



















  The Evolution of Fashion

  BY
  FLORENCE MARY GARDINER

  _Author of "Furnishings and Fittings for Every Home," "About Gipsies,"
  &c. &c._

  [Illustration: SIR ROBERT BRUCE COTTON.]

  London:

  THE COTTON PRESS, GRANVILLE HOUSE, ARUNDEL STREET, W.C.




  TO

  FRANCES EVELYN,

  COUNTESS OF WARWICK,

  WHOSE ENTHUSIASTIC AND KINDLY INTEREST IN ALL MOVEMENTS

  CALCULATED TO BENEFIT WOMEN IS UNSURPASSED,

  THIS VOLUME,

  BY SPECIAL PERMISSION, IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED,

  BY

  THE AUTHOR.

  IN THE YEAR OF

  HER MAJESTY QUEEN VICTORIA'S DIAMOND JUBILEE,

  1897.

[Illustration: _Millicent, Duchess of Sutherland._ _Princess Henry of
Pless._ _The Countess of Warwick._ _Lady Marjorie Greville._ _Lady Eva
Dugdale._

THE WARWICK BALL.]




PREFACE.


In compiling this volume on Costume (portions of which originally
appeared in the _Ludgate Illustrated Magazine_, under the editorship of
Mr. A. J. Bowden), I desire to acknowledge the valuable assistance I
have received from sources not usually available to the public; also my
indebtedness to the following authors, from whose works I have
quoted:--Mr. Beck, Mr. R. Davey, Mr. E. Rimmel, Mr. Knight, and the late
Mr. J. R. Planché. I also take this opportunity of thanking Messrs.
Liberty and Co., Messrs. Jay, Messrs. E. R. Garrould, Messrs. Walery,
Mr. Box, and others, who have offered me special facilities for
consulting drawings, engravings, &c., in their possession, many of which
they have courteously allowed me to reproduce, by the aid of Miss Juliet
Hensman, and other artists.

The book lays no claim to being a technical treatise on a subject which
is practically inexhaustible, but has been written with the intention of
bringing before the general public in a popular manner circumstances
which have influenced in a marked degree the wearing apparel of the
British Nation.

  FLORENCE MARY GARDINER.

  _West Kensington, 1897._




CONTENTS.


  CHAPTER.                                                          PAGE.

  I. THE DRESS, B.C. 594--A.D. 1897                                    3

  II. CURIOUS HEADGEAR                                                15

  III. GLOVES                                                         25

  IV. CURIOUS FOOTGEAR                                                31

  V. BRIDAL COSTUME                                                   39

  VI. MOURNING                                                        51

  VII. ECCENTRICITIES OF MASCULINE COSTUME                            61

  VIII. A CHAT ABOUT CHILDREN AND THEIR CLOTHING                      71

  IX. FANCY COSTUME OF VARIOUS PERIODS                                79

  X. STAGE AND FLORAL COSTUME                                         89




THE EVOLUTION OF FASHION




CHAPTER I.

THE DRESS, B.C. 594--A.D. 1897.

  "Fashions that are now called new
  Have been worn by more than you;
  Elder times have used the same,
  Though these new ones get the name."

  _Middleton's "Mayor of Quinborough."_


A hard fate has condemned human beings to enter this mortal sphere
without any natural covering, like that possessed by the lower animals
to protect them from the extremes of heat and cold. Had this been
otherwise, countless myriads, for untold ages, would have escaped the
tyrannical sway of the goddess Fashion, and the French proverb, _il faut
souffrir pour être belle_, need never have been written.

[Illustration: EARLY EGYPTIAN.]

The costume of our progenitors was chiefly remarkable for its extreme
simplicity; and, as far as we can gather, no difference in design was
made between the sexes. A few leaves entwined by the stalks, the
feathers of birds, the bark of trees, or roughly-dressed skins of
animals were probably regarded by _beaux_ and _belles_ of the Adamite
period as beautiful and appropriate adornments for the body, and were
followed by garments made from plaited grass, which was doubtless the
origin of weaving, a process which is nothing more than the mechanical
plaiting of hair, wool, flax, &c. In many remote districts these
primitive fashions still prevail, as, for example, in Madras, where, at
an annual religious ceremony, it is customary for the low caste natives
to exchange for a short period their usual attire for an apron of
leaves. In the Brazilian forests the _lecythis_, or "shirt tree," is to
be found, from which the people roll off the bark in short lengths, and,
after making it pliable in water, cut two slits for the arm-holes and
one for the neck, when their dress is complete and ready for use. The
North American Indian employs feathers for purposes of the toilet, and
many African tribes are noted for their deftly-woven fabrics composed of
grass and other vegetable fibres, while furs and skins are essential
articles of dress in Northern latitudes. Perhaps the earliest specimen
of a modiste's bill in existence has recently been found on a chalk
tablet at Nippur, in Chaldea. The hieroglyphics record ninety-two robes
and tunics: fourteen of these were perfumed with myrrh, aloes and
cassia. The date of this curious antique cannot be less than two
thousand eight hundred years before the Christian era. In ancient times
it must be remembered that the principal seats of civilisation were
Assyria and Egypt, and upon these countries Western nations depended for
many of the luxuries of life. The Jews derived their fine fabrics from
the latter place, which was particularly noted for its linen
manufactures and for magnificent embroideries, of which the accompanying
illustration will give some idea. Medes and Babylonians, of the highest
class, partially arrayed themselves in silk, which cost its weight in
gold, and about the time of Ezekiel (B.C. 594) it is known to have been
used in the dress of the Persians. It is a remarkable circumstance that
this animal product was brought to the West manufactured in cloth, which
was only half silk; and it is said the plan was devised of unravelling
the stuff, which was rewoven into cloth of entire silk. Owing to its
high price, the Romans forbade its being used for the entire dress by
men, complete robes of silk being reserved for women. It is numbered
among the extravagant luxuries of Heliogabalus that he was the first man
who wore a silken garment, and the anecdote is well known of the Emperor
Aurelian, who refused, on the ground of its extravagant cost, a silk
dress which his consort earnestly desired to possess.

