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About The monitor. (Omaha, Neb.) 1915-1928 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 9, 1920)
Airy Midsummer Hats in White THE PAFfSS OF CfMNA-Jg | Little Maids in Silk Attire SOME of the hats of midsummer might be inspired by thistle-down or the exquisite airy globe that fol lows the flower of the dandelion—they are so light and so cool-looking. Only the sheerest and most lace-like ma terials go into their making, mere mists of fabrics In pure white. Their trimmings are often all-white also; the cold but lovely ghosts of gay flow era and fruits and grains that adorn their colorful rivals. Occasionally a little pale color appears In ribbon or other trimming on these fragile-look ing white shapes but designers like best to make them all in white. Hair braid, mallnes and the filmiest laces over the finest wire frames, make the majority of the white dress hats for midsummer, and white rib bon In the narrower widths appears to lend them just enough of substance and luster to make them pass as head coverings. The group of four lints shown here reveals the success with which millinery artists deal In these materials; they Indicate something of the great diversity they create In styles. There are two dressy models, one with round crown and sweeping, upturned brim In which the frame Is covered with mallnes. Narrow ribbon tied In loops midway of the brim makes a beautiful facing and fine white lace rira|>es the top. The other Vide brimmed hat has a crown of hair brulcl nnd H brlin of mallnes with two scant ruffles of Val lace as a finish. Plcot-edged ribbon about the crown, wanders over the brim edge and ends In u flat bow In the under brim. A half wreath of grasses and tlowera com pletes It. Hnlr braid crown with very narrow ribbon In rows, and n brlin of ribbon loops make the small hat trimmed with tiny roses, while snowdrops and ma llnes cover the rolling brim of the hat having a round crown of hnlr braid. New Panama Hat Style. From England comes the vogue for panama hats trimmed In a new and decidedly unique way. These hats are hand-painted In patchwork or unusual designs or entirely painted In one col or, faced with matching chiffon and trimmed with folds—hands or scarfs of the chiffon combined with patent leather or oilcloth strips. Velvet for Fall and Winter. Velvet, It Is already reported from Paris, will be used extensively for suits nnd wraps this coining autumn and winter. Clad for Outdoor and Indoor v ~ TUB heart of the Dapper rejoices In many smocks, blouses and top jackets for outdoor wear, that range all the way from plain white, with a Uttle Inconspicuous decoration, to vivid colors that form backgrounds for even more vivid cut-out figures posed against them. Among the lat ter there are slip-over smocks, with short kimono sleeves, In heavy cotton weaves that are shown In orange, green, rose, blue. With figures cut from contrasting colors and black or colored yarns, their makers use them as an artist might a canvas, posing brilliant parrots or gaudy flowers on them. When these figures turn out unexpectedly to be pockets to every one’s surprise, the Joy of youthful wearers Is complete, for It Is a flue thing to have one's high spirits visual ized In clothes. A helted smock In blue cotton shown in the picture above Is the successor of the middy blouse and plays the same role In the wardrobe, but It Is a bit more graceful In lines. Its odd collar and flaring cuffs lend It Interest, and they are supplemented by slushes over the hips and the management of the belt which slips through slides. Lest we overlook this cleverness, the de signer has put small sprays of em broidered flowers at each side. A pretty and demure dress of ging ham, for the home, is shown In the second picture, and hardly needs de scriptlou. These small, plain checks are very fashionable this season, tor both grown people and nil the younger generation. Organdie lends them daintV ness. It appears here In a fichu and In little, narrow frills on the cuffs. Often a sash Is made of It, but In the dress pictured there Is a wide girdle made of a bins strip of gingham. These garments are of the kind that women make ut home, and the mate rials for making them are to be found everywhere; yet they appear In all the best displays In centers of fashion where their good qualities are fully appreciated. Children's Hats Match Frocks. Designers of children’s clothes show many little frocks und hats to match for wear during the summer. The materials so employed Include ging ham, calico, etc., us well as the lighter weight voiles und organdies. Late Handkerchief Style. The latest thing In a handkerchief is one made of flowered chiffon. It has u narrow hem or is hemstitched. This handkerchief comes In a variety of designs and colors. II 1 I \M§ X * HI 1 I Temple of the Five Hundred Goda, Canton. (Prepared by the National Oeofraphlc So ciety, Washington, D. C.