THE STRAW "BOATER"

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21250, 2 August 1932, Page 6

THE STRAW "BOATER"

EXAMPLE OF THE PRINCE AUCKLAND POSSIBILITIES / " ONE FIRM CABLES AN ORDER Will the straw "boater," favoured by ♦he Prince o! Wales, bo seen in Auckland nest summer ? / At least, one large outfitting house in the-city has cabled a fair-sized order to its London buyers, who have been given carte blanche to choose whatever shape spenis most popular at Home. This particular house caters specially for young men, and is therefore in a good position ' to try the experiment. Some other shops doing a rather different class of trade are holding back, but if public taste follow the Frince's lead they will certainly come into lino. / The straw hat went out of favour in New Zealand during the war period; tfome say, indeed, that its popularity was on the wane even before 1914. Why this happened has always been lather a mystery. , A recent writer in the London Daily Telegraph says for some unknown reason the "boater" seems always to have Ijorne a social stigma, and quotes an authority of half a century ago who described it as "a disrespect to society ■nd even an indication of vulgar habits Of life." Only those whose rank placed them above all such suspicion dared' venture in those days to flout the tradition. Lord Richard Cavendish reckoned it "one of the few advantages of being the younger brother of a duke that. I can wear a straw hat." Fear ol Juvenility / Such considerations have never bothered New Zealanders. More probably the "boater" declined because there was thought to be something juvenile about it. Admittedly it does not go well with a beard or a heavy moustache, but these facc-adornments are so rare nowadays that even middle-age need have no serious qualms about following the Prince's lead. In America the straw hat for summer ■wear is not disdained by the highest in Jthe land. Even the austere President Wilson often wore it, as his photographs show, and his successors in office, down to Mr. Hoover, have all done likewise. Some years ago an Auckland firm imported a dozen or so hats of the American variety, which has a very thick brim with a saw-toothed edge. They did not take on," however, and only two or three were sold. What is the most fashionable "boater" ' shape in England just now remains uncertain. The Prince of Wales, to judge from his photographs, prefers a hat of ' quite normal proportions, but his younger brother, Prince George, is pictured wearing on 6 with a distinctly higher crown, narrower brim and narrower band—perhaps emulating the latest vogue in soft felts. Two Auckland Diehards / Straw hats have never gone wholly out of use in New Zealand. Tliey are still worn by secondary schools boys and touring football teams. The Dominion's Olympic representatives left Wellington a few months ago equipped to a man with this headgear. There are at least two Auckland residents who have always remained faithful to the " straw," in spite of all criticism, friendly and otherwise. One of them is said to have bought up several years' supply a while ago at a bargain sale for a shilling apiece. American visitors have often criticised Australians, and particularly Queenslanders, for not suiting their attire to the climate. The average Auckland resident might be similarly attacked for wearing the same soft felt all the year round. The straw's chief drawback is that it *' shows the way the wind blows," and all but the calmest days are apt to make the wearer more or less hat-conscious. Vogues in dress arc capricious, and the only thing for the mere male to do about the straw hat question is "wait and see."