The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Pag
ADY DUFF-CORDON, the famous -Lucfle" of
London, and foremost creator of fashions in the
world, write each week the fashion article for this
newspaper, presenting aO that is newest and best in styles
for weO-dressed women.
Lady Du If -Gordon's Paris establishment brings her
into clow touch with that centre of fashion.
Dy Lady Duff-Gordon.
HIE Teal Influence of the
stag on fashions ought to
be well understood It a
women la not to make the
mistake of copying too slavishly for
house and street the charming erea-
. i . .
wi um viiMa appear aaro.
The sUf is a splendid place to
study modes. Actresses, aa a rule,
know how to dress. But what must
. be considered la that gowns for the
stag ought to be built to fit the pe
culiar situations developed In the
play. Discerning actresses know
this, because It Is on of the Impor
tant points of producing plays that
may determine; success or failure. A
dress which does not harmonize with
the spirit of the play may wreck the
whole play.
Thara la a. rnnit rmnn far lhl
The stage's business! to present the
Illusion of life. That Is what scene
painters, lighting experts, stage di
rectors, playwright, manager and
actors are continually striving for.
In proportion, usually, as they suc
ceed does the play succeed.
All stage folk know that many a
time a note of Insincerity, either In
une or in gesture, in spesxing or in
atmosphere, has killed an Immensely
promising play on the Instant
Having all this In mind, we begin
to see how Important tt Is to -dress
-p u mm pia.r. .-Ana we negro to see
why -the stage dress so created can
not be thoughtlessly transplantsd
Into any environment.
Take, for Instance, that curiously
Interesting production "My Lady's
Press, In which a, series of tabloid
plays centre about the making of one
gowiu. If that gown did not com
pletely and subtly harmonise with
every one of the situations what dan
cers the play would run! The audi
ence has to feel that all they see
would naturally cluster around
that dm and no other. If the gown
1 did not harmonize. If it con
stantly struck a Jarring note,
what would become of that Im
portant factorthe Illusion of
reality?
Bo also of that ambitious
moving picture film which de
pends tor conviction upon s
woman wearing naturally a '
million dollars' worth of Jewels.
Buck a situation demands a
specially constructed dress
for It.
Would rrttst 8che9 be as
convincing In her, scenes, clev
er as she Is, if she did not pick
out the gowns she wears to
harmonise with those soonest
And this being so, we see
why there should not be too
close Imitation of them off the
footlights. A gown which har
monizes nerfactlv with tfca
lighting, the surroundings, the
concentration of life In a play ,
may, and probably will, be too
Intense for wear outside Its
own atmosphere. Or. again, tt
may be too subdued. And tt Is
as important to any woman to
fearmonlze with her own sur
roundings "and mental and physical
atmosphere as It Is tor the actress to
harmonise with bers. We all seek
success and happiness, and "ell the
world'e a stage."
From this tittle sermon let mo turn
to a description of some of the new
est Winter drosses
Very cosily warm and light or
weight are the newest tweeds and
velour cloth and duvetyn, and It
frequently happens, moreover, that
a fur coat collar and a deep skirt
bordering of the same skunk or foi
will still further Increase the decor
atlve and protective effect of the
costume.
Bo you see bow well such cos
tume would bear transposition to
the land of snow and sunshine.
A rather bold black and white
check, with a suggestion nothing
more of orange brightening some of
the Inner linos of black, Is aa Meal
fabric, with Just the collar and skirt
trimming of skunk, and no othsr
trimming at all save the big, shaded
bone buttons on coat and skirt and
the still bigger ones which figure on
and fasten the belt Or then, again,
another new and smartly simple
tailor suit, well adapted to leading
"a double life." Is In orange duvetyn,
the coat fastening at the nook with
a close fitting band of seal
musquash, and being belted
In, Russian fashion, at the
waist, while the long basque,
which wraps over and curves
upward In front. Is In It
turn broadly bordered with
the soft, dark fur The skirt
dispenses with trimming al
together, but It Is cut to per
fection; slit op the side and
underlined tor some six or
seven Inches with seal brown
satin. The same model,
copied In emerald green broche
duvetyn, trimmed and lined with
brown fur and satin. Is also exceed
ingly smart and serviceable.
Mlse Mary Bolantf
In the "Luclls" Gown
That Hae the Title
Role In "My Lady's
Dress," and Which
Wae Designed Espe
cially te Fit the Sit
uations of That Cu
rious Play.
M fa )
PPi
Lady Duff-Gordon
Describes to Just What
Extent Good Taste
Permits the Transplanting
of Footlight Dresses to
the House and Street
5- r"
A
tpyJ-
t-p p;?nww
4 k V -.
P
A
5
'ft.
A
.Jk.1 I l I
:- l--: n i 1
Uji -ap-p:W ppp ' vv'"
i . ' V -iP
f : '-v-.-!-'.-; i 'H1 .''- vl-:'i y
. bim-MX;s:i. m J I -' - !
1 . i': I I iV' t f" ' . ' :
i v- ! ' '. p ' ' V '
5c tt. .'-..
tt- AS
J
A New "Lucllo" Winter
Model, in Which Stage
effects Have Been Toned
Oewn for 8treet Wear.