Monuments still in existence show that the Egyptians, owing to the
warmth of their climate, were partial to garments of a semi-transparent
character, while those living on the banks of the Tigris, who were
subjected to greater extremes of temperature, wore clothing of similar
design, but of wool, with heavy fringes of the same as a trimming. In
some cases this feature of Assyrian costume is shown in double rows, one
pendent, while the other stands out in a horizontal direction.

[Illustration: GREEK.]

The early Greek dress, or chiton, was a very simple contrivance,
reaching to the feet. If ungirdled, it would trail on the ground; but
generally it was drawn through the zone or waistbelt in such a manner
that it was double to the extent of about thirty inches over the vital
organs of the body. The great distinction between male and female dress
consisted in the length of the skirt. The trimmings were of embroidery,
woven diapers, figure bands with chariots and horses; and, in some
cases, glass ornaments and thin metal plates were applied. Among the
working classes the chiton was, of course, homespun, or of leather.

[Illustration: ROMAN.]

The stola was the Roman equivalent for the nineteenth century robe or
gown, and in many respects resembled the Greek chiton. The fabrics
employed were wool and linen up to the end of the Republic, though at a
later date, as has already been stated, silk was imported. Colour, under
the Emperors, was largely used, and at least thirteen shades of the dye
obtained from the murex, which passed under the general name of purple,
could be seen in the costume of both sexes.

When the Roman Empire was dismembered (A.D. 395) a style of dress seems
to have flourished in the important towns of the Mediterranean, which
was similar to that worn in mediæval times in Britain, and which may be
examined in the specimens of statuary adorning tombs of the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries. The semi-tight under-dress and sleeves appear to
have been elaborately embroidered, and the loose mantle of plain
material was edged with a border.

[Illustration: BYZANTINE.]

One of the earliest descriptions of the female dress in Britain is that
of Boadicea, the Queen of the Iceni, whom we are told wore a tunic woven
chequerwise in purple, red, and blue. Over this was a shorter garment
open on the bosom, and leaving the arms bare. Her yellow hair flowed
over her shoulders, upon which rested an ample cloak, secured by a
_fibula_ (brooch). A torque, or necklet, was also worn; a pair of bronze
breastplates as a protection from the Roman arrows, and her fingers and
arms were covered with rings and bracelets.

[Illustration: ANGLO-SAXON.]

The costume of the Anglo-Saxon ladies consisted of a _sherte_, or
_camise_, of linen next the skin, a kirtle, which resembled the modern
petticoat, and a gunna, or gown, with sleeves. Out of doors a mantle
covered the upper portion of the body, and with the coverchief, or head
rail, formed a characteristic feature of the dress of the day. Cloth,
silk, and linen were the favourite materials for clothing, and red,
blue, yellow, and green the fashionable colours. Very little black and
white were used at this period. Saxon women were renowned for their
skill with the needle, and used large quantities of gold thread and
jewels in their work. Among other instances quoted, Queen Editha
embroidered the coronation mantle of her husband, Edward the Confessor.

For some years after the Norman Conquest, women retained the costume of
the Anglo-Saxon period, with certain additions and modifications. Fine
coloured cloths and richest furs were used by both sexes, and sleeves
and trains were such a length that it was found necessary to knot them,
so that they should not trail upon the ground.

The next important change was the surcoat and tight bodice, which was
fastened in front to fit the figure.

There are evident traces that as civilisation advanced the love of dress
and the desire of the fair sex to appear beautiful in the eyes of all
beholders increased in like proportion. From ancient MSS. and other
sources, we have ample proof of this. St. Jerome calls women
"_philoscomon_," that is to say, lovers of finery, and another writer
states: "One of the most difficult points to manage with women is to
root out their curiosity for clothes and ornaments for the body." St.
Bernard admonished his sister with greater candour than politeness on
her visiting him, well arraied with riche clothinge, with perles and
precious stones: "Such pompe and pride to adorne a carion as is youre
body. Thinke ye not of the pore people, that be deyen for hunger and
colde; and that for the sixth parte of youre gay arraye, forty persons
might be clothed, refreshed, and kepte from the colde?"

