Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-29


unobtrusive in the catalogue of dress
accessories than the button; at the
II same time there is nothing more es-
sential to comfort Let any man
who doubts 1t recall hours of agony and
discomfort that followed the loss Of the lit
tie metal mooring for pair of suspenders.
The button Is an essential adjunct of mod
ern civilization. Its manufacture gives en-
ployment to over 10000 people in the United
states alone today. Yet it's origin is lost
IN the m1sts OF antiquity. and people every
day see buttons that have no apparent
function on their own and their neghbors
clothes, and never stop to think why 1t is
habit of the tailor to put them there
Take the buttons that are on the cuff of
almost every mans coat. Nobody buttons
his sleeves these days. but the buttons for
| 1t are there. Observe also the two buttons
that adorn the middle OF the back of every
dress coat. You would miss them If they
were not there but what function do they
serve? There was reason for them once.
but 1T has gone. and the buttons alone re-
main.
The cuff buttons date back. according to
some authorities to the time of Frederick
the Great. 1t will be remembered that he
very proud. composed of giants. the big
gest men that his recruiting officers could
pick up throughout Europe They had
handsome uniforms but the coats were
built without pockets. Many of the men
We're from the lowest strata of society, hav-
ing been chosen for their size alone, and
Frederick noticed that on frosty mornings
while the regiment duty with him.
many of the prvates used their coat
sleeves for the humble but essential duty
OF pocket handkerchiefs.
The great commander observant in all
things, wasted no time issuing orders
against this almost involuntary practice
and instructed the regimental tailor to slit
the cuffs of the regimental coats In four
places and sew on buttons to fasten them
| This rendered the sleeves most unservfce-
able as handkerchiefs and preserved the
looks of the uniform The buttons were
gradually reduced to single line, and now
they are usually simply retained for orna-
ment. There are seldom any buttonholes
under them In American coats. but English
tailors always make the buttonholes and
faithfully button them up. never to be I'M
done again as long as the coat is worn.
The buttons on the back of the frock coat
have an even more plausible explanation.
A good many may scott at the Frederick
the Great story and say that the cuff but
tons are merely survival of the time when
genuine turn-back cuffs were in vogue
about the time of Charles l. and that the
sleeve was frequently turned down and but
toned because Of the cold. But there is no
question that the buttons on the back of
the frock coat are survival of the time
when the small sword a part of the
dress OF gentleman and the buttons on the
back of the coat were used to support the
sword belt.
Just where the button first originated is
lost in history. 1t is believed by many peo-
pie that the Chinese were the origlnators
hr,ft hu ba
and Japanese on their wonderful costumes
are the most highly ornamented and the
most valuable from an artistic standpoint
of any In throughout the world. The
buttons of jade. bronze silver gold and
precious stones that hold together the flow
ing garments of the high-class mandarin
In Picking are most ingeniousy fashioned
the carving sometimes representing land
scape other work of art. Japanese
bronze buttons are known the world over
for their artistic beauty. As the Chinaman
has made little or no change In the cut and
style of his costume since Marco Polos
time IT Is reasonable to suppose that the
invention of this fashion of fastening two
pieces of wearing apparel. or of Joining two
sides of the same garment, originated in
the brain of the Mongol. 1t Is we'll known
that. while buttons We're known far
back the time of Edward / of England,
1t was not until the reign of Elizabeth that
they came into general use in the civilized
world.
And the manner in which buttons came
| into general use in Europe is peculiar as
| the fact that their introduction was post
poned so long. Students of the arts sar-
toral are aware that during the periods
! usually referred to as mediaeval The cloth
| ing of prince and peasant alike was fas-
tened by iacng.
| Persons who read much of historic ro-
nance cannot fail to recognize the request.
Truss my points," which has been used by
every writer of English from the time OF
Chaucer. Perhaps every one who read the