Woman's World.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 136, 2 November 1914, Page 6

Woman's World.

THE KAISERIN. In an article on Royal Queens, which ■appeared in a iw>ili issue of Vanity Fair, allusion was made to the Kaiseriu as one who has always been praised for her excessive cleanliness. It is said of her that she is "wishing lier hands iu hot water all day." In her domestic affairs, it is said, she personally practises the thrift which is a national characteristic of Germans. As long as .her six sons came under her domestic jurisdiction they never possessed more than six shirts at a time, and these were not replaced until they became frayed at the wrist, furthermore, wo are told that none of the Hohenzollern princesses have over more than "two dozen of each" in their trousseaur, and Princess Victoria Louise, who was married last year, was no exception to the rule. When the two younger daughters of the Empress Frederick (sisters of the iaiser) vrero married their mother (eldest daughter of Queen Victoria) added six pairs of black satin bloomers for wearing when riding. These garments attracted the wonder of all feminine Berlin when they were exhibited in the window of the establishment where they were made. When the present Kaiserin was married, we learn that her trousseau was extraordinarily commonplace, and even now she has only the plainest of lingerie, and not more than lialf'a- J dozen of each article in daily wear. This, i is said to be most unusual, for, as a rule, ! German women, no matter what their station in life, always have a large supply of underwear. It is true that it is both coarse and ugly according to our ideas, but then no one could pretend that fine lingerie is in any way utili-

tarian, and in Germany that qualifica-. tion comes first. I

1 i A BRAVE EFFORT. It is pathetic to read in some of the latest English journals for feminine readers how those iu Paris, whose business is connected with dress and fashion, made a brave effort to keep tfleir own particular ilag (lying after war was declared. But the work of the Paris correspondent is scrappy enough, and the details, such as they are, sandwiched in gasping paragraphs among stories of distress caused by the mobilisation of the troops. In one letter from Paris, dated at the end of August, a woman bewails t!ie fact that no one will be able to wear the charming frocks which Worth had prepared for the formal autumn display. She had a private interview with 'M. Jean Wortli just before ho left for the front, and he showed her some of the models, which, she says, seemed strangely inappropriate to the marital sentiment of the hour, Nevertheless, the writer was able to give some idea of the styles J that the dress designers had planned, j and these, under normal conditions, j would have developed some striking novelties. The term "novelty," used in this I connection, mn-1, not be taken to mean | something really new or original, but merely to suggest a style which has been dormant for a few years, for tha woman who is being quoted says that without exception the skirts of these unseen gowns were all very full and very short; in faet, she says it was impossible to exaggerate the fullness at the foot and at the sides. In some instances the fullness was hung over a "jupe tuyau," or funnel skjrt, but tho predominative notion was the anticipated evolution of the tunic to skirt, and the newest in line swung full and free from belt to ankle.

DUPING THE GERMANS. ] By a rule which almost failed, an English lady was successful in duping a 'German naval officer and thereby escaped capture. i'ut only by the greatest of luck did she escape, for even under her stewardess garb and grimy face, the German thought he recognised a British subject. The lady, Mrs. Roberta, the wife of a Middleshorough hotel manager, had been on a visit to Riga, the Russian seaport on the Baltic .Vea, and on her return she told the story of her narrow escape. While in Riga slie learned of the declaration of war between England and Germany at the English Church, where the. announcement was made by the clergyman. The Guff of Riga was full of German morchant vessels. Their wireless installations were dismantled, but one German captain replaced his instrument and sent messages to the German Government. He had learned a good deal of valuable information during his stay. He was afterwards discovered, court-martialled and shot. The manager of a theatre in the city had obtained extensive plans of the fortifications and movements of troops, and it was thought that he intended to despatch these in a bag of grain. Information from a servant led to his arrest, and a similar fate to that of the sea captain was meted out to him. "Jt was a most exciting time for all of us," said Ifrs. Roberts. ''Besides my boy, I was the only English passenger on the vessel on which we finally left Riga; all the rest were Norwegians. We passed the German shores to the south of the Baltic, and south of (Sweden, and to Burgen, in Norway, where we took ship to Newcastle. I was entered on the books as a Norwegian, and on the advice of the captain I disguised myself as a stewardess and my son as a cabin boy. We were pulled up several limes by German torpedo boats and cruisers. They entered into communication with us, and at one moment I thought! was certain to bo taken prisoner. The capatin of a torpedo 'boat asked us where we were bound for, and who we had on board. Our captain replied: 'We are sailing into Helsingfors.' 'And whom have you ou board? Are there any English V he asked. The captain replied: 'We have only Norwegians and one ' 'English lady?' interjected the captain of the torpedo boat. He spoke in excellent English. I was terrified. Then he asked if wo had seen any Russian battleshipt, and the captain said, 'We have seen nothing in the Baltic so far.' The captain ,of the torpedo boat still insisted on having a definite reply. 'Will you say on your honor whether you have anybody on board the vessel except Norwegians?' Our captain replied with the remark: 'I am sailing as reported.' This seemed to satisfy the torpedo boat captain, hut he gazed intently at me as I stood along with the other members of the crew and passengers. I had been doing some active work as a stewardess and had dirtied my face and hands in order to escape detection. My boy had also been helping to make the dinner. It was evident that the other captain was Blightly suspicious. lAnyway, he I called: 'Adieu and gaod-dny,, madam,'