Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1910-05-14
STEALING THE STYLES
London Millinery Pirates and
Their Methods.
TRICKS or SMART WOMEN.
Use Their Position to Get n Look at
the Advance Models and Then Sell
Their information In 6eriin-ons
Case Where There Was Slip.

the Advance Models and Then Sell
Their information In Beriin-Ons
Case Who're There Was slip.
The object of the modern millinery
pirate Is by some means TO get hold
OF the new fashions well In advance
OF the coming season, and. however
jealousy guarded the new models are,
she-most pirates are women-very
often succeeds. and the real owner has
the modification of seeing his novelty
anticipated by some frm OF Infinitely
less importance than his own
Last spring the proprietor of one OF
the smartest shops in the west end of
London noticed a lady walking In the
park attired In n dress almost an ex-
act copy of n brand new model of his
own, a model which not half dozen
people had seen besides its inventor
and himself. The design had been reg
istered. but the copy was just suffi-
GENTLY altered to steer clear of legal
difficulties.
A most searching inquiry revealed
the fact that the culprit was lady
who had always been considered one
of the firms smartest and best custom
| ers.
Her birth and position were less i'm
peachable than the state of her
finances, and she had accepted the
offer of Berlin firm to dress her on
condition that she supplied il with the
very latest creations that found their
way from Paris to London
Having the entree of the innermost
sanctum of the London firm referred
to, she had taken advantage of its con.
| fdence In her to draw its designs from
memory and post them to Berlin.
The London firm had no legal rem
1 edy whatever All II could do was
when the autumn styles were due and
I the lady called again TO inform her
that her patronage was no longer de
sired
Another lady detected in similar
trick by the manager of a Regent
street firm was very cleverly punished,
Upon her next visit she was received
! with the same cordiality as ever and
taken into the showroom. where the
latest models were usually displayed.
She never suspected until too late
that the room had been specially ar
ranged for her reception. The models
exhibited were anything but new. and
1.-The too smart firm which employed her
was put to vast expense to work up
dresses from patterns resurrected from
those of years before which proved
absolutely unstable.
1t is by no means exclusively for the
purpose of stealing other peoples orig
inal designs that pushing firms en-
list the services OF well dressed re-
cruits.
Last summer lady arrived at a
smart seaside hotel, the sort of place
where people stay for the whole sea
son. She was pretty, smart and per
fectly turned out-so well dressed. In
fact. that other women, flled with
envy, did their best to find out who
was her dressmaker.
But, though she frequently boosted
that the people were perfect treasures
and that her bills amounted TO next to
nothing. she steadfastly refused to dis
close the name.
One day, however, she accidentally
dropped an envelope inclosing bill
from the mysterious dressmaker. bill
artfully "faked" so as to show prices
of startling cheapness. Within weeh
the firm that employed this clever lady
welcomed a dozen new customers.
Hotels. too. find the lady tout mosi
useful. Last autumn a very pretty
girl arrived at a certain Scotch health
resort establishment with her mother
She was smart. well dressed. clever
musician-just the sort of-girl to b'
thoroughly popular with both sexes
At once she became the center of 9
large coterie of admirers.
Then after a few days her vivaciou'
expression gave place to look of un
utterable boredom. 81 can't stand this
place. It's so deadly dull" she said
over and over again. Finally ont
evening she announced that she coult
not endure It an hour longer. She
was going.
"WhereT' was the question.
Back to Blitherington," was the de
cided answer ut may be little
dearer. but you get your moneys
worth there. One has such goot
time tbereP'
Next day she left. and before thu
week was out a large proportion o.
her friends had followed her.-LondoI
Grand Magazine.
Il