Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-11-26
CLOTHES Of PAPER
FAIL IN GERMANY
Shortage of Wool and Cotton
Brings About New Expert
ments by Government.
SANDALS REPLACE SHOES
BY HERBERT COREY.

Copyright. 1917. BY Herbert Corey.)
BASEL, Switzerland. October "a
There is a perfectly true story which
illustrates the painstaking manner In
which the German government has pro-
vided against most probable contingen-
cies during a time OF war. A wander
ing tinker had been arrested on
charge of wasting bread by feeding 1t
to his performing bear.
But the bear must eat" said the tin
ker, defiantly, to the Judge. 'He is my
livelihood"
The Judge held the point well taken.
But he ordered another process insti-
tuted and fined the tinker q score OF
marks.
You should have conformed to the
law and secured a bread card for the
bear" said he.
Clothing Greatly Needed.
Modern man needs clothing quite as
much as he does food. The German
government early took into consldera.
ton the fact that a replenishment OF
the supply Of clothes and the raw ma
terial for clothes would be next to I'M
possible, because of the blockade and
tho restrictions on the neutral nations.
Germany produces no cotton ana not
enough linen and wool to even partially
Even IL 1t had been possible for the IN
diyidual to buy clothing outside the
German border, the buying would nave
been frowned upon by the government.
It would have sent money out OF the
country, and that was distinctly against
the country's interests. The desires OF
the individual have never been taken
Into account by Germany
To meet this situation the govern.
ment imported what linen and wool II
could, for weaving into cloth In Ger
many. It imported all the cotton pro-
durable, for use in making explosives.
Then 1t began to f1irt with substitutes;
The German success in making t,ooo
different and disable things out OF coai
tar seems to have almost turned the Teu-
tonic head. A theory grew up that
substitute could be found for everything.
Artificial fats, milks, buffers, chocolates.
coffees and the IKE almost f F. me
~ soaked home that real food cannot
me made in this way.
I'VE will make clothing out of pa
per-" said the German scientists.
Paper Clothes Not Success.
The reasoning was conclusive. even
II they had never heard OF the paper
vests of Russell Sage. 1t seems to have
run about this way. Clothing cannot
be made out of ordinary paper. because
paper tears. But cloth is woven out OF
thread. We are making very excellent
paper string and paper thread. Let US
per thread. We will destroy the cotton
grower of America who has proven
himself hostile to our culture, and we
will make our friends the sheep raisers
in the Argentine sell their wool to us
at our own price, on pain OF ruin Are
not our artificial nitrates to put out OF
business the nitrate beds Of Chile?
Well, then.
But the paper clothes seem not to
was ali right. It looked like q good
Scotch mixture, or broadcloth or any
other texture that 1t was desired to i'm
itate. The official report was that the
paper cloth wore we'll and stood strains
yet 1t appears that paper clothes never
became fashionable in Germany. The time
may come when the householder may
gather up the days supply of lettings
and have them woven into hobby suit
ing. but that day seems not to have
come yet. Perhaps cloth woven OF pa
per strings proved too receptive to the
chill German wind, or there may have
been other difficulties.
At any rate, while one hears great
deal of talk Of paper suits. men who
have just left Germany after continu-
Gus residence there during the war as
sure me they had never seen them in
use. A similar effort was made to make
cloth cut of wood pulp. but this seems
to have shared the same fate. It was
theoretically possible, but practically it
did not go. A cloth made Of wooden
shoddy was loaded with wood pulp. SO
that it made fair appearance, but it
was not practical for clothing. Some
thing else had to be done.