Evening star., 1918-03-31
ny ANNE RITTENHoUsE.

--HE attempt to Dolly vardenize
clothes began in Palm Beach In
january. As soon as the French
openings began in February
we, over here. learned that they, over
there. had begun the same trick in cos
tumery.
Orrandies. printed voiles and iowereo
chi0ons were the materials used 1oi
thess frocks, which bore close kinsnlr
( to q softer epoch than the one in Wnlcn
We take our part today.
II IL Of psychological interest. this IN
PRODUCTION into women's apparel OF
kind of costumery that suggests every
thing we are not at this hour. There
may be no reason than that OF tradi-
tion for US to associate Powered mus
lins, big taffeta sashes with bows al
/ the back, immense English garden hats
tied under the chin. and lace-covereo
pzxasols with that part of woman's ma
tuTA that deals in coquetry. the eternal
appeal to masculine admiration, help
lessness and all the accentuated tricks
cf,femininity which the world thought
It had wiped out to a certain measure
Yet we do connect these clothes and
these traits The world always looks
upon a woman who is frocked in
figured muslin. her eyes shaded with a
at her belt, as one who Is out for ad-
mfration.
We do not wish to deny her this
pleasure; we cavil not at the sex IN
stinct to fiutter bright-colored plumage;
we do not disapprove Of feminfnfty In
this guise-but today we look at 1t with
astonished eyes. So much water has
gone under the bridge of life since these
CLONES were considered fetching and
appropriate.
even within the covers of a thick book,
the things that have happened to women
since then. Stupendous as Is their work
I'm the war, and their successful nights
for suffrage. these are only keys that
are opening barred doors to wider fields
Of life. Woman herself, in mass, has
been developed from the soul out. Sne
has found expression of this more Mt
tingly in her return to barbaric, insur-
gent clothes than she could possibly
ind In a return to the Dolly Warden,
wxtteau shepherdess. English cathedral
garden style.
There cannot arise critic SO foolish
in these days as to suggest that the
militant woman is not capable of look
inE like a Watteau shepherdess II she
taIes it into her mind to do So There
fore, our surprise is not that the wom-
on Of the moment should appear well
in the English garden type of clothes,
with which one always associates
strawberries and cream. low voices.
waving hair parted in the middle. and
shy, almost gauche manners. but that
thsy should elect this fowery and
futile fashion at this hour.
Yet they are doing it Both France
and America are heaping figured fab
stalled again. Immense bows Of taffeta
ribbon. sashes of every kind, flowing
elbow sleeves, surplice necks with wide
hAndkerchiefs of colored fabrics are
shown and worn by women who have
probably spent the morning at a class
in Nursing at q hospital and will spend
the-evening at a canteen.
Isn't this a curious psychological
thing? Here we have preached for two
yea<s the Strengthening tendency of
women to dress more and more like
or in an Amaxonian fashion In the
We have tried to standardixe Clothes,
3oonshly, but earnestly, throughout all
channels of dress. We know that one
q the most important leagues Of young
W6fAon In America Is circulating a petit
tiop. signed by its members, to the ef-
1ecti that they are to buy only three
gowns a season, one for each division
Of The day, the price to be $50 apiece.
an4a&he uniforms to be of standard pat