The Washington herald., 1909-04-04
HINTS BY THE SOCIAL ARBITER

NOTE-The Arbiter will be glad TO
answer any question OF social ma
ture that may be submitted. Such
question should be addressed TO The
Arbiter, care The Washington Herald.
A sulky gentleman. who signs himself
Benedict. writes 10 say that The Arbiter
pays altogether too much attention to
women. and demands to know why an
occasional paper should not be devoted
to men. Last week." he says. you
threw a lot of satire at women's clothes.
Why not give little jog to the men. for
American men need jogging? How does
It look 10 see a man who poses for a
society person wearing a top hat with
a short coat or a frock with a Derby?
And this I have seen in the last few
weeks. And why don't you say some
thing about waistcoats for evening
clothes. and why don't you throw a bomb
at that nondescript garment that gents
call the Tuxedo?"
Benedict himself viii. I think, admit
that a mans chief interest is in women,
and The ArbiteT, belonging to the strong
er sex, naturally feels the same penchant
for his sisters-and mis- cousins and aunts,
too, for that matter-that other men Of
his TX do. Then too. IL seems TO make
so little difference what a man wears,
and his costume is so circunscribed that
It would be difficult to make mistake:
but even in the limited wardrobe that the
fashion OF the day permits mere man TO
wear there is plenty Of opportunity for
evidence Of taste. Who has not seen a
straw-haired beau. with a yellow COM
plexion. wearing a lemon -colored tie with
perhaps gray clothes. a combination that
would set the teeth OF the most thick
skinne1 person on edge? And how many
men with flaming cheeks and glittering
eyes and cardinal proboscis effect cream
ties and iamboyant tweeds?
heard a great, stalwart, husky fel-
low the other day say that he never al
lowed his wife 10 select his cravats be-
cause women had such poor taste in such
matters. He is a pinked face. blue eyed
blond, and the tie he wore was a sickIy
sTeen with crimson stripes. It was per-
maps the most hideous combination that
could be thought out. and still he was
perfectly satisfied. Now The Arbiter. who
NLlUIen
and with a fairly decent complexion. was
wearing green tie that the hands OF a
little foreign lady had knitted him, stuck
through with a nugget OF gold, the gift
Of the wife OF a Western politician, and
he looked with scorn upon the makeup OF
his bOastfuI friend.
But 10 lay nonsense aside, Il seems
hardly wcrth while 20 make suggestions
70 men. They are so self-suficient. and
they would rather carry out their own
ideas than 10 be right. Just as a physician
would rather kill a patient than 10 be
proved IN the wrong; since a Benedict
however Will have IL so. The Arbiter is
willing TO give him Of what wisdom he
possesses. For the morning and business
there IS, OF course, no suit except the
short coat Of serviceable tweed or serge
tweed by all odds II one can afford #. for
II has style that nothing else ap-
prOaches. The browns IN this material
are far and away the handsOmest and the
bits Of color speckled through are ex-
tTemely interesting. Ore suit OF this
should last a whole winter and be good
for half dozen other seasons as a knock
about suit for summer. for tweed never
wears out, but q business man should
have in HIS wardrobe beside the tweed a
short blue suit Of serge. or vicuna, and
another OF cheviot
With such suits. colored shirts are worn
with white collars and cuffs and knitted
ties. No one, by the way, wears any
thing but knitted ties in this age and gen.
GRAFTON, and, OF course, they should be
wrought by the hands one loves, by
mother, sister. or that dearer one yet
than all others" but don't be tempted 10
wear knitted tie II It is ugly. no sentI-
ment In the world should excuse ugllness,