The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-03-16
The "Eorrjng' Craze

You remember "Barkis" in David Copperfield- yes, the same Barkis so said, 'Earkis is willin' ." used to make use of the expression 'as true as taxes" to verify a state ment?
 Well, If Barkis had happened to be among those present" now, he'd surely say, as he sees the ladies be- Aeeked and "be-earringed" that the aSrring craze was "as true as taxes" in its almost perennial sureness in the sartorial world.
 Every now and then the earring craze 'bobs up serenely"-from goodness knows where-but it "bobs." tIm not trying to pun" or para phrase either-by that "bobs''-even If there are people who call earrings "ear bobs.")
 The learned professor and theore- tical college professor who recently wasted columns of perfectly good space in the newspapers trying to prove that woman is still a savage creature missed one of the very best points he might have made in his tremendous argument. when he failed to dwell "at length" upon the feminine passion for Jeweled baubles in ones ears; for deny it as we may, every single, blessed. mothers daugh- ter of us secretly adores long dang ling earrings, and the only reason that We don't have a different pair for every hour of the day is, the in growing suspicion. onviction-what you will-that earrings do not be- come us.
 It is really weakness" inherited from our grandmothers/ way back yonder-indeed further back than that-for it reaches to the period when our ancestors were savages and wore long earrings in their ears and tinkling strings of beads around their necks. and rings in their noses and secretly rejoiced in their great beauty.
 We sometimes justify our affection for rings in our ears by explaining we've 8 lovely pair of drops that came directly down from the grand aunt for whom We were named Sure ly the personal interest that attaches itself to the one for whom We were christened should entitle us to use for our own what belonged to lady who handed down to us her good first name.
 We love earrings. We've tried to agree with those callous and unnat- ural persons who declare that they lothe all forms of jewelry, especially the pieces that suggest savage prac- tices in South Sea isles. Certainly we have the good taste to feel that we must eschew noserings. Nobody need ever know that personally We aren't so averse to nose rings; it's the pub lie generally that is prejudiced aginst them
 You have made up your mind. You will have earrings.
 You are distracted trying to decide what kind of earrings you will start out wearing. All your life you've liked hoops of gold-the kind gipsy wears in her ears. But they are also the kind one sees on darkey chamber maids in hotels. For the time being you bar hoops of gold.
 You begin to turn over in your mind what earrings would go with certain of your gowns. You've low necked black spangled gown that would be dignified and enriched by long pendants of black jet. Right there you stop. Black jet they shall be, and you forthwith set out to pur- chase them. You try them on at the jewellers, but one can never get the real effect of anything in a downtown mirror You hasten home and don the black evening gown for dinner and adjust your earrings and await the family's verdict on your latest in- vestment.
 You rather like the kind friend who drops in during the evening after you've been hearing only amusing re- marks about your new ornaments when she tells you. your face with earrings looks positively Egyptian You like to get good effects-foreign contours-from your plain little American countenance. You feel like a lady from one of Mrs. Humphrey WarGs novels.N
 But the craze for black yet earrings