Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-12-31
BY ANNE RITTENHoUSE.

61HIs is the time for an inventory
on fashions. Before the new
year starts tonight it is well to
Il look over the field Of clothes
and see what is worn out. make up our
minds as to what is worth keeping. get
q good idea OF what is necessary to
discard and take glimpse into the i'm
mediate future to see what France has
sent US for 1917.
Inventories are not discussions Com
MERGE is not often given to philosophy.
The psychology of clothes has nothing
to do with stock taking. Good resoiu-
lions made for the new year, and bad
resolutions broken for the old year.
demand few words and speedy phras-
ing. Therefore. this narrative Will be
given over to photographic Information.
as far as Il Is possible for writer with
a wandering pen to stick to the mar
row path Of information.
To begin with hats:
No tilt is considered fashionable.
There are women who refuse to ad-
here to the new law of military Sc
verify in a line that goes straight
across the forehead and above the ears:
they argue that their features. their
expression and their general appear
ance are changed by following this
new law of fashion. That, however,
does not change the fact
The correct pose of the hat. whether
IL is large or small. simple or ornate. is
straight on the head 1t covers the fore
head. 1t merely discloses the eyebrows,
but it does not cover the top OF the
ears. If IL is a turban 1t must not snoe
down in the back to the nape OF the
neck: IL must not look as though II had
been pulled on at the last moment. aft
er one had started downstairs.
Whatever the hat does ABOVE the
headband Is of no concern to the head
band itself. Its mission In fashion Is
to cling to the head as closely as SOL
dier's cap. 1t must not sink, nor sag,
nor tilt. 1t must show whatever Is pos
back. but the straight line around the
head must be kept at all costs
So much for the pose. which the
French say Is the main point In any
lutte capable of running the entire ex-
preston Of her face by changing the
pose of her hat for an eighth OF an
inch. America has had difficulty In
grasping this fact. France has known
II for ten centuries
AS for shape the hats that have sue
ceeded are the Russian turbanS and
the wide-brimmed sailors. with an edge
that curves with the grace Of sea-
CULTS wings. and a soft. collapsible
crown: also. the elaborate hat OF tulle
which has a brim that dips slightly
down In front In order that the eyes
may look through It.
There Is no evidence, coming or go
ing. of hats that perch high on the
head. that show any glimpse OF hair
on the forehead or that call for any
coiffure that Is not sleek. slightly
curied. + At all; and brought down low
-t q
The collapsible crown is almost q
necessity. There are few hats without
II. 1t is the artistic compromise between
high. stiff crown of 1915. A few Of the
young and daring set were able to
carry on the pot hat Of the Eton
schoolboy and tho more graceful YER
sion Of II worn by Robespierre. but the
majority could not stand the height or
the severity Of this piece OF millinery:
the street costumes OF the women that
have been borrowed from mems cos
tunes in the end Of the eighteenth and
fret part of the. nineteenth century,
there has como about the Beau Brum-
mel hat with its curving brim and its
silky crown that spreads wide at the
sides. This 10 worn well down over the
face. and 1t seems odd to see q pair of
curving brim. as one does see when the
hat u worn by smart women.
Tho materials that will be kept for
1917 are panne velvet. silk beaver, EN-.
broidered tulle and pliable fur.
The Muscovfte turban has brought