Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-06-16

The passing Of the old-time market
basket, as daily unitarian article, hal
been very much lamented, In a rather
theoretical way, by our good friend
Templeton Jones, esq.
Jones is rather old-fashioned In his
tastes.
He misses a great many things, in.
Guiding the stately, gracious manners
of yesteryear, the child that was seen
not heard" and the sleigh ride.
Above all, he says, he regrets the
dismissal of the market basket to 9
shelf from which it has not been taken
down In many years.
Jones realizes that progress Is prog
ress and that the telephone and swift
delivery have relegated the old-timey
basket to dust and oblivion.
Yet to him there was something ex-
tremely appealing about the sight Of q
woman with a market basket on her
arm.
1t spoke of the good things of earth
the fresh vegetables, much fresh corn
and carrots davoriteS in the East, al
most unknown in the Middle Vest, the
fine meats, the chickens, the turkeys
IN season.
There was something stately, almost
unknown In the swifter pace of today
in the majestic roll of carriage to the
portals of the old Center Market, the
getting out of the lady Of the house
with her market basket on her arm, and
the journey along the favorite stalls.
What an avalanche of fresh, crisp
smells greeted her, in the hey-dey OF
marketing! A hundred and one things
not ordinarily carried in memory
among the comparatively small list OF
favorite edibles, sent up their savory
odors, as she wended her way down the
aiSleS.
The return to the carriage was q
sort of stately procession, owing to the
simple fact that the market basket
weighed many pounds more than it did
on the trip in.
1t was now filled with the good
things of the earth, packed in paper
bags, each one sending up different
fragrance-yes. that is the word-the
combination being an odor utterly I'M
like that OF any other container in the
wide world
Today that is largely ended Market
men have become progressive, along
with the rest of the world.
They deliver.
Women purchasers OF foodstuffs have
developed a strange timidity about ap-
pearing on the streets with market
baskets.
In order to abstain from the use OF
the basket. they make use of wheeled
carts, which look rather silly, and
peculiar square bags Of heavy paper, on
which have been pasted colored pic
lures.
Or they resort to huge omnibus paper
bags big enough to hold an entire day
supply OF food, or maybe two days
worth. or perhaps enough food for a
small family for week
Evidently they would rather suffer
in silence under this heavy, cumber-
some package. on which there is nc
real way to get grip, rather than car
ry an old-fashioned market basket.
The market basket has-or, rather,
had capacious comfortable handle,
which might be slipped over the left
arm. thus affording a double support,
what with the arm and the hip.
When Templeton Jones used to see a
market basket his thoughts went back
to the Book of Proverbs, about the
woman diligent in the upkeep of her
home, and how she was worth more
than all the rubies and the fine gold in
the world
Jones thought she must have had a
sense of pride in her market basket,
but he admits that he may have been
mistaken about that.
The only change he can think Of
which must be responsible for the
passing of the old-time basket has
taken place in the minds Of women.
No doubt they feel that marketing is
a sort of mental task one untitled for
a modern creature brought up on the
ideas Of speed. snap" and cleverness,
whose professed aim in life is to be
chic" above everything else.
Templeton Jones admits that there