The increased facilities for travelling offered to those engaged in the
Crusades, and the necessary intercourse with other nations, caused
considerable quantities of foreign materials to be imported to England
during the Middle Ages: and this had a corresponding effect upon the
costume of the period, which was chiefly remarkable for its richness and
eccentricity of form. Among the materials in use may be mentioned diaper
cloth from Ypres, a town in Flanders, famous for its rich dress stuffs;
tartan, called by the French "tyretaine," meaning _teint_, or colour of
Tyre (scarlet being indifferently used for purple by ancient writers,
and including all the gradations of colour formed by a mixture of blue
and red, from indigo to crimson). There was a fine white woollen cloth
called Blanket, named after its inventor, Sarcenet, also from its
Saracenic origin, and gauze which was made at Gaza in Palestine. Ermine
was strictly confined to the use of the Royal Family and nobles, and
cloth of gold, and habits embroidered with jewellery, or lined with
minever or other expensive fur, could only be worn by knights and ladies
with incomes exceeding 400 marks per annum. Those who had not more than
200 marks were permitted to wear silver cloth, with ribands, girdles,
&c., reasonably embellished; also woollen cloth not costing more than
six marks the piece.

[Illustration: 12TH CENTURY.]

The tight forms of dress now in common use among women were an incentive
to tight lacing, an injurious practice, from which their descendants
suffer. A lady is described

  "Clad in purple pall,
  With gentyll body and middle small,"

and another damsel, whose splendid girdle of beaten gold was embellished
with emeralds and rubies, evidently, from the description, had a waist
which was not the size intended by Nature.

[Illustration: 14TH CENTURY.]

During the Wars of the Roses both trade and costume made little
progress, and after the union of the Houses of York and Lancaster by the
marriage of Henry VII. with his Queen, Elizabeth, their attention was
chiefly concerned in filling their impoverished coffers, which left them
little opportunity for promoting new fashions in dress. Henry VIII.
afforded ample facilities for the revival of the trade in dress goods,
and there is little difficulty in tracing female costume of the
sixteenth century when we remember that in the course of thirty-eight
years he married six wives, besides having them painted times without
number by all the popular artists of the day.

[Illustration: 16TH CENTURY. _From Portrait of Mary Queen of Scots._]

J. R. Planché in his "History of British Costume," says: "The gowns of
the nobility were magnificent, and at this period were open in front to
the waist, showing the kirtle, or inner garment, as what we should call
the petticoat was then termed." Anne of Cleves, who found so little
favour in Henry's eyes, is said to have worn at their first interview "a
rich gowne of cloth of gold made round, without any train, after the
Dutch fashion;" and in a wardrobe account of the eighth year of this
Bluebeard's reign appears the following item: "Seven yards of purple
cloth of damask gold for a kirtle for Queen Catherine of Arragon." The
dress of Catherine Parr is thus described by Pedro de Gante, secretary
to the Spanish Duke de Najera, who visited Henry VIII. in 1543-1544:
"She was robed in cloth of gold, with a 'saya' (petticoat) of brocade,
the sleeves lined with crimson satin and trimmed with three-piled
crimson velvet. Her train was more than two yards long." Articles of
dress were often bequeathed by will. In one made on the 14th of August,
1540, William Cherington, yeoman, of Waterbeche, leaves "To my mother
_my holyday gowne_." Nicholas, Dyer of Feversham, 29th October, 1540,
"To my sister, Alice Bichendyke, thirteen shillings and ninepence _which
she owed me_, and two kerchiefs of holland." John Holder, rector of
Gamlingay, in 1544 leaves to Jane Greene "my clothe frock lined with
satin cypress." These entries are from wills in the Ely Registry.

[Illustration: 17TH CENTURY.]

A peculiar feature in the costume of both sexes was sleeves distinct
from the gown, but attached (so as to be changed at pleasure) to the
waistcoat. Among the inventories we find three pairs of purple satin
sleeves for women, one pair of linen sleeves paned with gold over the
arm, quilted with black silk and wrought with flowers; one pair of
sleeves of purple gold tissue damask wire, each one tied with aglets of
gold; one pair of crimson satin sleeves, four buttons of gold being set
on each, and in every button nine pearls.

We are all familiar with the distended skirts, jewelled stomachers and
enormous ruffs which adorned the virgin form of Good Queen Bess. In the
middle of her reign the body was imprisoned in whalebone, and the
fardingale, the prototype of the modern hoop, was introduced, as it was
not to be supposed that a lady who is said to have left three thousand
dresses in her wardrobe would remain faithful to the fashions of her
grandmother; and Elizabeth's love of dress permeated all classes of
society.

The portrait of Mary Queen of Scots, who was considered an authority on
matters of the toilet, and whose taste for elegance of apparel had been
cultivated to a high degree during her residence at the French Court is
given. There is a subtlety and charm about it which is wanting in the
costume of her cousin Elizabeth, and it may be considered a fair type of
what was worn by a gentlewoman of that period. The full skirt appears to
fall in easy folds, and the basqued bodice, with tight sleeves, is
closely moulded to the figure and surmounted by an
elaborately-constructed ruff of muslin and lace.