> □ANTON Is the Paris and Bun ker Hill of China. The Chinese say that he who has not lived In Canton knows not luxury. Equally true Is it that the American of lowliest estate who \*h not seen Canton knows not poverty. In contrast to ancient tem ples, and palatial homes surrounded with park-llke gardens, are the beg gars at their gates, covered with sores and whining for a pittance; the leaden-eyed porters, straining under their burden of humanity or baggage; women haggling for a pigeon-egg-sized lump of heun curd, half a dozen pea nuts, a dozen roasted beans, or a strip of meat the size of a rasher of bacon as a speciul luxury for the family din ner. A five and ten-cent store would be a Tiffany’s for many well-to-do Can ton families. The cent, now a sort of war tax annoyance to us, would have to he subdivided for the China man. His smnllest coin, the cash, nor mally worth one-twentieth of an Amer ican cent, was too large In some places, and bamboo tokens are rec ognized by tradesmen ns worth half a cash. Yet there Is luxury, expressed not only In homes, commerce, and busi ness structures, hut In products which make Canton the art center of China. Its lacquer and sandalwood articles are unique. Its Ivory carving unsur passed, Its pottery, gem setting, and fans, from the palm leaves we buy for a few pennies to the Ivory-handled feather ones the tourist bargains for at $25 or $.’15, are world famous. Revolutionary Center of China. Patriotically Canton has several points of contact with the American. Most likely the tirecruckers which dis turbed our early-morning slumbers on the Fourth of July ctune from there, as well as the fan we carried to the community demonstration later. Can ton was the birthplace of the revolu tion In 11111 that ended the Manchu dynasty, and has been the storm cen ter of other revolutionary activities since. Except for a few newer streets, It still Is true thnt Canton Is a "city of a million without a wheel or a beast of burden.” Strangely ancient In some respects. Canton long has practiced some of the expedients which are be ing urged as experiments In western lands. So far as her business district Is concerned, the city Is thoroughly "zoned.” The shopper may find prac tically all the city has to offer In wood carving on one street, In silks and em broideries on another, In Jewels und precious stones on another. During lhe coal shortage In our eastern states In recent winters, efforts were mude to do cooking at central kitchens and serve food "ready to eat” at homes In the neighborhood. Long has the fuel shortage been acute In Canton, driv ing the housewife to chaff, twigs, Ut ter, for her cooking, and making cook ing and vending on the streets a re course of the poor rather than a fad with the rich. The Chinese “hot dog man” has a greater variety, but small er portions, than our own, and he is not to be recommended from the standpoint of sanitation. Fighting the Plague. Huuiuu life Inevitably becomes cheaper In the midst of congestion, suffering and poverty. Early efforts to fight the bubonic plague were grave ly met with the argument that there were too many mouths to feed, any way, In Canton, and the plague, like the typhoons, were providential for those who escaped. Humane science finally won the day, and the tin boxes on street corners are not to be mistaken for trash re ceptacles. They are for dead rata, which are collected and burned. The tornadoes wreak peculiar havoc be cauae of the peculiar dwelling place of some 125,000 of Canton's Inhabi tants—on houseboats. These boat dwellers, the Tan-mln, are social pariahs. Their women formerly fur nished the "singing girls" on the "flow er boats," floating haunts of the under world, which were burned several years ago. Their men engage In the river traffic that Is an essimtlal fea ture of Canton's commercial life. The city Is 70 miles up the Pearl river from the sea. Naming the kinds of Junks that ply about Canton re quires as much knowledge as picking the makes of automobiles that spin nlong Riverside drive or Michigan ave nue. The “slipper boats’* are recog nizable because of a striking resem blance to their European-given nick name; the "Canton sampans" are nu merous; the two-masted passenger junks are the Canton-Hongkong fer ries, but the most curious of the many other kinds, perhaps, are the che-tlng, operated - by Chinamen stepping on a treadmill In the rear. These were In vented by an European who sensed that man power Is the cheapest and most plentiful to be had In China— land where labor-utilizing rather than labor-saving devices pique the Inven tor. The gutters are In the middle of the street, In Canton. The divers down by the water front go In feet first. The Canton bon-bon is pit-tan, eggs preserved in rice hulls, ashes and lime. If a man has a beautiful yard or gar den, he hides It by a high wall; but once the visitor breaks through this privacy, In company with a trusted guide, he may find himself not only on the premises but conducted through an exclusive home as If it were a pub lic building, and the household mem bers go serenely about their own affairs while they, too, are described and ex plained by the cordial friend. Here Is a hint of the origin of the China town tours in our great cities. Temples and Legends. If the struggle for existence sug „ ‘its materialism, one need only visit the temples In Canton, to glimpse the delicate, subtle, and daring Imagina tion of the seemingly literal, cautious Chinaman. The “Flowery Pugoda," with the copper pillar topped by a golden bull, is where a famed Indian missionary once s)>ent a night, and so fragrant was his presence that the tower still Is free from mosquitoes. To the "Five Fairies Temple” once came five genii, wearing coats of dif ferent colors and riding gouts of differ ent colors. Each fairy brought a stalk of grain, which was given to the peo ple with the benediction "Dwell here In perpetual peace, and never know famine.” ’The fairies departed, but their steeds turned to stone, and re main to this day In the temple. A more mechanical curiosity Is the tow er where time Is measured by water dripping from four copper vessels, ar ranged at different levels. The hills about are famed no less for their legends than for the terraces where the ginger root Is grown that Is preserved by the Cantonese. One peak Is crowned by a rock that sways when spoken to In angry tones; there Is a stream where some Oriental Enoch drank a potion of Iris leaves and, becoming Immortal, was wafted