The Business Man looks at the young Lad (a Euclid School Graduate!) and despite his daring sports coat says: “He’s good enough for me.” * And so he was despite the fact that he had eschewed the frock coat to show his manly, atheletic frame.
Where could one buy such a suit?
In November 1910, the place to go was Frederick Loeser and Co. in Brooklyn. “Brooklyn,” you sniff, “shouldn’t the well polished young man go to Manhattan for his suit?”
“No!” shouts the advertisement and until about 1952 they were right. About that time the Dodgers went to LA and fashion went to h- as they would have said in 1910. Here is the full copy of a quarter page advert giving wisdom to the Young Man of 1910:
Quite a number of young men have discovered that the specially designed Clothes at Loeser’s exactly fit their ideas of what a Young Man should wear.
But there are many others who should know about this particular Clothing- and this announcement should be taken as an invitation to investigate.
The new Suits for Fall are cut on lines that will be particularly becoming to youthful figures. They are distinctly smart without descending to freakishness.
There is a wise variety for choice. Priced from $12.50 to $25.
A good thing about 2017 is that clothing is much less expensive. For most of the lads at Euclid, the bottom rung suit at Loeser’s would cost about 300 bucks in today’s money. You can get a low end suit today for $179 or so. Of course, almost no Young Men are aspiring to suits, inexpensive or otherwise. In fact, their dads (if they are round) or granddads pour themselves into Young Men’s Work Out Clothes even if they no longer have youthful figures.
That is often horrifying.
One can get nostalgic for a time when words were read by Young Men looking for items and not just images, but sic transit or something.
Instead, the Young Man of today might learn two enduring truths from 1910 to apply today.
All ads are should be taken as invitations to investigate.
People are selling you something all the time if you are a Young Man. Why? They think you are an easy mark, less settled in your ways, and easier to manipulate. Don’t fall for the pitch without looking.
Of course, not all ads are for specially designed clothes. Some are for New Fangled Philosophies or Religions.
If atheism comes along and tells you that you can have your fun and morality too, take that as an invitation to investigate. If hedonism suggests going further and having your fun and making fun your morality, investigate. Of course, Christian pitches should be take the same way: investigate!
Be smart without descending to freakishness.
Young men should not wish to dress like old men anymore than old men should ape the young. Nobody should want to be trendy, because that is generally a waste of money, a failure unless you are rich, and often descends into freakishness. Young Man, if your grandparents or parents tried to be trendy, ask to see their old photos and you will see they descended into freakishness.
This is better advice for ideas. Be smart. Do not descend to freakishness. If someone has a new idea about Christianity or thinks everyone until now had it wrong: freak already descended into freakishness. Any guru down from the mountain may be Moses, investigate, but is probably not descending from Sinai but into freaks.
Thank you, Loeser and Co.
—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—
We have been following the lads and lasses of The Daisy for some time.
—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�—�-
The ad apologizes to the political cartoonist Davenport, because they stole the idea from his famous cartoon of the older Uncle Sam commending the young TRex. This was an era when a Teddy Roosevelt political cartoon could be used to sell young men suits. Sigh.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In