The labor argus. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1906-1915, 1906-11-01
His Old Clothes
Problem

h problem of wearing out old
clothes bothers some people: others
1t does not.
Some solve the problem by selling
their old clothes to the old clothes
man, some solve it by giving their
Old clothes to deserving charity, and
some solve it by having their old
clothes cut down and made over for
the rising generation.
But there Is yet another class who
neither sell nor give away their old
clothes, and not being blessed with
children, they undertake to wear out
their old clothes themselves. thereby
getting the creates possible re.
turn value for their money. 1t Is OF
a representative of this class / would
speak.
He is a friend of mine. l met
hin the other day in Sumner street
and as We shook hands l noted that
ne seemed to be wearing a new suit
Now, when n meets a personal
friend who is wearing q new suit, II
Is as little as n can do to say: "Ah,
l see you have On a new suit! It's
all right. n 1t fits you like a glove"
or some such pleasant compliment as
that. The which l said, or words to
the same effect.
w. uol eSaCtiy q new suit he
said; the coat Inc vest are new. but
the trousers 1 got last fall. l began
buying this Il / have on IA years
ago, he continued, looking down at
MS trousers. sadly. I then noted that
what he said about the of
the coat and vest and the oldness OF
the trousers was true. Leading me
INTO a convenient doorway. he ex-
| planned:
Before 1 was married 1 used to
get my clothes mad to order" he
said. with an air of faded gravity.
afterward l began wearing hand
me-down clothes. hi first store
suit l purchased IA years ago this
spring. By the following autumn the
trousers, which always go first, were
shabby. but the coat and vest were
yet in a fairly respectable condition.
told my wife 1 would b. obliged
TO get another new suit. She has a
rare economical streak, my wife,
which / have noticed manifests It.
self in my own behalf more than
when she Is buying clothes for her
self. b pointed out that to buy an
entire new suit would be rank ex-
travasance. She aid II she were
she woul buy only a new pair of
trousers to go with the coat and vest.
which were not much worn. The sus.
gestion appealed to me, SO 1 bought a
new pair of trousers, matching them
up as well as l could with my old
coat and vest.
The following spring found me
with my trousers in better condition
ina my coat and vest, and to piece
matters out. / then purchased a new
coat and vest, and continued wearing
my old trousers. The next purchase.
a few months later, was a new pair
of trousers to go with the coat and
vest, which were not yet much worn.
To make a long story short, have
been doing this for IA years-getting
at one time a new pair of trousers
and at another time a new coat and
vest. but never buying both together.
THE result has not been very salts
factory. l have never felt dressed. I
only feel about half-dressed. have
the consolation that l am wearing out
my old clothes. but it doesn't compen
safe me for the sacrifice have to
make in personal appearance. But"
he added. his face lighting up, there
will be an end to this some day. 1
have figured it all out. To explain.
L will say that my experience, dating
over the last Ia years, has shown me
that a coat and a vest do not quite
outlast two pairs of trousers-almost.
but not quite. In other words. be-
tween the durability of two pairs OF
trousers and a coat m vest, there Is
a discrepancy OF 10 days, IA hours.
81 minutes and Z seconds
Now. basing my calculations on
these figures. l find that on the 23d
day of May. 1926. my coat and vest