[Illustration: 19TH CENTURY. BALL DRESS, 1809.]

To the great regret of antiquarians, the wardrobes of our ancient kings,
formerly kept at the Tower, were by the order of James I. distributed.
At no period was the costume of Britain more picturesque than in the
middle of the seventeenth century, and we naturally turn to its great
delineators Velasquez, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, and Rubens, who delighted in
giving us such fine examples of their work. Women had grown tired of the
unwieldy fardingale, and changed it for graceful gowns with flowing
skirts and low bodices, finished with deep vandyked collars of lace or
embroidery.

A studied negligence, an elegant _déshabillé_ prevailed in the Stuart
Court, particularly after the Restoration. Charles II.'s bevy of
beauties are similarly attired, and the pictures in Hampton Court show
us women whose snowy necks and arms are no longer veiled, and whose
gowns of rich satin, with voluminous trains, are piled up in the
background. Engravings and drawings which may be seen in every
printseller's window make special illustrations of this period
unnecessary.

[Illustration: 18TH CENTURY. WALKING COSTUME.]

Dutch fashions appear to have followed in the wake of William and Mary.
Stomachers and tight sleeves were once more in favour, and fabrics of a
rich and substantial character were employed in preference to the softer
makes of silk, which lent itself so well to the soft flowing lines of
the previous era.

An intelligent writer has remarked "that Fashion from the time of George
I. has been such a varying goddess that neither history, tradition, nor
painting has been able to preserve all her mimic forms; like Proteus
struggling in the arms of Telemachus, on the Phanaic coast, she passed
from shape to shape with the rapidity of thought." In 1745 the hoop had
increased at the sides and diminished in front, and a pamphlet was
published in that year entitled "The enormous abomination of the hoop
petticoat, as the fashion now is." Ten years later it is scarcely
discernible in some figures, and in 1757 reappears, extending right and
left after the manner of the court dress of the reign of George III. For
the abolition of this monstrosity we are indebted to George IV., and
ladies' dresses then rushed to the other extreme. Steel and whalebone
was dispensed with, and narrow draperies displayed the form they were
supposed to conceal, and were girdled just below the shoulders.

[Illustration: 19TH CENTURY.--TEA DRESS, 1830.]

These were in time followed by the bell-shaped skirts worn at the
accession of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, during whose reign fashion has
indeed run riot. The invention of the sewing machine was the signal for
the appearance of frills and furbelows, and meretricious ornament of
every kind. In the middle of the present century crinolines were again
to the fore, skirts were proportionately wide and generally flounced to
the top. The bodice terminated at the waist with a belt; but in some
cases a Garibaldi, or loose bodice of different texture, was
substituted. The next change to be noted was that hideous garment the
"polonaise," which was a revival of, and constructed on similar lines
to, the "super froc" of the Middle Ages. For many years English ladies,
with a supreme disregard for the appropriate, wore this with a skirt
belonging to an entirely different costume. But at last people got
nauseated with these abominations, and under the gentle sway and
influence of "Our Princess" a prettier, more useful and rational costume
appeared. In 1876 the graceful Princess dress, which accentuated every
good point in the figure, was generally worn; and though this costume in
the latter part of its career was fiercely abused by the rotund matron
and Mrs. Grundy, for clinging too closely to the lines of the human
form, it was distinctly an advance as regards health and beauty on the
varying styles which preceded it.

[Illustration: 19TH CENTURY.--THE POLONAISE, 1872.]

The æsthetic movement has also had a marked influence on our taste in
all directions, but more especially in the costume of the last few
years; and though the picturesque garb of the worshippers of the
sunflower and the lily may not be adapted to the wear and tear of this
workaday world, it is beautiful in form and design, incapable of undue
pressure; and for children and young girls it would be difficult to
imagine a more charming, artistic, and becoming costume.

[Illustration: TAILOR-MADE DRESS, 1897.]

Once more we are eschewing classical lines for grotesque which makes
caricatures of lovely women, and drives plain ones to despair. The
subdued and delicate tints which a few seasons since were regarded with
favour have been superseded by garish shades and bright colours, which
seem to quarrel with everything in Nature and Art. Unfortunately, we
English are prone to extremes, and possess the imitative rather than the
creative faculty. Consequently, our national costume is seldom
distinctive, but a combination of some of the worst styles of our
Continental neighbours, who would scorn to garb themselves with so
little regard for fitness, beauty, and the canons of good taste.

[Illustration: TEA GOWN, 1897.]

[Illustration: AN ARTISTIC DRESS, 1897.

_After a painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds._]

[Illustration: MODERN EVENING DRESS.]