I;
if
-:i:J 1
;.
r. . . t . 1 . ..."
4i
Alice Joyce' in a
Gown by "Luclle"
Designed especially
40 Go with $1X100.000
Worth of Real
Jewels.
friUI Schsff In Dress Built
for Play Situation.
"Luetic" Model.
Why We Think of Cats, the Moon and Women Together.
Vr,- '
.
P'J
f i , f.
B
i
(
I
y
(
By Prof. J. C. Barbler
Of the Sorbonne, Parla.
N the very ancient and widespread
tooling that women, cats and the
moon are linked together by certain
subtle likenesses wo have one of the moat
curious phenomena of the human mind.
The moon is invariably apostrophised as
"she." Invariably we associate cats with
a mistress and not with a master, and
woman throughout the ages has been
called either "a full moon in loveliness"
by one side or a "cat" by the other.
We never associate the aun with the
feminine, nor do we think of dogs as a
type as feminine, and when a man Is
compared with either the moon or cat It
gives ss a distinct shock
We never picture a witch Dying into
the sua with a dog on her shoulder, but
the symbol of the old lady on the broom
stick with a black cat on bar shoulder
and (lying across the moon Is one that
exists In all countries
In Bubastla. In ancient Egypt whore
religion was the most highly specialised
tn the world, cats were directly repre
fr a being a part of a trinity com
posed of the moon, women and them
selves Even lsls. the wife of the great
god Osiris, was sometimes thus repre
sented. Indeed, as far back as we can go
In Egypt the cat symbolised the moon,
and In that significance It body always
bore the head of woman.
Perhaps there were some natural rea
sons for this association undoubtedly
there must have been which were more
plain to our ancient forefathers than to
as The curious Influence of the moon
upon the majority of people, which tenda
ho stimulate suggestibility, hysteria and
other subconscious phenomena, more tn
women than tn men. Is probably one rea
son. The effect of the moon upon cats,
which love to prowl under Its rays In the
night, and the similarity of Its waxing
and waning wlthi the dilation and con
tracting of a cat's eyes Is, no doubt also
ono of the reasons at the bottom of this
association. The feline love of comfort
and luxury and Its general attitude ot
tolerating more than welcoming demon
strations of affection la In Itself an atti
tude which women during the long ages
of their repression by man Intensified
tor their own. protection. There la little
doubt that the trait was noticed by the
observers throughout the world wh.o make
superstitions
Superstition is usually, by the way. only
true psychology with the wrong dross.
There is a basis of truth at the bottom of
all of It The mind ot man cannot create
anything out ot nothing. He must have
CepytUikW 1914, by tu SUr Comuaay. Cret Britain ZUshta Reserved.
the basis of the actual to work upon. If
he twists and disguises bis basis It Is
simply the task of keen minds to strip
the husking from the kernel of truth and
And out Just what It la that gave rise to
the superstition.
There Is. too. the changeableness ot
the moon, tn which poets have always
found an analogy for the shifting of
women's moods.
At the beginning there is no doubt that
the curious association of the three was
complimentary Diana, the moon god
dess. In one of the old Roman poems
turns herself into a cat to help the godo
tn their fight against the Titans And tn
all the earliest myths woman, cat and
moon are Invariably bound together tn
complimentary fashion.
Later, when through causes of which
we know little, the superstitions ot all
the races degenerated, this compliment
ary quality waa lost. and. oven with the
moon, stress was laid upon the unpleas
ant similarities Compliment waa turned
to Insult Nevertheless, the superstitions.
Inverted aa they wore, ran on with full.
If not fuller, force.
In the Middle Ages, and after, women
were burned at the stake when ooovtcted
of the charge that they had conversed
with a devil In the shape or a black cat
Cats were connected with all the bale
ful influences of the moon. In Yucatan
the descendant of the Mayas pinched
their tails to drive away an eclipse. As
emblems ot the devil they were flung
Into the Hres In Perls on 8t John's night
The mystic seven return again in the
Hungary legend that every black cat
turns Into a witch at the age ot seven.
Grimm gives tt as a common saying that
a cat at twenty turns witch and a witch
of a hundred turns cat again.
The exit and entrance ot a strange cat
were ominous. 6hykck speaks of some
that go mad tf they behold one. Tradi
tion eaya that the great Napoleon had a
marked tear of them, and that Henry IIL
of Prance swooned at sight of one
Four ministers attested the truth ot the
tale which Captain Burt brought from
8cotlaad tn 1730. that the leg of a cat cut
off by a man It attacked turned Into the
leg of aa old woman. The serpent
woman Ulita. who tempted Adam, waa
pictured tn the sixteenth century with
the body ot a cat
In agricultural communltlea both the
moon and cats are consulted about rain
and frost
If the cat ocratchoa its ear It la a true
sign of rain, and tf tt alts with Its back
to the Are. as the North Carolina moun
taineers say. a cold snap la inevitable.
Howler, the new era of equal suffrage
may extricate women from these time
defying superstitions which have so zeal
ously preserved- her honorable ancient
associations with the moon and cats-