New-York tribune., 1918-12-15

paragon of taste, have witnessed this
year the passing of the old-fashioned
Christmas decorations "a temporary
passing perhaps, but one which upscts
q whole collection of favoritc notions
concerning the public imagination.
Snow and ice and sleighing Santa
Clauses and all the Yulctide pagcantry
Of former years have always been
thought to have a great psychological
Importance. Witness the appeal of the
government early in the fall when it !
was urging upon merchant and public |
an advanced season of holiday shop |
ping. "Sprinkle the windows with tin
sci hangngs," those at Washington
urged Forget Halloween and ride
rough shod over the pumpkins of
Thanksgiving with Santa's reindeer and
sleigh. Make the people feel Christ
mas, smell it, see it, hear it-and they
will buy carly"
In this case merchants proved them
selves superior in analyzing the public
mind. They had already come in con-
tact with that new thing, the War
Imagination, and they knew how it had
changed both the standards and the
tastes of their customers.
They knew that no Christmas dis
play could hope to be convincing so
close upon the heels of the tremendous
pagcants of war times. They knew that
we were too near rcmcmbrances of the
grisly panopiy of war to appreciate
lighter moods Of polity which came in
other years as a logical respite. And
what Christmas decoration could hope
to vic with the dress of the city during
various war drives, or with the final
crowning pageant of the Avenue of the
Allies, when every window in every
store caught and reflected in its small
way the greater glories of hammered
thoroughfares without?
Holly and mistlctoc and ubiquitous
Santas would be an anticlimax after
such things. SO the stores have
, avoided anything festive save a few toy
displays, and are satisfied slowly to un-
leash bright colors from the restraint
imposed upon them during the war by
good taste and to substitute for war
n; A,,l ll.,
We are not to be deprived of our
Christmas setting this year, however,
! but it will have the same community
: character which we learned to know in
> war times. With every lamppost on
the avenue bossoming out in the garb
+ of Crusader, with trees Of light prom
- ised in long lanes of glory, we find it
- hard to regret the old fashion of ndi-
= vidual display. The old meaning of
q Christmas is to find expression under
e watchword is mercy. All the stores
! will take part again in the Christmas
v pageant Of the Red Cross, and in this
e larger concerted holiday festival there
y Will be taught anew the real meaning
j. of peace on earth, good Will to men
vH~HE passion for experimentation j
IL such q generally accepted at
s tribute of human nature that one won
"a ders nowadays what men and womel
h did to give it expression before tn
$; scientific spirit came into vogue.
u What could women, for example
a have done with all their time befor
lie the gentle rustlings of the first pape
s. pattern sounded the thin thunder o
! the storm of home tailoring which wa
:" to follow?
Here is modern device which ha
: become such an integral part OF do
q nestle life that no woman feels sh
h has truly lived until she has gon
r. through the intricacies of at least on
N paper pattern. One woman in thre
IS uses the paper pattern constantly, ac
:; cording to maker Of this article
!. And so expert does she become, so dis
,e satisfied to turn out clumsy garment
Sc with "home made" look, that va
lie rety of innovations have been devise
to facilitate the cutting and making o
garments.
r. Not long ago a paper pattern was
st thing of pieces not even identified. On
u Waded through the problems of putin
,s it together, alone and unaided To
is day it is accompanied by a complet
le guide both to cutting and sewing s
~ ~ that one is actually personally con
~ Quoted from the beginning to the en-
d. of the operation.
n The evolution of the idea of tn
cheap paper pattern has not been slo,
70 since it once got under way. Wha
o1 women want now is pattern of create
-, service, even if it is not quite $
N cheap. Since the war sent the pric
IS of the ordinary pattern from Is to .
!" cents there has been an increase in tn
b. more expensive patterns, which includ
in their service a cut to order. Fo
'e 'e three times the price of stock patter
+h it is possible to obtain the same pa,
lg ment cut specially to ones measure
mcnt service of this sort whic
or,1I ~,