Two dominant notes, however, have been struck in the harmonies of
costume during the last twenty-five years--the tailor-made dress, which
may almost be regarded as a national livery; and the tea gown, that
reposeful garment to which we affectionately turn in our hours of ease.
How well each in its way is calculated to serve the purpose for which it
is designed, the simple cloth, tweed, or serge costume moulded to the
lines of the figure, adapted to our changeful climate, and giving a
_cachet_ to the wearer, not always found in much more costly apparel, a
rational costume in the best sense of the word, and one which women of
all ages may assume with satisfaction to themselves and to those with
whom they come in contact. The tea gown, on the other hand, drapes the
figure loosely so as to fall in graceful folds, and may be regarded as a
distinct economy, as it so often takes the place of a more expensive
dress. Beauty, which is one of Heaven's best gifts to women, is useless
unless appropriately framed, and a well-known exponent on the art of
dressing artistically, has laid down the axiom that harmonies of colour
are more successful than contrasts. If we turn to Nature we have an
unfailing source of inspiration. The foliage tints, sunset effects, the
animal and mineral worlds all offer schemes of colour, which can be
readily adapted to our persons and surroundings. And to look our best
and, above all, to grow old gracefully, is a duty which every daughter
of Eve owes to humanity. The manner in which so many women give way
early in life is simply appalling. While still in the bloom of womanhood
they assume the habits and dress of decrepitude, submit to be placed on
the social shelf without a murmur, and calmly allow those slightly their
junior, and in some cases their senior, to appropriate the good things
of life, and to monopolise the attention of all and sundry. Mothers in
their prime willingly allow anyone who can be persuaded to do so, to
chaperone their daughters, and to pilot them through the social eddies
and quicksands of their first season, and through sheer indolence fail
to exercise the lawful authority and responsibility which maternity
entails. The unmarried woman, conscious that she is no longer in her
first youth, and indifferent to the charms of maturity, takes to
knitting socks in obscure corners, and assumes an air of self-repression
and middle-agedness which apparently takes ten years from her span of
existence, and conveys to the casual onlooker, that she has passed the
boundary line between youth and old age. Why should these women sink
before their time into a slough of dowdyism and cut themselves off from
the enjoyments civilisation has provided for their benefit?

Equally to be deprecated are those who cling so desperately to youth
that they entirely forget the later stages of life have their
compensations. Women who in crowded ballrooms display their redundant or
attenuated forms to the gaze of all beholders, whose coiffure owes more
to art than nature, and who comfort themselves with the conviction that
in a carefully shaded light rouge and pearl powder are hardly
distinguishable from the bloom of a youthful and healthy complexion. A
variety of circumstances combine to bring into the world a race of
people who cannot strictly lay claim to beauty, but who nevertheless
have many good points which might be accentuated, while those that are
less pleasing could be concealed. A middleaged woman will respect
herself and be more respected by others if she drapes her person in
velvet, brocade, and other rich fabrics which fall in stately folds, and
give her dignity, than if she persists in decking herself in muslin,
crepon, net, and similar materials, because in the long since past they
suited her particular style. Gossamers belong to the young, with their
dimpled arms, shoulders of snowy whiteness, and necks like columns of
ivory. Their eyes are brighter than jewels, and their luxuriant locks
need no ornament save a rose nestling in its green leaves, a fit emblem
of youth and beauty.

With the education and art training at present within the grasp of all
classes of the community there is nothing to prevent our modifying
prevailing fashions to our own requirements; and common sense ought to
teach us (even if we ignore every other sentiment which is supposed to
guide reasoning creatures) that one particular style cannot be
appropriate to women who are exact opposites to each other. If each
person would only think out for herself raiment beautiful in form, rich
in texture, and adapted to the daily needs of life, we should be spared
a large number of the startling incongruities which offend the eye in
various directions.




CHAPTER II.

CURIOUS HEADGEAR.

                          "Here in her hair
  The painter plays the spider, and hath woven
  A golden mesh to entrap the hearts of men
  Faster than gnats in cobwebs."

  _The Merchant of Venice._


[Illustration: ANCIENT JEWISH HEAD-DRESS.]

Holy Writ simply teems with allusions to the luxurious tresses of the
fair daughters of the East, and there is little doubt that at an early
period in the world's history women awakened to the fact that a
well-tired head was a very potent attraction, and had a recognised
market value. Jewish women were particularly famed in this respect, and
employed female barbers, who, with the aid of crisping pins, horns, and
towers, prepared their clients for conquest. These jewelled horns were
generally made of the precious metals, and the position denoted the
condition of the wearer. A married woman had it fixed on the right side
of the head, a widow on the left, and she who was still an
unappropriated blessing on the crown. Over the horn the veil was thrown
coquettishly, as in the illustration. Assyrian women delighted in long
ringlets, confined by a band of metal, and the men were not above the
weakness of plaiting gold wire with their beards. Rimmel, in "The Book
of Perfumes," relates a curious anecdote of Mausolus, King of Caria, who
turned his people's fondness for flowing locks to account when his
exchequer required replenishing. "Having first had a quantity of wigs
made and stored in the royal warehouses, he published an edict
compelling all his subjects to have their heads shaved. A few days
after, the monarch's agents went round, offering them the perukes
destined to cover their denuded polls, which they were delighted to buy
at any price". It is not surprising that Artemisia could not console
herself for the loss of such a clever husband, and that, not satisfied
with drinking his ashes dissolved in wine, she spent some of her
lamented lord's ill-gotten revenue in building such a monument to his
memory that it was counted one of the wonders of the world.

