TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14223, 11 December 1911, Page 6

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

The 20,000 work-people Fashion in Paris who have been . and thrown idle by tho popuIndustry. larity of tiie '•liobbieskirt -1 arc not the only people to bo affected by this fashion. In' England manufacturers of fabrics have been complaining that it has lessened their output, Chambers of Commerce have discussed tho matter, and in Nottingham factory bands hare- gone out on etrike owing to the effect of the fashion on their work. Tho case of theso girls is a striking instance of the degree to -which modern workers specialise, and the hardship caused by a' dislocation of industry. The girls make blouses and underskirts, but owing to the tightness of the hobbleskirt, the demand for underskirts has greatly decreased. They were offered work at pinafore and overallmaking, but this they declined, as it practically meant learning a new trade, and tho payment wasjiot nearly so , good as in the making of underskirts. .Even if they did become efficient at tho new work, somo idea might leap into favour to displace these garments. The ''Daily Telegraph" shows why it is that a change in fashion means a great deaj more to an industry than it used to do. There were narrow skirts twenty-five years ago, but that and other styles were more exclusive than they axo now. They belonged then to women who paid good prices for their drees, and who went to high-class dressmakers to make them. "The ciiean dressmaker who met the wants c»f, say, superior servants . and tho vast lower-middle grades, looked at them with admiration and even awe, but made no attemot to reproduce anything that was so startling or bizarre. It has been the coming of- the ready-made uress i that has worked the revolution, arid, i as one leading manufacturer remarked on this subject, the interval that lapses before Mile-end can enjoy the modes of Mayfair gets shorter every season." The growing army of middleclass women who work for their living, demand something not far removed from tho fashion-plate 3or pictures of fashionable dresses they see in the papers. Thus in. a few weeks from the launching of a fashion many thousands of women conform to it. The Board of Trade returns chow that for tho first nine months of 1911 Great Britain imported 4,871,000 yards less of dress stuffs than during tho corresponding period of 1910, which is clear proof of tho hold that the narrow skirt has on the women of the country. Husbands', however, must bo stfli wondering why it b, seeing that so much less material ie used, that dressmakers , bills aro not less harassing than they were. The United States Catching . farmer has 'estabtho. ■ . lishod a high ropu- ' Farmer Young, tation for progiressivencss, but it ap-. pears that the efforts of tho Department of Agriculture to improve tho production of com (maize) have not been very Buocossful, and the Department has accordingly extended its attentions to farmers' sons, with very gratifying results. The averago production ot xaaizo has been only 25 bushels per acre, but there was no reason why it should not be 50, 80, or ovon 100 bushels per acre. Tho Department made careful experiments in seed selection and methods of cultivation, and scattered the results broadcast in : pamphlets, but in most cases no heed was taken of this valuable ir'ormation, given gratis. So, a few years ago, Corn j Clubs for boys, were started in. tho ' South. Each boy was allowed an aero i of land, and tho work on it was super- ' intended by officers of the Department. Tho boy would select his seed, test it j by simple experiments, and read up tbo : life-history of the iplant. A strict acoount was kept of the money spent on ■ the crop, tho boy's time being reckoned at ton cents an hour Tho ■ clubs' records were pitted against each j other, until a State record was ob-' tamed. Business men were induced to '■ give prizes of money, trips to the State ' capital, or farm implements. I/as+ yea> there wero 46,000 boys taking jwrfc in theso competitions, and each of tho eleven States concerned sent their prize-winners to Washington. The Loy& were given a public send-off from their localities, and at tho capital were treated as people of distinction. 'Th«»v met the Secretary of the Department, called on the President, and were ques- I tioned by the Congressional Committee, on Agriculture. One can, be quite sure that not only will none of these , ooys forget tho lesson he has learned as to , the value of scientifio fanning, but will | always bo a missionary in that caus«'; wherever he goes. Scores of farmers visit the plots of competitors, and tht> seed raised there is sold at high prices. One prize-winner raised 228 bushels on ! his acre, a huge advance on the averago j crop, and a result that goes to justify i the statement that the Corn Club movement is the best work tho Department has ever done.