saucer