[Illustration: EGYPTIAN HEAD-DRESS.]

The Egyptians were also partial to wigs, some of which are still
preserved in the British Museum. Ladies wore a multitude of small plaits
and jewelled head-pieces resembling peacocks and other animals, which
contrasted with their dark tresses with brilliant effect; or a fillet
ornamented with a lotus bud. The coiffure of a princess was remarkable
for its size and the abundance of animal, vegetable, and mineral
treasures with which it was adorned. In Egyptian tombs and elsewhere
have been discovered small wooden combs resembling the modern
tooth-comb, and metal mirrors of precisely the same shape as those in
use at the present day, as well as numerous other toilet appliances.

[Illustration: ANCIENT GRECIAN.]

Grecian sculpture affords us the opportunity of studying the different
modes in favour in that country, and it is astonishing to find what a
variety of methods were adopted by the belles of ancient Greece for
enhancing their charms. A loose knot, fastened by a clasp in the form of
a grasshopper, was a favourite fashion. Cauls of network, metal mitres
of different designs, and simple bands, and sometimes chaplets, of
flowers, all confined at different periods, the luxuriant locks of the
Helens, Penelopes, and Xantippes of ancient times.

[Illustration: ANCIENT ROMAN.]

It was a common custom among heathen nations to consecrate to their gods
the hair when cut off, as well as that growing on the head, and it was
either consumed on the altar, deposited in temples, or hung upon the
trees. A famous instance of the consecration of hair is that of
Berenice, the wife of Ptolemy Evergetes. It is related that when the
king went on his expedition to Syria, she, solicitous for his safety,
made a vow to consecrate her hair (which was remarkable for its fineness
and beauty) to Venus, if he returned to her. When her husband came back
she kept her word, and offered her hair in the temple of Cyprus. This
was afterwards missing, when a report was spread that it had been turned
into a constellation in the heavens, which constellation, an old writer
tells us, is called _Coma Berenices_ (the hair of Berenice) to the
present day. Another remarkable instance is that of Nero, who, according
to Suetonius, cut off his first beard, put it in a casket of gold set
with jewels, and consecrated it to Jupiter Capitolinus.

[Illustration: ENGLISH HEAD-DRESS OF THE 13TH CENTURY.]

The hair of the head and beard appears to have been held in great
respect by most nations, and perhaps we may trace the use of human hair
in spells and incantations to this fact. Orientals especially treat the
hair which falls from them with superstitious care, and bury it, so
that no one shall use it to their prejudice.

[Illustration: HORNED HEAD-DRESS OF 15TH CENTURY.

_From Effigy of Countess of Arundel in Arundel Church._]

Roman matrons generally preferred blonde hair to their own ebon tresses,
and resorted to wigs and dye when Nature, as they considered, had
treated them unkindly. Ovid rebukes a lady of his acquaintance in the
plainest terms for having destroyed her hair.

[Illustration: STEEPLE HEAD-DRESS OF 15TH CENTURY.]

"Did I not tell you to leave off dyeing your hair? Now you have no hair
left to dye: and yet nothing was handsomer than your locks: they came
down to your knees, and were so fine that you were afraid to comb them.
Your own hand has been the cause of the loss you deplore: you poured the
poison on your own head. Now Germany will send you slaves' hair--a
vanquished nation will supply your ornament. How many times, when you
hear people praising the beauty of your hair, you will blush and say to
yourself: 'It is bought ornament to which I owe my beauty, and I know
not what Sicambrian virgin they are admiring in me. And yet there was a
time when I deserved all these compliments.'"

[Illustration: EARLY TUDOR HEAD-DRESS.]

It would puzzle any _fin de siècle_ husband or brother to express his
displeasure in more appropriate words than those chosen by the poet.

The Britons, before they mixed with other nations, were a fair-haired
race, and early writers referred to their washing their auburn tresses
in water boiled with lime to increase the reddish colour. Boadicea is
described with flowing locks which fell upon her shoulders; but after
the Roman Invasion the hair of both men and women followed the fashion
of the conquerors.

[Illustration: HORNED HEAD-DRESS OF EDWARD IV.'s REIGN.]

From Planché's "History of British Costume," we learn that "the female
head-dress among all classes of the Anglo-Saxons was a long piece of
linen or silk wrapped round the head and neck." It appears to have been
called a head-rail, or wimple, but was dispensed with in the house, as
the hair was then as cherished an ornament as at the present day. A wife
described by Adhelm, Bishop of Sherborne, who wrote in the eighth
century, is said to have had "twisted locks, delicately curled by the
iron;" and in the poem of "Judith" the heroine is called "the maid of
the Creator, with twisted locks." Two long plaits were worn by Norman
ladies, and were probably adopted by our own countrywomen after the
Conquest.

