The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-04-10
PLUMES FOR EASTER.
Fluffy Accessories of Spring Fashion
and Religion.
London Il the Center where They
Are Obtained by the worlds
Dealers-Egret Plumes nj
$50 an Ounce.
Especial washIngton LetterI

A y eminent prelate i'm Europe,
~ whose end was not entirely com
mendable. once said: whether
religion is necessary or not, ID has be-
come fashionable, and will beeoutiuucd
on that account
Despite the irreyerent raillcry of it,,
there is trace Of truth iu that state
mcnt. Not less than 5,OO0,OOO women
are now making efforts, in their sew
eral spheres, to make fashionable APP
pearance ON Easter morning; and may
be it is an eXaggeration to say that
well-nigh one half of them are mTe
deyoutly preparing for the apparcling
Of themselves and their daughters
than they are deyoutly engaged in
preparing TO give praise that "lle is
risen
Maybe that is an eXaggCraiion. Let
Il pass as such
But il il undoubtedly true that
more than 100000 women are prepar-
ing hats to wear on Easter, and each
one of those millions of hats. and other
millions for their daughters, will
represent the assassination OF bird
for its feathers; and, in the course OF
the Easter service the pastor viii read
the commandment: "Ihou shalt not
kill" and every befeaihorcd daughter
OF Eve will repeat in unison: Lord have
mercy upon us; and incline our hearts
TO keep this law
Maybe this is an eXaggeration. Let
II pass as such.
Now az to feathers. Since they are
all studying how to get the feathers
from the asSassinated birds of the air
le US take little time to inquire where
the feathers come from; meaning the
feathers of commerce. There is man
here who has grown rich catering TO
women in all sorts of feminine adorn-
ments, and he knows all about feathers.
Put your telephone TO your ear while
you hear him saying:
The feather trade is practically in
the hands of four big firms of London
dealers. In the Mincing Lane rooms
the sales take place six times every
year; and during the two weeks pre-
ceding each one of these sales The |
merchants intending 10 buy are in
specting the various lots i'm the ware
houses.
Ladies see before them in he stores /
OF the retail dealers only clean beauii- /
ful feathers. But the wholesale buyers /
who go to the Mincing Lane sales have /
a lot of dusty. dirty work examining /
the bundles Of plumes. which they /
must do thoroughly, Judging each
bundle by its evenness and quality. /
estimating its market value.
Upon the catalogues which are pro-
vided for these intending buyers large
are left for notes which The
customers make. and those notes
practically control his bids when the
sales are in progress. These rich whole
salers, or their experienced buyers,
form a very motley throng as they
wend their ways through the great
all of them wearing long
brown Holland smOcks 10 protect their
from the fluff and fue Of the
feathers. In this strange crowd may
be met the shrewd little Parisicnne
looking for plumes of some particular
style to s;it some novelty which She
has devised Then there may be ell
bowed an English buyer who controls
wholesale houses and factories in many
Of the large commercial centers of Eu-
rope. Canada, America. and even in
India. as well as several great houses
md factories on the British Islands
There come the Berlin dealers looking
Tor the cheapest kinds that may be
oalmed off; the cunning Yankee mer-