KŌBE, April, 1895.
DEAR PAGE,--I paid 35c. postage the other day on a huge envelope the
superscription whereof filled my soul with joy. I know it is mean to
mention the 35c.; but I do this on purpose,--that I may be properly
revenged. Opening the envelope I found a very dear letter, for which I
am more than grateful,--_and two pieces of pasteboard, for which I am
not grateful at all_. The promised photo had never been put into the
envelope,--only the envelope,--only the pasteboards. The two envelopes
had never been opened. And the why and the wherefore of the thing I
am at a loss to discern. But as you did not stop sending the paper to
Kumamoto for eight months after I had vainly prayed for a change of
address, I suppose that you simply forgot in both cases....
About the little Japanese dress. Now the matter of a little girl's dress
is much more complicated than I can tell you--if you want the real
thing. Do you wish for a winter, spring, summer, or autumn dress?--for
these are quite necessary distinctions. Do you wish for a holiday
dress?--a ceremonial dress?--an every-day dress? The winter ceremonial
dress for a girl of good family is very expensive, for it consists of
silk skirt, _koshimaki_ (body under-petticoat), and four or five heavily
wadded silk robes one over the other,--with _obi_, etc. The _obi_ is the
most costly part of the dress--may run to 30 or even 50 yen: it ought to
cost at least 20. The summer dress is light, and much cheaper. I think
you ought to get a suit for about (yen) 60-70. Of course, no suits are
ready-made. The dress must be made to order; and even the girdle worked
up. To tie the girdle will be difficult,--unless a Japanese shows you
the method.
If you want only a common cotton suit, which is very, very pretty, it
would be quite cheap. But I suppose you want the fashionable dress,
and that is as dear as you care to pay. Prices may range up into the
hundreds. Boys' dresses--even winter dresses--are not so dear, but
my little fellow's ceremonial dress,--the overdress alone,--cost $27
without counting the adjuncts. Boys' soft _obi_ cost, however, only 3 or
4 yen; and girls' _obi_ five or six times as much. Shoes (sandals) and
stockings are cheap. The _geta_ could scarcely be managed by a Western
child. The straw sandal (_zōri_), with velvet thong, is easy and
pleasant to wear. I have heard of _silk tabi_, but never saw any, and I
think they are worn only by _geisha_, etc. White cotton _tabi_ are the
prettiest; and I have heard that white silk _tabi_ never look really
white,--so the coloured _tabi_ would be better in silk. But everybody
wears the white cotton _tabi_, and nothing could be prettier than a
little foot in this cleft envelope.
The colours of the dress of a girl are much brighter than those of boys'
dresses; but they change every additional year of the girl's life. They
are covered with designs, generally symbolical,--full of meanings, but
meaningless to Western eyes. The finest textures used--crape--silk,
etc.--shrink and suffer immensely by washing; for such dresses as you
would want are not worn every day--nor at school or in play.
You see the subject is really very complex, and requires years to learn
much about. Only a native in any case can be relied on for choice,
etc. The suits of "Japanese clothes" usually bought by foreigners in
Japan, to take home to their friends, are made to order just to sell to
foreigners, and are not Japanese at all--no Japanese would wear them.
For the man as for the woman the rules of dress are very strict, and
vary precisely according to the age of the wearer.
For a little girl two years old, you would not need a _hakama_,--divided
skirt. Such _hakama_ are worn by little school-girls, and are usually
sky-blue. They are not, like the men's fashionable _hakama_, made of
Sendai silk. The _hakama_ of a high official may be very expensive.
I think what you want could be got for about $40 (American money,
including all costs), unless you want a winter dress. It would be very
heavy, and likely to make the little one too warm, for this climate is
not like that of New Orleans. The chief cost is the _obi_,--the broad
stiff heavy silk girdle.
Thanks for the sweet things you said about my little boy. He was born
November 16th, '93;--so he is younger than your little angel by four or
five months. Mrs. Baker was right. Trust a mother's eye to decide all
such problems! And say all the kindest and wisest and prettiest things
you can to Mrs. Baker for her kindest message....