During the Middle Ages feminine head-gear underwent many changes.
Golden nets, and linen bands closely pinned round the hair and chin,
were followed by steeple-shaped erections and horned head-dresses in a
variety of shapes, of which the accompanying sketches will give a better
idea than any written description.

During the sixteenth century matrons adopted either a pointed hood,
composed of velvet or other rich fabric, often edged with fur, a
close-fitting coif, or the French cap to be seen in the portraits of the
unhappy Mary Stuart. Those who were unmarried had their hair simply
braided and embellished with knots of ribbon, strings of pearls, or
Nature's most beautiful adornment for the maiden--sweet-scented flowers.

[Illustration: ELIZABETHAN HEAD-DRESS.]

The auburn tresses of Her Gracious Majesty Queen Elizabeth, were always
_bien coiffée_, if we may judge from her various portraits. She scorned
the hoods, lace caps, and pointed coifs, worn by her contemporaries, and
adopted a miniature crown or jaunty hat of velvet, elaborately jewelled.
Her fair complexion and light hair were thrown into relief by ruffles of
lace, and this delicate fabric was stretched over fine wire frames,
which met at the back, and remotely suggested the fragile wings of the
butterfly, or the nimbus of a saint, neither of which ornaments was
particularly appropriate to the lady in question. The front hair was
turned over a cushion, or dressed in stiff sausage-like curls, pinned
close to the head, and was adorned with strings and stars of flashing
gems and a pendant resting on the forehead.

[Illustration: A BEAUTY OF THE COURT OF CHARLES II.]

That splendid historian, Stubbs, who has left us such minute particulars
of the fashions of his time, quaintly describes the coiffure of the
ladies of the Court. He states: "It must be curled, frizzled, crisped,
laid out in wreaths and borders from one ear to the other, and lest it
should fall down, must be underpropped with forkes and weirs, and
ornamented with gold or silver curiously wrought. Such gewgaws, which
being unskilful in woman's tearms, I cannot easily recount. Then upon
the toppes of their stately turrets, stand their other capital
ornaments: a French hood, hatte, cappe, kircher and suchlike, whereof
some be of velvet, some of this fashion and some of that. Cauls made of
netwire, that the cloth of gold, silver, or tinsel, with which their
hair was sometimes covered, might be seen through; and lattice caps with
three horns or corners, like the forked caps of popish priests." The
Harleian MSS., No. 1776, written in the middle of Elizabeth's reign,
refers to an ordinance for the reformation of gentlewomen's head-dress,
and says: "None shall wear an ermine or lattice bonnet unless she be a
gentlewoman born, having Arms." This latter phrase, we may conclude,
refers to armorial bearings, not to physical development.

The wearing of false hair and periwigs was left to the sterner sex for
some years after the restoration of the House of Stuart, and women were
satisfied with well-brushed ringlets escaping from a bandeau of pearls,
or beautified by a single flower. The hair was often arranged in small,
flat curls on the forehead, as in the sketch of a Beauty of the Court of
Charles II.; and this fashion had a softening effect on the face, and
was known as the "Sevigné style."

[Illustration: END OF 17TH CENTURY.]

Dutch fashions naturally prevailed in the Court of William and Mary, and
this queen is represented with a high muslin cap, adorned with a series
of upright frills, edged with lace, and long lappets falling on the
shoulders. Farquhar, in his comedy "Love and the Bottle," alludes to the
"high top-knots," and Swift, to the "pinners edged with colberteen," as
the lace streamers were called. About this period the hair was once
again rolled back from the face, and assumed enormous dimensions, so
much so, that in some cases it was found necessary to make doorways
broader and higher than they had hitherto been, to allow
fashionably-dressed ladies to pass through without displacing the
elaborate erections they carried. Stuffed with horsehair, clotted with
pomade and powder, and decked with every conceivable ornament, from a
miniature man-of-war in full sail, to a cooing dove with outspread
wings, presumably sitting on its nest, or a basket of flowers wreathed
with ribbons. Naturally, the aid of the barber was called in, as ladies
were incapable of constructing and manipulating such a mass of tangled
locks. We may imagine, on the score of expense and for other reasons,
the hair was not dressed so frequently as cleanliness demanded, for in a
book on costume a hairdresser is described as asking one of his
customers how long it was since her hair had been opened and repaired.
On her replying, "Nine weeks," he mildly suggested that that was as long
as a head could well go in summer, "and, therefore, it was proper to
deliver it now, as it began to be a little _hazarde_." Various anecdotes
of this nature make us feel that personal hygiene was a matter of
secondary importance to our ancestors.

Planché, in his work on British Costume, informs us that powder
maintained its ground till 1793, when it was discarded by Her Majesty
Queen Charlotte, Consort of George III., and the Princesses.

[Illustration: FASHIONABLE COIFFURE OF AN ELDERLY LADY IN THE 18TH
CENTURY.]

[Illustration: FASHIONABLE HEAD-DRESSES IN THE TIMES OF THE GEORGES.]

