Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1903-01-06
II LACKED NOVELTY
A COLLECTION OF HElRLooMS THAT
WEARlED AN OBSERVER.


GLORY and supplying Ancestral
Trappings at SO Much Per Hour
T1as Its Drawbacks.
Two guests were being shown through
Philadelphia mansion in which
nouyeau richie broker was entertaining
a party of fashionable friends. The
splendid array Of family heirlooms, all
bespeaking a lineage of earliest colo
NAL origin. deeply Impressed one of the
party. He was a stranger but lately
arrived from Baltimore. oddly enough,
his companion, 4 Phladelphian, SEEM
ed iippantly Indifferent to these treas
ured relics of a family's honored his
tory.
Remarkable collection of heirlooms
our host has remarked the stranger
as he stopped before a battle SCARED
sword of Revolutionary days
Yes drawled the Philadelpaan
cynically, very interesting But I'M
fortunately it lacks the charm of nov
city for me. Already this season I've
seen the same batch of relics in three
other Philadelphia houses"
"How could that be?"
ooh. simple enough. 1t only means
that all four families, our host and the
three others refer to, hired their an
cestral trappings from the same man."
"Hired themf'
yes, hired them. We have in this
city an enterprising collector Of colo
NAL junk who mikes a business of
renting out family glory to all who
We're unfortunate enough to be born
without il"
''Whew.' was the only comment the
astonished Baltimorean could utter.
And doubtless many Philadelphians
| would he moved to say "Wheww if
they could learn bow many members
of the Quaker City social elect are con
strained to seek the assistance of the
heirloom dealer when they wish to
give brilliant function.
1t is a deception that is forced upon
them, for unless you have distinguish
ed appearing folbears you stand little
chance of penetrating the sacred pre-
cincts of the loca fashionable set
Ancestry, not cash, is the open ses-
anne, and even if a man can claim some
sort Of a family tree his pretensons are
questioned unless he can show some of
the furniture or portraits that his
American forefafher brought with him
iii the Mayflower or the Welcome.
OF course if the two vessels named
had been as large as the Great Eastern
and had been loaded with nothing but
heirlooms they couldn't have carried
half the stock needed to launch the de-
scendants of Pilgrim fathers into So
ciety. Hence tile need of an heirloom
dealer
He has his wareroOms in Pine street,
in q part of the city which was once
the center of fashion, but is now de-
serted by that element in consequence
of the westward movement Of the city's
elect
Ostensibly he is a curio dealer, but
his revenue is mainly derived from
furnishing and banging the walls of
fashionable dwellings with century old
portraits.
This clever manipulation Of mems
vanities has ancient, straight backed
furniture and copper kettles and snuff
ers for candles and bullseye watches
and similar relics of ancient grandeur,
all at your disposal for a night, when /
you. poor fellow, with money, but no !
ancestors. want your friends to know |
what an old family yours is! He also |
has rare Furnishings for Libraries and |
drawing rooms which you may rent if |
you have the price.
1t matters rot from what part Of the
country the applicant halls or what
particular descent he wishes to claim,
his needs are promptly filed.
For those who wish to pose as lineal
descendants Of the stancE old colonial
patriots who fought the stamp tax and
defed the power oil King George at
Bunker Hill ard drew up the Declare
ton there is especially attractive stock.
For the naughty cavalier who came
over with Lord Delaware there are
costumes and furniture and portraits
Of more elaborate style. as BELTS the
past Of emigrants who in England
basked in the favor Of the king and
were participants in brilliant court GER
The Quaker City allegiance to the
honored memory OF William Penn Is a
sentiment that the curio dealer has
been careful to cherish.
On his walls he bas portraits OF stu
lious looking Qu.tEers. on his shelves
are modest Quaker clocks that did
service in the days when the founder
was exchanging thirty blankets for
There are Quaker walking sticks. tin
der boxes. documents on all subjects,
utensils legion.
It is true that this system Of supply
Ing ancestors has its disadvantages.
such as the one revealed
1t the beginning of this article are
yound to occur. The hawklike eye of I
trained to recognize in
aantly the value. authenticity and his
DRY Of antiques. often pierees tie de-
.epsion and remembers seeing the
treasured family heirlooms' some h
Fhere else. But ia The main people q
ire guIlib'e. and tie wealthy but pie
,eian aspirant for social honors vaunts
he blueness Of ilis tilood and points
With pride 10 his hired heirlooms with
,ut much danger NJ discovery
And meanwhile the crafty Pine
,treet dealer smiles. wakes rich and
.ch0es a celebrated REMARK OF Ppck's
.poar1sng the average intelligence OF
philadelphia North Ameri-
an.