Anne C. Goater

“ Not satisfied with this curious coiffure they add to it by wrapping around the outer cap a large piece of muslin ornamented at the ends with silk or golden fringe, which stream loosely on the shoulders.
A plume of white heron’s feathers is the distinctive badge of a chief among the Uzbek Tartars.
Throughout the East the turban is generally worn, its height being a mark to denote the rank of the wearer. In color it is generally of the most brilliant hue, and of richly embroidered materials. ”

“ The materials employed in the manufacture of hats have been various, stuffs of every kind and color having entered into their composition. The birds have been robbed of their brilliant plumage, the beasts of the field of their wool and hair. Amphibious creatures have yielded their fur, while the mines of the earth have given up precious metals and stones. All these have been used by man to make a suitable covering for his august head. Felt hats are by far the most ancient, silk hats being of quite recent introduction. ”

“ The popularity of the Dunlap hat induced the firm to increase their manufacturing facilities by the erection of a large factory on Seventh avenue, New York, where all the silk and opera hats are made, and a straw-hat factory at 132 and 134 South Fifth avenue, New York, and also the erection of one of the largest and most complete felt hat factories in this country at the corner of Park and Nostrand avenues, Brooklyn.
The growing demand for these hats in the West induced the firm to open a branch store under the Palmer House, Chicago, about three years ago, which has proved a grand success ”

“ Nature, in her bounty, seems to have provided in part against the necessity of the hat, by giving to the head a thick and abundant covering of hair, but, instead of considering this as an indication that the head required no other protection, mankind seems rather to have regarded it as a hint to keep this most important part of the body well covered. ”

“ The most ancient form of head wear we find to be the cap such as is seen on figures representing the goddess of liberty. Hoods, also, of various shapes, date back long before hats appeared, the latter for a long time only being employed as an article of extra clothing in winter, worn over the hood or when going on a journey. ”

“ Previous to this time the only hat made for gentlemen was the high silk hat and cloth caps for boys, but a few weeks after Kossuth’s appearance in the country thousands of hats similar to his were sold, the demand for them being universal. Since then soft and stiff felt hats have been brought to perfection in quality and style in this country far superior to any made abroad. This was shown in our Centennial Exhibition, in 1876, by Dunlap & Co. receiving the first prize for their productions over all competition of foreign and domestic manufactures. Figs. ”

“ Some gallants twisted the tails into all sorts of fantastic forms and carelessly poised them on the top of the head. With the shaven faces that were always worn with this hood, the men all looked very much like monks. It was fear of this appearance that induced Francis I. to set the fashion of velvet caps in his kingdom. Fig. 67 represents a French military hat. For the past fifty years the high silk hat has been the most popular style in France.
At one time there was a law in France which compelled all bankrupt Jews to wear a green hat, so that people might avoid losses by trading with them. ”

“ The prosperous business man also can generally be picked out by his hat, it being something substantial and good of its kind, while the man of mean and parsimonious habits will usually have a hat to correspond with his dwarfed nature. ”

“ Figs. 37, 38, 42 and 43 on the same page are samples of Russian hats. In some parts of that country the head-covering of the people is made of birch bark and plaited grasses; but fur is the material most commonly used. The prevailing male head-dress of the inhabitants of Asia Minor appears to be the Phrygian bonnet, of which the characteristic features with them are its point on top, bent forward, and its long flaps descending on the shoulders. This style of hat was worn for many centuries, and traveled as far west as Venice, where the Doge always wore one. ”

“ They also have another cap, which though richer in material is not so graceful. It is similar in shape to Fig. 22, made of black velvet with a blue silk centre and a red tassel surmounting the top. The distinctive mark of different ranks among the mandarins consists in the color and value of the button worn on the cap. Figs. 19 and 20 show the peculiar head-dress worn by the Japanese when going forth to battle. In Arabia, notwithstanding the heat of the climate, the men wear a most preposterous head-dress. ”

“ Lockwood Press, 126 & 128 Duane St., New York.
A SHORT TREATISE
ON
* HEAD * WEAR *
ANCIENT AND MODERN, ILLUSTRATED BY
Walter H. Goater.
[2]
Head Wear, Ancient and Modern. Tracing the history of man as far back as we can under civilized conditions of life, we find that in one form or another he has made use of some artificial contrivance to protect his head. ”