The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-05-14
Mrs. Gilman Found Much of
Interest, but Did Not Re-
greet Leaving
NOW IN COBLENZ :
WITH RED CROSS
Planned Trip to Devastated City of
Rheims-Tells of Extreme Styles in
Womens Dress and Shoes-Rain No
Bar to Show of Finery.


Bar to Show of Finery.
An interesting letter has just been re-
ceived by Mrs. H. w Hovey from her
daughter, Mrs. Clara Hovey Gilman OF
this town, a Red Cross worker in
France, who wrote from Paris 1t is
dated April Is at Hotel Palais Royal,
Rue de Valois, Paris, and in substance
it is as follows:
April Is, 1919.
We are just across the narrow street
from one of the side entrances to the
old Palais Royal, where Francois l was
born. The main gate opens on to the
Place de Palais Royal and directly OPP
posite is the Louvre.
1t is very interesting to walk along
the arcade within the palace enclosure
Now, all the space is taken up with
fascinating little shops. jewelers. reign
supreme, but there are many shops,
places where one may buy any sort of
antique from old Chinese Jars and idols
to East Indian silver work and rugs
Stamp collections, too, abound, old
paintings, engravings, in fact, it is a
bewildering place
This hotel is very fair. Our room is
too dark, but it is not wise to kick for
space is at a premium here and we are
lucky. The Y. w. c. A. has just taken
over the management and it is filled
with r. G. and Y. girls. No men at all,
The charge for the room is five francs
per day per person and you pay for tho
meals that you have and they are very
good. Prices reasonable as prices go
in Paris today; dinner is six francs.
We have been very busy getting new
uniforms, hats, and various odds and
ends.s 1t takes so long to get about here
and we are sufficiently unfamiliar to
90 blocks out of our way very often.
The streets run in any, and all, direc-
tons.
The new uniforms are made exactly
the same as the one you saw, but are
slightly different shade, and much
lighter in weight, for which we are
thankful. The old ones are the hottest
garments on earth! We have now the
added glory of leather belts and service
| stripes, showing our work. These / am
very proud of and envy the women who
| have three. ID. and I feel that we have
| earned ours, too. When l hear what a
| different life the girls stationed in Paris
| have had. | IN thankful for the hard
| days in Vichy.
1 Our new hats are just plain black
sailors, double brim, with band of
ii blue gros grain ribbon and the Red
Cross above. Not very bad, but neither
H d. nsr | care for the severe STYLES Sc
we sigh for some hats that we. see in
the windows. The only thing | m really
II hard up for is shoes. They are scarcel
than hen s teeth; that is, excepting
French shoes, which-are, without excep
ton, the ugliest things man ever made
Extremely short vamps, very rounC
toes. and heels like stills. All the WON
en- wobble on them and the resulting
gait is anything but graceful TIL,
4 AWalkover Shop is hoping for a ship
/ ment from the o. S. this week, so w
are going there again this afternoon t,
inquire ''Hanan is all sold out saw,
for very small or very large sizes. /
the American shoes fail to come be
| fore we go we have decided to get som
| at French shop we have spotted
III They are not extreme in style, hav
| what our French sisters probably cal
| | very low heels, and are dark brown il
| color.
A party of us went to tea at tn
III q Restaurant des Ambassadors. - Tha
| was a show The tea and cakes are N
better than elsewhere, but the crow
| was just like scene on the stage. Sue
clothes! Most of the gowns have yer
short sleeves and many there had non
at all. 1t was a quiet crowd. TIL
skirts are still sky high and with tn
III lack of sleeves it can't require niue
III material TO make a frock. Very fe'
III wore gloves which is noticeable wit
III such an expanse of bare arms.
III After tea we all went to the garden
IL A. Mi ,,lo
III and there was some real sunshine I
III make it better After dinner, at OIL
~ abiding place, we went to the Opei
Comique to see the Marriage of Figar
and l loved every bit of it. 1t was
rare treat of course to US country folk
The music, scenery, costumes-and tt
audience Between the acts we WEI
out into the promenade and just frank
stared Everyone does here l sha
have to learn manners all over again,
think.
Yesterday morning we, all of us, WEI
shopping to buy Y. s niece's troussea
1t was heaps of fun seeing all the love
things The quantity of embroidert
lingerie is small for little has been ma,
during the war.
The Red Cross pays for most of O
new uniforms and has Increased o
maintenance. Ihat sounds well till "
figure that twenty francs a day is t
least one can i've for in any big tow
Laundry is very high. 1 do belle
they all stick on few extra francs
all American folks bills.
It is raining for fear we will be t
excited over a sunny day. never knt
there could be so much rain in all t
world. 1t pours and it pours! And
Brest the weather bureau reports tn
it rained $50 days in 1918. I thi
Vichy must be well toward the top
the rainy list, and now it is just t
same in Paris The queer part of it
the French don 7. seem to care Won
splash about in satin and velvet gov
with thin silk stockings and fan
- shoes as if the weather were fine a
they bound for a tea
Friday we went to see the great 7