Lace at LlOO a Yard: more than L 3500 for a Trousseau.

Otago Witness, Issue 2097, 3 May 1894, Page 47

Lace at LlOO a Yard : more than L 3500 for a Trousseau.

In an important street in Mayfair may be found a quiet-looking shop, with little or nothing in the window to indicate that a huge treasure lies within. Yet this is one of the most famous lace establishments in Europe, and its proprietor (whose stock is valued at £200,000) is much sought after by compilers of society paragraphs, because he is a sort of walking guide to the British peerage. Having an appointment with this gentleman, I called upon him one evening about half -past 5, but found him engaged with a tall lady, clcthed in a long fur mantle, who was bnying up seemingly insignificant trifles | at 20gs, 39£gs, and 50gs each. The assistant, who brought me an illustrated paper wherewith to beguile the time, informed me in an undertone that this was Mrs Wilson, of Tranby Croft, and that her 0 rder would probably reach the respectable fie Ore of £800, At however, the merchant was free to chat to* me, so when we had retired 1 to a private v*oom he handed his safe key to the manageress and ordered his treasures to be brongbt forth for inspection. *' AU toy valuable laoes are kept in a strong room" he remarked, " just as the Hatton Garden man stores his rubles and hia diamonds," At this moment two assistants deposited sewral rolls of silk and plush upon the table, " I want to draw your attention to the fact that that very piece of costly lace is stitched on to silk or plußb, lest it should get crumpled or torn," continued the expert, " and that the latter accident is a vety serious matter will be seen from the fact that a single flounce 10yds long and 16£ in [ deep, worth £2000, took four workmeD more 1 than two years to mend. This lace had been torn from the wearer's dress during a State i ball, and the bill for repairs was simply I enormous." . "But how ia ib that all these pieces of old lace got into your hands?", l asked, aa I examined through a powerful glass a series of marvellously-worked tableaux, representing the history of St. John the baptist. " Every scrap of antique lace that I possess has been privately sold to me by ladies who either desire to effect an exchange or who are in immediate need of money," was the surprising reply. " Other ladies of high degree insist upon having ficnuß made composed of half real and half artificial lace— an order which I dislike greatly. Far worse, however, are those who are mean enough to come here armed with kodak cameras in order to take snapshots at the designs of costly laces, with a view to selling the stolen patterns." '•' What do you consider a big order 1 " I asked presently, after having dwelt upon these amazing facts. "Well, troasaeaas run into the most money," replied the merchant, meditatively. " Only a month ago I had a trousseau order for £3500 ; bet lam bound to say that it is very rarely that people spend so much money nowadays. At present I ehould consider an order for PJOO a very good thing. " But I g.efc quite as much satisfaction from an advantageous purchase of my own. Look at this, for example," ha continued, unrolling a piece of yellow plash, upon which weie stitched several small pieces of o£d lace. Here are some lappets and a fond de honnet which belonged to Queen Charlotte, wife of George 111. " The Queen gays this lace to one of the ladies of the bedchamber, who was the present vendor's great»a?nfc. The vendor, by $he way, is a bishop's wife, and she asks 30gs for tb» set. I shall pay her tbafc sum with 1 pleasure,, lot 1 can easily re-sell the lace for jesso. *• you wtti probably be surprised to bear

that I often bny back lace from my customers at double the price they paid me for it. The circumstances of one such case were as follows :—: —

"Some time ago I had a beautiful point d'Alencon flounce which I offered to Lady C for £100, but she refused to buy. Subsequently it was sold for the same sum to a well-known countess.

" Soon after this the two ladies met at a ball ; the latter wearing her recentlyacquired lace. Now the elegant design of her friend's flounce became suddenly very beautiful in the eyes of Lady C , who thought it uncommonly ugly when I offered it to her.

" Her ladyship then gave me a commission to bay the lace from the countess, but I was not to go higher than £300. "At first, however, the latter refused to listen to me ; bat when I assured her as an expert that the lace did not strife her dress, and, moreover, that I could get her £100 profit on the transaction, she handed me the flounce and I delivered it without delay to the expectant lady I was acting for, who could have had it in the first instance for half the money she eventually paid.

" Still it was no affair of mine, and as the limit of commission was £300, 1 claimed the balance for my trouble."