Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-05-10
FASHIONS FOR THE MEN.
Pointers for Those Who Wish to
Dress Properly.

We read with pleasure. and. we hope
with profit. a column headed MEMS
Fashions" published In the Pail Mall
Gazette 1t appears that there are care
full dressers in London who carry out
the plain and simple idea in the mat
ter of cuff links. waistcoat buttons and
shirt studs. The sleeve buttons, they
say must be of plain gold and very
small: there must be no gold or gilt on
the waistcoat buttons: the shirt studs
must be small as possible. The oracle
of the Pail Mall does not insist on these
extremes. 'Enamel links can be In good
taste. and though. perhaps. the buttons
of ones white waistcoat are better when
ornamented with platinum than when any
part OF them IL gold. some buttons with
gilt or gold in them are not so bad"
He DEGREES that studs should not be
too small. and he recommends plain
gold tops, preferably round. or plain
pearl studs. "a safe rule In this
nection is to avoid colored stones. but
have seen some beautiful exceptions
to that rule Does he refer TO moss
agate We remember the time when
this stone was the rage. and every self
respecting brakeman on the Connecticut
River railroad sported at least one moss
agate ring This period followed imme-
diately the years of hair jewelry, when a
select man Haunted a watch chain made
from the hair of Aunt Abby. set with
gold, and women decorated themselves
with earrings. brooches and bracelets
made from the hair of esteemed re
lations.
The oracle is dumb concerning the
number of shirt studs. Dr. Holmes. as
seen above. preferred two. and Mr. Her
kimer Johnson. we remember. after
consultation of his notes for vol TX of
his colossal work. as yet unpublished
came to the conclusion that three were
ostentatious. demanding a too great
ri t0Hy Of oh yarnN hA
abide one stud. especially when 1t was
a diamond.
Should a watch chain be worn with
dinner Jacket or evening suit? Some
wear the watch in a trousers pocket and
put their reliance in a fob with a bunch
of seals or a single ornament. Others
wear a delicate chain of gold. gun metal
or platinum and spread il from waistcoat
left pocket to the right Something in
our simple heart has told us that this Is
wrong. And now the oracle confirms our
inward monitor "a gold watch chain
does not 20 with evening clothes and a
good safe rule is: Carry your watch with
out a chain when you are wearing even
ing clothes.
THE average smart man has a horror
of being overdressed at any time but
especially so in the evening. 1t is 50
easy to make a mistake in this direction
A waistcoat that allows an enormous eN
panse of shirt front to be visible a stud
tndt Is Shade 100 large, a watch chain,
and-the thing is done" Yes, the man is
lost. socially damned forever. a pariail.
leper, thrust out from the assemblies
into the black darkness Of night. Yet
there are men who could carry a silver
turnip with leather string and be mag
nificent and courted.
The Pail Nal oracle apparently recog-
nizes this fact. Some men break the
unwritten laws regarding what jewelry
a man ought not to wear and can still
contrive to be correctly clad. but such
men are generally the very men who
observe these laws. I know one old
fashioned man who still persists in wear
ing his necktie drawn through a large
god ring. Perhaps all his friends have
got SO used to the ring that they scarce
ly notice it; any other man whould seem
to be horribly. badly dressed il he wore
such a tie