Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-10
STYLES IN MEMS WEAR
The. Importance Of Matching Fabrics
and blending colors- Seasons
Tardy Development.
From the Haberdasher.i i


manner of maid of sweet-and-twenty,
and the clothes question, though upper
most In everybody's thoughts has not crys-
tallized as rapidly as usual. The forms and
fabrics of the new season are, of course,
established and will change little from
now until autumn. 1t is to the fads then,
that we must look to give soupcon of
spice to the fashions, to relieve the sober
ness Of dark cloths and quiet patterns, and
to mitigate the funeral air that is prone
to creep into mems dress after a period Of
riot in color. Smart people are already
turning their backs upon town and either
crossing the water or retreating to cot
tage, camp, bungalow, shooting lodge, game
preserve or however, one may choose to
designate ones country place. AS Ameri-
cans grow in wealth and leisure, SO do they
grow in appreciation OF the graces and re-
finements of living and in love of outdoor
life. The untutored person, whose concep-
ton of the fashionable type of man IS a
drawing room hero ''uttering platitudes in
stained glass attitudes" is pathetically
wide of the mark. No other race save the
English, has done as much as we have to
foster the manly sports and wholesome ac-
tvity in the open. And this spirit, as I
have said again and again, is mirrored in
the dress Of Americans, which shows no
trace of effeminacy, but is simple COM
Portable, sensible and suited to climate and
environment. The statement often trium-
phantly put forth. that there Is no such
thing as Fashion" and that what Is call
ed fashion is merely the expression of the
individual taste and judgment, is quite
without point. Unquestionably a gentle
man does not dress by rote, and unques-
tionably he consults his own notions as to
what Is becoming to him. But there are
certain fundamental principles of dress,
just as there is fundamental standard of
good breeding. that are acknowledged wher-
ever gentlemen meet the world over, and
these constitute an unwrftten dress code
that stands as firm as a granite shaft
Everybody who has done his bit of globe
trotting has noticed a marked likeness be-
tween the dress of gentlemen of social po-
sitiOn in every country. Customs and ra-
ciai characteristics may be as far apart as
the poles, but at the bottom you will find
that the attributes which contribute to
form gentleman In the social sense are
the same. The prig is not the man who
follows the fashion, but the quixotic per-
son who affects to hold himself superior to
1t, and who, if the truth be told, is often
an abject. though stealthy, worshiper of
caste. The one Is decently obseryant of the
manners and usages that govern his fell
lows; the other Is addicted to a form of
caddishness all the more odious because it
is masked under pretended scorn Of the
proprieties.
A New Waistcoat.
A very new waistcoat is shown with q
character all its own It is made of mer-
cerized cotton, the ground is pearl gray
and the figures are white dots. The edges
and pockets are bound with white silk
braiding and the garment fastens with six
white pearl buttons. The lapels show a
novel treatment, being rounded instead of
peaked and forming what resembles an i'm
perfect Y. The general color scheme is
white and pearl. With this waistcoat was
worn a Dark red four-in-hand under large
wing collar. Is the fancy waistcoat fad
likely to last? Yes for another season or
two, but care must be exercised in choosing
a garment that is becoming and a crayat
10 match. Dreadful errors are committed
by needless wearers of fancy waistcoats.
and for that reason advocate plain fab
r1cs and simple patterns. Collarless waist
coats are rarely worn. as they lack dis
Naed,ass ana IN d nave ready.made' air.
well only with dark jackets, cutaway and
morning coats. The frock coat demands a
plain white waistcoat of linen duck don't
me ,ne use OF white Wafstcoats with BUSH
ness dress, as think they belong properly
with formal attire, such as the frock coat
and the swallowtail: The soft grays and
warm tans are capitally suited to spring
a ana, iaories with a roguish surface are
much sought Throughout the whole
scneme OF spring dress one finds these two
coiors, gray and tan, pervasve Each re-
curing season brings pet shade that en-
joys bit of run in the fine trade is tnni.
tated by the irrepressible copyists and than
promptly sent packing by the exclusive
shop TO which popularity is synonymous
with vulgarity.
The Pleated Soft Shirt.
The pleated soft shirt is approved by the
pest dressed men for spring, and there is a
noticeable leaning toward fewer and broad
er tucks In custom garments. This NAV be
construed simply as desire to depart from
ready made models although, to be sure
the fewer the pleats. the less danger of
crumpling and raveling of edges in the
laundry Fold cuffs are unsuited to any
put the most expensive Shirts and It is
quite improbable that they will be taken
up by the generality of men, They are dis
uhctiy the mark of the upper class gar
ment. Among colors the marble grays and
lght tans, lawns and Bluffs are prominent
ram front neglige shirts are receiving
httie attention in the best trade, and il
would not surprise me to see the pleated
oossom In complete favor throughout spring
ana summer. The monogram fad Is not
spreading; indeed, there seems to be a re-
action against 1t. No objection can be urg-
ed to ar inconspicuous monogram above
the cum, put when monogram stands out
on the shirt like church steeple against
the sky, 1t is too akin to cattle branding
to be relished by gentlemen. Handker-
chiefs, always Of linen, no longer run to
VioIent coiorS ana mixtures. but have solid
white centers and spotted or delicately col
ored borders. The silk and linen handker-
chief has been dropped by high-class shops
and on its tombstone may be inscribed:
KILLED by popularity" In cravats purple
Is one OF the dominant colors of the sea-
son. The broad, folded-in four-in- hand is
the best form to accompany the wing col
lar, though ties are also beginning to be
worn. These are full and wide and have
nothing In common with the snippy butter
fly shape. The wing collar Is being favored
by every man who can lay any claim to fol-
lowing the fashion. The fold Is not to be
thought Of until we discard waistcoats and
derbies and put on belts, straw hats, soft
shirts and the like .
The Evening Jacket.
And now we come TOT the sempiternal
subject of the evening jacket. I never fan
cied this fnterloping garment. for 1t is
neither more nor less than glorified smok-
ing jacket. The swallowtail is the only
coat fit to wear into the drawing room af-
ter shutdown at any function tinged with
formality and honored by the presence of
women. But preserving the dress proprie-
ties during the blistering days and sultry
nights of midsummer Is like trying to
stem mighty tide: the very man who
holds out infiexibly against the evening
jacket in winter is among the first to slip
it on in summer and MOSTLY waves you
away when you undertake to reason with