IN THE FASHION.

Observer, Volume 6, Issue 150, 28 July 1883, Page 3

IN THE FASHION.

The excessive politeness of some counterjumpers is quite overpowering, not to say occasionally embarrassing. The other clay a prominent citizen went into a draper's shop in Qucen-stx-eet to purchase a hat. He was received at the counter by a smirking young fellow with a stand-up collar and a plentiful supply of cheap pomatum in his hair. The young man put on a smile which was warrantee! to kill a female Sunday-school teacher at the other end of, the school-room. Being informed that the customer wanted a hat, he pulled down a squat-looking bandbox, and, with a professional nourish, clisplayert one of those modern monstrosities yclept " The Duke," which resemble an inverted piedish with the sides bulged up. The customer regarded the object with a look of disgust. "Do you think," lie asked, "I want a thing like that ? I want a hat ! — something to cover my head, you understand." The courteous counter] umper, with the same unctuous sTnile, made another dive below the counter, and fished out another abomination, if anything worse than the other. "Why do you show me these things ?" said the irate customer. " Oh, you know," ho replied, with his most insinuating air, "we always like our customers to be in the fashion." This was too much. Uttering a string of smothered oaths, the man in search of a hat fled the scene.