The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-09-17
GIVE EMINENT PLAN
 TO HELP SIMPLIFY CLOTHING STYLES.
Style Conference To Lead To Reduction In Prices, Is
 The Hope
Ky THOMAS L. STOKES (LenSed Wire to The Age-HeraId.


 WASHINGTON, Sept. 1b.-While dad is going through his annual grumble over the high cost of fall clothes for the family. he may be cheered to know that the government is about to hold a style conference with big clothing manufacturers which. 1t Is hoped, will lead ulti- mately to reduction on the price tags.
 The department of commerce Is now arranging with the heads of the | various garment industries for style conference to be held here within few weeks. The object Is to abolish wasteful practices and introduce be done without restricting individual taste In styles and patterns. For instance. buttons are Of so many varieties that matching Is made difficult. Unnecessary machines are required. larger stocks must be | that thousands of dollars can be saved by agreeing upon a limited number of buttons, still leaving suf- ficient styles and sizes to meet all practical needs.
 That's the simplest illustration of what Is expected at the coming style conference.
 Changes To He Voluntary. The changes will be adopted volun- tarily and only those unanimously agreed to by the bulk of the industry will be approved.
 This is the most recent step in q | long program of simplification throug which Secretary of Commerce Hoover hopes to save millions of dol l lars annually
 As in their other investigations experts will go back to essentials, tracing clothing through its hundred and one different steps from raw material to consumer, in an effort to eliminate some of the numerous sizes and weights, as they come from the mill, and many of the unnecessary frills and furbelows that cost the consumers hundreds of thousands ot dollars each year.
 Secretary of Commerce Hoover es 1 inmates that millions of dollars have already been saved through simplifi cations made in several industries 1T the last two years.
 Manufacturers Often Benefit. Experts of the commerce depart ment, on request from trade associa' tions and manufacturers, make 6 study of any desired industry. Hay | ing ound what simplifications ant 1 standardizations can be made, they meet with representatives of the in dustry and show the results of theil survey. These are carried back tC the trade. and put Into effect volun
 tarily when 75 per cent have ap proved the changes. These simplifi cations are often a relief to manu 1 lecturers driven to absurd length by competition in nonessental fea lures.
 The life of the people is already 1 being affected. Sizes of beds hav'
 been reduced from numerous lengths and widths to four, so that a mat tress can now be ordered by tele
 phone. Great reductions have beel made in the varieties of hotel dishes
 paper bags, farm implements, cans
 wrfngers, concrete mixers, pavini bricks and woven wire fence. t
 mention a few. One manufacture l of little household knick-knacks i | reducing the varieties of products finding that 65 per cent of his busi ness is done on only 61o items. H. formerly manufactured 17,000. Ovel 60 other industries are now working with the department of commerce o1 l reductions.