The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-07-15

Public opinion, which@is now recognized.
\ III one OF the great powers Of the WORLD,
mas resulted IN the OF the
Hague Conference the aim Of which Is
to put an end to the foolishness an ~ ms. me
.sWickedness OF war TX II al
iBut one argument used against war va 1 IS
"A 4; sos illness, the Fact that It. impoyer--3
ishes countries and beggars indy iduals,
In reply the thought is at once awakened
81 AZ to 4 what avail the universal ~ outcry
against such ,costliness can 6S = E'e.
4 while iG the truth becomes more Il alsd
more apparent. that larger ll .as'
u amount " Of money Is spent year, ys}2 10y
n mo nc dern women OF fashion, purchasing
clothes, which are hopelessly out OF y s sly
iilE N 81 ew months, than even the game q
II wa demands .5sjs: t3 VISA
Certainly the sitting Of such q & 6. cons orss
Il ference is ia proof that the world has
shecome. In several respects, saner and
u more enlightened, Il reader to listen TO the
n admonitiong Of prudence versus rashness,:
e4inclined to justice and dell Grafton.
i852Ssa Agnir, an cutlery is caised against the
amounts required to construct war ships
that by rea son. of constant inventive
81 progress, are out of date IN ABOUT ten
Years a. But the nations 8uttering the out
dry would do well to take into 4considera-
\ ton the fur greater amounts which go
into the purchase Of feminine tincries and
.Sfripperies, that are carelessly discarded
in ten months rather than In ten years.
Ss Good women stand rightly appalled, at
Fthe drink bill of modern nations, ike
wise at the cigar and cigarette bill and
many other bills. all indicating wanton
ssWtiste Of money. Yet none OF these equal
!, The y: unnecessary dress bill Of the nation
the sign manual of IN intemperance on,
the part OF women that Is quite as harm
8ful in Its Indulgence and its effect on
q character as the excuses which vitiatc
!, men. sSs ti353 Il 35 3355 j.5i Y 54EIi
4 Unless a woman follows the leaders Of
fashion and conforms to the standards
person of no consequence in the field of
S.,1l6dern life, III n
1.-The t,richness of X q 8woman's silks and
Iaees and the lustre of her jewels are the
things by WINCH (. she, Is Judged in the
council sof her Peers, who find no excuse
for any departure from the correct style
even though In attaining to 1t Womanly5
SELF prospect and independence must be
sacrificed
n meet the demands made by women
nnR supply the means to pay for their
extravaganza In dress. American men arc
:deveIoplng mora and more intosa nation
OF mmey-getters, machines, whose worth
Is reckoned by the number Of dollars
Sthey grind out! x w
g Yot women deplore the tendency of the
age toward comnerciallsm. and prate In
touching numbers about tho decline of
fchivalry and knightly spirit among
men!
sAll this. while they are bound to be
conscious that men are what women
make theml All this, while In their
hearts they must realize that their own
love Of; luxury. and their universal cray-
ing for the purple and the fine linen"
Ing for the ''purple and the fine line"
that goes With It, has proven the most
powerful factor in bringing about the
l.latter-day degeneracy OF the American
man and 1.-The debasement Of his ideals!
| The cry OF philanthropy Is on the lips
Z OF women. Yet the most active workers.
Thy the example they set and the unwrit-
i,ten laws they promulgate are anything
sbut phlanthropic toward the classes they
/. imagine themselves as uplifting. For
/, they tnstill into the minds OF all women
with whom they come In contact tho
,desire for extravagance In apparel,
desire that must be gratlfled somehow
and in some manner, II not properly,
q then improperly.
Extravaganza of this kind cannot be
Kept within limits or confined to classes.
1T invades the whole strata OF society.
/. n little leeven leavenlng the whole
Jump The working girl, the profess
i sionai woman, the houscmnfd. the nurse
and the cook are alike possessed with the
4 nationnl taste and contribute handsomely
40 the amount OF the nations dress bill.
This being true, why Is there not a
. second international conference called, to
put an end TO the folly OF dress?