Great Falls daily tribune., 1920-05-26
HASKIN LETTE Err
By FREDERIC J. HASKlN
THE WILD BUYERS.

New York, May 24.-At last cause
for the high cost of living has been found
which is satisfactory to everybody-The
newly rich
prosperity have always been associated
with all that Is crude and naive in our
national makeup. Nothing seems more
ludicrous than the proletarian suddenly
turned plutocrat. Humorous accidents
of this kind run through all our most
popular fiction they fill our comic sheets,
and they occur with unceasing regularity
on our stage. SO what more natural than
to make the newly rich responsible for
the high cost of living? Here is some
thing that everybody is familiar with
and which does not have to be labofl..
ously figured out like the initiation of
currency. Here also is a splendid excuse
for the profiteer, for what can a poor
profiteer do against the loud demands
of a new crop of milionaires, insisting
upon the privilege of buying goods at
high prices?
There are the retailers Of feminine
luxuries, for example. They complain
that they cannot put their prices up high
enough to satisfy many of their prema-
turely wealthy customers while mann-
factuners tell you with tears in their eyes
that they cannot think up enough use
less luxuries TO meet the demand. Never
have the shops been so crowded with
purchasers of costly novelties. Never
have the small accessories of feminine
apparel played such an important part
in the fashions of the moment. The
newly rich like to wear as many brilliant
badges as possible to proclaim their
wealth.
The Umbrella Magnificent.
Thus, the humble umbrella has be-
come thing of great resplendence,
with fragile bones. fine siiken body
and proud handle as profusely cary
ed and painted as totem pole. Some
umbrellas even bear the carved por-
traits of the fayorite domestic pets of
their owners. While the plain. sturdy.
cotton-cloth umbrella is still greatly
in evidence upon a rainy day, 1t Is
steadily losing out in the department
stores, which under the domination of
the newly rich. are handling almost
wholly the elaborate twenty-five to fifty
dollar varieties.
The feminie handbag. Also is no long
er simple. utilitarian article, built up
on practical lines. but a gorgeously bead
ed and be- jeweled thing designed chiefly
for ornament. There may be many
women who still pay no more than five
dollars for handbag. but there are also
many who pay one hundred dollars and
more. 1t Is simply amazing to stand at
department handbag counter and OBJ
serve what women will pay, and are eag-
er to pay, for little bits OF tortoise she'll
and satin.
In a Fifth avenue store. the avher
day, a brilliantly -arrayed and copiously
perfumed woman stood lingering a small
purse resembling an oldfashicned card
case. one side of which was shell and
the other suede.
'IIow much is this" ste askel a
weary salesgirl at last.
Twenty five dollars" replied tire girl.
"Oh." said she of the brilliant feath-
crs. haven't you anything better than
that?"
! we have" explained the girl. 1T is
! really a very great bargain. You see'
the inside is divided into two comparf-
mcnts; this one of suede is used for
money while this one IF white kid IS
| intended fof jewels"
"For jewels" repeated the customer
much impressed. "Well, III take it
High Priced History.
| At this same counter was displayed
| q novelty designed solely for the ira
ditional credulous newly rich--a folded
purse in bill-book form, made of leather
! or of fine satin. with inset panels OF
what were supposed to be bits of rare
needlcwork tapestry, obtained from
historic pieces which were damaged il
| the war. For a purse OF this type. n:
well rs the story of the original tapestry