Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 August 1896 — HATS AND HEADGEAR. [ARTICLE]

HATS AND HEADGEAR.

The brims of silk hats are said to be curled by hand, though In some factories this process Is now accomplished by machinery. When the brim Is handeuried the workman relies altogether en his eye for the necessary curve. The coins issued by Brutus and Oa*. Blue after the murder of Caesar contained as an emblem a cap between two daggers, an intimation that Rome had regained its freedom, and a reminder of the means whereby liberty was regained. The last operation of hat-making la “trimming.” It 1b usually done by girls and constats in putting In the Ing and leather and putting on the band and bindings; these operations being greatly assisted by the use of the eewlng machine. The “cap of maintenance” is borne before English sovereigns at their coronation. It is made of ermine and has two tails or pendants behind. Several dignitaries In England and a number of nolbles also have the right to carry a cap of maintenance on state occasions. When hat making was Introduced Into America is not certainly known, but in 1732 the industry had became so extensive that English hat makers complained bitterly that not only could they not seUl their hats in America, but that American hats were actually sold in England. The tilting helmet, or helmet used at a joust, or tournament, often bore as a crest the figures of birds or animals real or Imaginary, and many Instances are known of the knight having ths head and bust of his lady carved In ivory or silver, and placing It on hls helmet ns a crest. A green turban throughout all Islam Is a sign that the wearer Is a descendant of the Prophet. Many persons who have the right to this mark of honor are now In low life, and a traveler in Constantinople or Cairo may have hia baggage carried to his hotel by a genuine descendant of tho founder of Mo haipmedanism.