away to heaven. There Is a chamber of commerce at Canton, but the characteristic Indus trial bodies are the guilds, 72 in num ber, Iron bound, self-perpetuating ot* ganlzatlons, of great power both eco nomically and politically. The Chi nese merchant and artisan Is an apt example of the tremendous forces of Inertia, or precedent, If you like, In Chinese life. He carves, brews, or sells gold foil, not only because his father or grandfather did, but because .his remote ancestors, when Columbus sailed westward or Marco Polo toured east did that very thing In just that way. Quality, not variety, is the merit he seeks, and the guilds define the exact sphere of their members minutely. There Is the Guild of Dealers In Cloth Interwoven with Metal Threads of Various Colors, the Guild of Dealers In Kerosene Lumps, the Guild of Deal ers In Hand-Reeled Silk, and the Guild of Dealers In Liquor Brewed from Rice. The honesty of the Chinese mer chant Is proverbial. In Canton lived Hon Qua, a millionaire, who furnished a conspicuous example of this quality. When a firm which owed large sums to foreigners became bankrupt, Hon Qua headed a list of Canton business men who mude good the debt, on the ground that Chinese credit must not be tarnished. * ^ IT IS, or It ought to be, u great occa sion for the very little girl when she arrives at the splendor of her first silk dress. With It she has responsi bilities thrust upon her; she must be taught to be careful to keep It clean and thus comes the beginning of her training In neatness and the unfailing charm of daintiness. Fashion decrees silk coats and frocks for little maids by the time their third birthday dawns and has selected sprightly taffeta as the prettiest and most practical of I weaves for them, although neither crepe de chine nor georgette are denied | them. But these softer silks are used l In light colors for dress-up times while | taffeta Is sturdier and extends Its use | fulness to coots and dresses that will I stand more wear. Taffeta In dark blue makes the charming little frock shown in the pic ture on a little girl of four. It has a quaint flavor of old times (which It Is easy to achieve In taffeta) with Its short baby waist, round neck and wide, ruffled collar. The bottom of the waist Is finished with a frill and band of the silk, the band having slashes in It for a narrow ribbon gir dle to slip through. Short ruffled sleeves are caught up at the elbow and tied w) h ribbon. White sox and black slippers are in keeping with this little affair of other days. Either taffeta or cotton will be suc cessful In (lie pretty embroidered frock shown. It is scalloped at the bottom and set on to a narrow yoke also cut In wide scallops. A very simple stltchery like feather or cat stitching runs parallel with the scallops and little rose buds are embroidered above It. The same decoration appears wn turned back cuffs that finish elbow sleeves and there Is a sash of the dress material slipped through slashes cut In the body of the frock. __ Metal Brocades in Purses. Metal brocades are prominent In purses, although very little silver bro cade Is used. A new- vanity case Is of green and black metal brocade and has a frame and ball clasp of Ivory stained to give It an old appearance. One side of this case is fitted with a mirror and a pocket for one’s hand kerchief and the other side with a powder puff and Up stick. Recommended to the Seamstress r' ” ~ ■“ ~"rir THE fairly efficient seamstress who has what the French call "a sense of clothes,” can take a small allowance In money and dress much better on It than richer women who lack good taste. Also she gets more pleasure out of her achievements and there are a good many women In this favored land who have the knack of doing much with little. Thanks to the wide publicity given by newspapers to all matters of dress In centers of fash ion no American need ever be behind the times In styles. Two afternoon gowns shown In the picture here, may be recommended to the seamstress who undertakes to make her own dresses. They offer a choice between long, straight lines for those who admire the slim silhouette and curved ones for those who are too slender, or those who find un broken lines unbecoming to them. Trlcolette with an open or drop stltch stripe, makes the handsome straight line dress. The design Is sim ple but original, achieving a sleeveless jacket effect In the body which slips over an underbodlce carrying the sleeves. Wide satin ribbon, In a soft quality, makes a short crushed band across the front, simulating a girdle, and square buttons are set at each side where It terminates. The el bow sleeves are finished with turn back cuffs that employ a band of rlh bon and buttons In tne same way. There Is a very simple neck with sail or collar at the back. A plain satin underskirt and bodies supply the foundation for the attrac tive frock of georgette, which might be made of voile. It features the new neck mode—high at back and open In front, and very full niching of plaited silk with pinked edges, at the bottom j of a full, short tuulc. The girdle is a ! frtldrtri Ipncrth rtf hint satin. That Splash of Color. Organdie and novelty cotton frocks are good looking. Imported embroid ered voiles dotted In varl-color are given the splash of Interest by a vivid sash of organdie with butterfly loops and trailing sash ends. Another treat ment which Is very effectively used In these voiles and In the organdie frocks Is two-inch Insertions of shirred tulle or of tucked organdie In a con ‘ treating shade, which gives a much more hand-worked effect than tho In sertion of narrow laces. Yellow or gandie Is used In this way with gray organdie and white tulle In the pal* colored frocks.