Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1907-07-25
DO A THRIVING TRADE IN
ROYALTYS OLD CLOTHES
NEW YORK DEALERS HANDLE
THEM REGULARLY
Stockings, Old Shoes and Gowns Have
Ready Sale Among Americans
Who Toady to Foreign
Nobility Thus

NEW YORK, July A.-According to a
Sixth avenue dealer in curios and an
tiques, New York society women have
developed still another fad to employ
their leisure moments and their plr
money. 1t Is no less than making col
| lection of old clothes.
| OF course, the clothes must have SOM
historic value, and have been worn b.
royal or other famous personages.
II have a customer" said the dealer
"who occupies a prominent position II
| New York social circles, who has com
missoned me to buy all the cost-on cor
| sets of famous women l can find. have
an agent in Europe who is constantly on
the lookout for them, and every month
or two he sends me over an addition TO
the collection.
"She is also making a collection of old
shoes and slippers worn by celebrities,
and other ladies buy from me all kinds
of old clothes with interest attached to
them.
"The lady who is making the corset col
lection mas already gathered varied and
valuable lot of them. In her collection
she has a pair once owned by Queen
Alexandra; an exquisite Viennese corset
of the late empress of Austria, measur-
ing, although stretched by wear, barely
sixteen inches around the waist; one or
mented by beautiful lace, and short
pair of silk once worn by the empress of
Russia.
"Of the corsets of celebrities she has
not a few examples A leather corset OF
Charlotte Cordays is a notable example,
one of Marie Antoinette's-a mass or
whalebone and steel, with waist meas
urement of about seventeen and one-half
inches; one of silk brocade, belonging to
a famous opera dancer of the Cos whose
name forget for the moment, was orig
inally sewn with jewels, and 1 was told
cost $1250, and a corset ascribed to Cath
crime de Medici, but probably belonging
to one of her court ladies', is strengthened
by a positive networ.. of steel, and must
have been torture to wear. They did
tght-lacc in those days. the waist of this
corset being less than fourteen inches.
"Of the numerous pairs of shoes in my
clients collection, none are more valued
than pair once worn by Queen Victoria
when a girl. There is also a single shoe
belonging to Inflated Mary Queen of
Scots, in a rather rough leather, which
must have originally been scarlet.
"A shoe belonging to the Empress Eu-
genie, picked up in the Tuileries after her
flight from Paris, is of black glace kid,
with beautiful gold and paste buckle,
and working in gold thread on the toes.
One of Nine. Rachel's shoes is also in
the collection, the size of which shows that
the famous actress did not possess very
elegant feet.
"A pair of white satin slippers belong
ing to Nine. Pompadour are also of con-
siderable size, and much worn, though
probably by some one else than their
original owner Many of these items are
authenticated, as is also pair
of shoes belonging to Booth, the famous
actor; one shoe of Washington, and a
pair once worn by Garrick.
"Garters are also favorite articles for
collection Another New York lady has
a fine collection of these. In it are a
beautiful pair belonging to the late queen
of Italy. a pair of the queen of Holland,
a ribbon garter said to have belonged to
Nell ~Gwynne. pair of the queen of
Servias with notices; a single garter
once belonging to a Georgian princess of
Wales, a pair which once were worn by
Taglionl, a pair of blue silk ones once
belonging to a Spanish royalty, almost
sufficiently large to go round slender
Woman's waist, and a very dainty pair
given by a European prince to Spanish
dancing girl we'll known in Paris a few
years ago.
THE stockings of royalty also are in
good demand. One lady, who has spent
nearly $500 with me on them, has some
pairs of nearly every European royalty
in her collection, and also, by way of
contrast, I suppose, several pairs belong
Ing to notorious criminals. The 'fish-net
hose of one of the most popular of Eng
lish princesses are really exquisite crea-
lions, and / can quite lelieve that they
cost $25 per pair when new. One conti-
mental royalty evidently believes in yell
low as a lucky color, for she has yellow
hose, and some with black feet"