The Topeka state journal., 1903-06-20

semit. Some of the hats have improve
ments this season: concealed stitching
and unbreakable edges to the brims. a
novelty is a speckled straw. half and
half white, with a black band and there
are all black straw hats which look
very odd indeed until you are accustom-
ed to them.
For men who like departure from
the conventional the all-black ribbon
band on the straight-brimmed straw
hat is replaced by black-and- white
horizontally striped band The width
and arrangement of the stripes vary
Some Of the younger men are wearing
striped bands in dark blue and corn
sible "Rah-Rah" boy who sports his
college or fraternity cOlors in his hat
band in the good old summer time
The present season has brought forth
something new in the way of pocket
books. albeit the material usually car
ried in them remains the same as ever.
The peculiar thing about it all is that
the aDpearance of the new style purses
reminds US that. though until lew
years ago we looked to Europe for our
novelties and fads, nowadays, since the
our most fetching styles are reaching
us from the Orient.
The JaDanese carry their tobacco not
i'm pouches. as Americans do, but in re-
American DocketbOok, with the differ
ence that the American keeps his
pOcketbook closed by means OF a
leather strap which passes through one
or more short leather bands, while the
jap closes his tobacco pouch by means
of a highly ornate and richly engraved
silver clasp. These japanese tobacco
pouches are always made Of handsome
ly embroidered silk. with an inside lin
ing of a peculiar embossed leather.
fishskin silk. velvet or some variety
of pima cloth. Inasmuch as the Jap has
neithers pockets nor buttons to hlo
clothes, he carries this pouch by means
of very heavy silver chain, with an
object known as tnetsuke' pro-
nOunced .netSl1y' or ''nitsky'). of ivory.
wood or bone. attached to the end OF
the chain, which he thrusts through his
bels.
These netsukes are always carved in
the form Of some object animate or in~
animate, usually, however. in the form
of horses, dogs, bats, monkeys, liteie
Buddhas. fish. rats, and the like. Some
are of rock crystal, cornelian, jade.
soapstone, gold. silver, bronze, amber.
or coral, and are very expensive They
are also worn on the end of the cord
which every Jap carries fastened to his
medicine case. and tucked under his
belt. There is special variety of net
suke however. used more particularly
for tobacco pouches Cor purses, as they
should more appropriately be called)
They consist of an ivory disk of the ex~
act shape and turn of an acorn cup.
into the hollow of which fits a gold,
silver. or bronze medallion representing
some Japanese pastoral, marine or fish
ing scene or q representation of their
gods and goddesses.
Such tobacco purses and netsukes
have been sathered and purchased by
American connoisseurs and collectors
/ of japanese art objects for the last
twenty years or more, and in many
cases astonishing prices have been paid
for old, rare, finely wrought, and rich
ly embroidered purses. but it was not
until the present season that the Amer
leans generally took them UP as a fash
ion. Now the big jewelry establish
ments are importing them for sale as
ladies' purses, and the shrewd Japs,
! learning the use which we are making
of thcm, are turning out smaller ones
than the usual tobacco-pouch kind.
! Only the rich and well-to-do can afford
1 to indulge i'm this fad and buy the real
thing. for the prices run from $S5 up
/ Americans. however. are turning out
cheap purses of this sort, which look