Omaha daily bee., 1909-10-17
CORNER IN LACE SHAVLS
gust a sample Of the Ways of French
Dressmakers.
BUN4tEa THE AMERICAN PURsE
HayiqG Bought Up the Available
shppiy, They Made Them the
Fashion ara Put. Up the
Price.


NEW YORK. oct. m.-"Americans are
clever az eornerins certain kinds Of prod
ucts, but we have still a few things to
learn OF the French. The man who raises
the price OF Wheat or sends cotton soaring
Is pronounced a wizard and his name is
on every tongue. There is, however. an
other market King about whom the outside
world hears very little. and that is the
capny French dressmaker or fashion ere
stor who buys mp our own materials and
then sells them to us at an exorbitant
price"
The speaker was a Fifth avenue tailor
and dressmaker. The recent advance in
price Of a certain kind Of dress trimming
preclpitated the remark.
"Do you see that exquisite evening gown
OF dull green brocade, the one half yelled
IN old ,cbantflly o. he asked. pointing to
one OF a row Of brand new Partisan model
gowns dropping gratefully from their per-
fumed and ribbon trimmed hangers.
The gown was a soft and clinging bro
cade Of a shade THAT you could call nothing
but green, yet 1t had strange alluring lights
I'm it.asH one caught glimpses of the silk
through the rich old lace shawl which
covered the front and sides almost to the
hNN anu cA IA u lVnE DOlRl over Lne train.
The ends OF the shawl were caught up on
the shoulders. There It was, one OF those
handsome pieces. Of lace that dozens Of
women have had stored away for years,
and under the skiiful fingers Of the French
dressmaker II had become a distinctly
fashionable trimming.
what Il Figures UD.
THAT model cost me exactly 500, duty
IL. 80
gown In cheaper materials for the same
money unless l knew where to get one of
these ~,shawls." said the There
are but a few OF them to be had because
French d~ressmakeFs' agents have been
securing this country as well as their own.
for months buying them up right under our
noses with the intention Of using them in
this fashion and making them the smart
thing of the moment.
IF a woman had brought me such an
heirloom MONTHS ago and had offered it
Tor half the original cost or even less I
would probably have refused It. In the
first place the lace when genuine and
antique looks a bit faded. I should not
dare to put It on a handsome evening
gown without the approval Of the Partisan
fashion creator. but when Paris makes
these shawls fashionable 1t is almost inn
possible TO get hold Of one.
This shows you the ingenuity and fore
sight Of the French. They get together
when II 10 time to plan the next. seasons,
fashions and decide. to. push chantllly
draped evening dresses, let us say. Through
agents they purchase ali the antique chan
tiily. hawls TO be found at home. or over
hsre. They take them from right under
our noses and we are helpless to prevent
them.
"A Jason, or It may be a year. or two
later, there are practically no shawls in
the market. They are all yelling handsome
French evening dresses.
T Paris Has the shavla.
''The French fashion creator who sells to
American dressmakers must be able to sup
ply several duplicates OF a model, and II he
has one to show with chantliIy lace drap-
cry he must be able 10 reproduce it II a
buyer likes It. And the buyer must pay the
advanced price demanded because chan
tfly lace shawis are scarce; because, In
fact, Paris has them ali.
"You cannot substitute strips or sections
OF lace and get this same delightfully."- grace
full effect on a gown. The model calls for
this long pointed drhpery at one side and
the ends reaching to the shoulders. we
cannot reproduce the model without the
lace piece. SO we are compelled to pay any
price demanded for a shawl II a customer
wants US to copy the gown. G
f,CoFnering the ohantilly lace shawl
market ista much less serious matter, how
ever. than cOrnering the fur market TOhIy
a few women desire this particular evening
gown but every New York woman. as
we'll as every woman elsewhere in this
country who keeps up with the latest nov
elites, insists on having a coat. a neckpiece
and mpff or rimnii of the particular kim
OF fur that Is sent out by Partisan houses
az the very latest cry In smartness.
80 that thousands Of women feel the ef
fects Of a corner In the fur market. Yea
after year when II is announced from Paris
that a certain kind OF pelt is to be the fash.
ionable fur for the winter we buy back a
a much higher price quantities OF fur tina
we have sold to the market operators a yea
or two earlier.
'The Partisan fur buyers come to ouI
country. or else they keep theii
agents on the ground. and when they hav,
eornered an the supply they put II on tn
market and We pay anything they ask
This happened before the squirrel rage
The skins were bought from us for
cents or less and then we turned aroun,
and bought back probably the identlca
skins tie following winter at several time
the figure paid to us. our customers de
mande0 squirrel, ana so we had 10 suppl
them with the fashionable pelt regardles
0f its' actual value,
'POSsum FUR is High.
This year they say that you canno
buy an opossum for love or money be
Gauss the English and the French furrier
have been collecting skins in every stat
Where the little animal is found. And a
the season advances opossum will be tn
smart fur and It's prices viii soar far be
yond that FOR which Il could have bee
purchased last winter.
THE Billy 'possum Is said to be respor
sibIe for the fur craze OF the coming sea
son. European furriers heard so niue
about the American anlma that It Sc
them TO thinking and then they calml
proceeded 10 set hold OF all the availabl
opossum fur. The opossum fad promise
70 ssnrpass the squirrel or the 'ermine IA
Of a faw seasons ago.
Fl, eannot say what the price OF opo,
SUM will be; It y too early yet for tn
STYLE pf. fur to be actually launched on N