Varied, indeed, have been the fashions of the 19th century, the close of
which is fast approaching. Only a few of the styles adopted can be
briefly touched upon, and, naturally, those will be selected which form
the greatest contrast to each other. The belle of 1830 was distinguished
by upstanding bows of plain or plaited hair, arranged on the crown of
the head, and the front was generally in bands or short ringlets, held
in place by tortoise-shell side-combs. The simplicity of this coiffure
was compensated for by the enormous size of the hats and bonnets
generally worn with it. These had wide and curiously-shaped brims, over
which was stretched or gathered silk, satin, aerophane, or similar
materials. Garlands and bunches of flowers and feathers were used in
profusion, and bows and strings of gauze ribbon floated in the wind. In
this bewitching costume were our grandmothers wooed and won by suitors
who evidently, from the impassioned love letters still in existence,
believed them to be perfect types of loveliness.

Towards the middle of Queen Victoria's reign, the hair was dressed in a
simple knot, and the front arranged in ringlets, which fell gracefully
on the chest and shoulders. Even youthful married ladies, in the privacy
of their homes and for morning dress, were expected, by one of those
potent but unwritten laws of the fickle goddess Fashion, to wear muslin
or net caps, with lace borders, embellished with ribbons.

[Illustration: 1830.]

[Illustration: 1855.]

[Illustration: BIRD'S-NEST CHIGNON, 1872.]

[Illustration: PRESENT DAY, 1894.]

The labours of Hercules would be mere child's play compared to giving a
faithful record of the chameleon-like changes which have affected that
kaleidoscope, public taste, during the last forty years, and a very
limited study of this fascinating subject at once convinces us that,
whatever peculiarities may appear, they are certain to be revivals or
modifications of styles favoured by our more or less remote ancestors.

In 1872 loomed upon us that ghastly horror the chignon, which bore a
faint resemblance to the exaggerated coiffures of the 18th century. Upon
this monstrous edifice, with its seductive Alexandra curl, were tilted
bonnets so minute that they were almost invisible in the mountains of
hair that surrounded them. These were replaced by hats _à la Chinois_,
like shallow plates; while for winter wear, others of fur or feathers
were introduced, with an animal's head fixed firmly on the brow of the
wearer, and resembling nothing so much as the fox foot-warmer, with
which ladies now keep their pedal extremities at a proper temperature
when enjoying an airing. Besides these, there were pinched canoes turned
keel uppermost, and flexible mushrooms, which flapped and caught the
wind till it was necessary to attach a string to the edge, to keep them
snug and taut; such hats as Leech has immortalised in his sketches.
Turbans and facsimiles of the delicious but indigestible pork-pie,
Gainsborough, Rousby, and Langtry hats, all named after styles worn by
their respective namesakes; and hats made of straw, leghorn, crinoline,
lace, satin, and of silver and gold tissue, of every shape and size that
fancy could devise, or the heart of the most exacting woman of fashion
could desire. The hair beneath was dressed like the frizzy mop
illustrated, in plaited wedges flowing like a pendant hump half-way down
the back, or in a cascade of curls reaching from the crown of the head
to the waist. These were followed by gigantic rolls at the back of the
skull, Grecian knots, varying from the dimensions of a door handle to
those of a cottage loaf, and latterly by that hideous monstrosity, the
"bun." Another turn of the wheel of fashion has given us a simple mode
of dressing the hair, which is well adapted to the average English head,
and which is fully explained by the accompanying sketch. It may be taken
as a safe rule, when the forehead is low and face small, that the hair
may be drawn back with advantage, but a long face is generally improved
by arranging the hair in soft curls on the forehead, and by waving it
slightly at the sides, which adds to the apparent width of the
countenance. But whatever style is in fashion, it is sure to have its
admirers, for has not Pope left on record:

  "Fair tresses man's imperial race ensnare,
  And beauty draws us by a single hair."




CHAPTER III.

GLOVES.

  "Gloves as sweet as damask roses."--_Shakespeare._

  "See how she leans her cheek upon her hand.
  O, that I were a glove upon that hand,
  That I might touch that cheek."

  --_Romeo and Juliet._


The glove as an article of dress is of great antiquity, and among the
fossils of the cave-dwellers of pre-historic times, which have been
recently discovered in France, Belgium, and Switzerland, there is ample
proof of its existence. Probably the first gloves were formed of skins,
sewn with bone needles, and were long enough to reach above the elbow.

[Illustration: GLOVE OF HENRY VI]

Xenophon, speaking of the Persians, gives as an instance of their
effeminacy "that they not only covered their head and feet, but guarded
their hands from cold by thick gloves." Homer, describing Laërtes at
work in his garden, represents him with gloves on his hands to protect
them from thorns. Pliny the younger, in speaking of his uncle's visit to
Vesuvius, states that his secretary sat by ready to write down anything
that was remarkable, and had gloves on his hands that the coldness of
the weather need not impede his work. Varro, an ancient writer
says:--"Olives gathered with the naked hand are preferable to those
plucked in gloves;" and Atheneus speaks of a glutton who wore gloves at
table so that he might handle the meat while hot and devour more than
the others present.

That the Anglo-Saxons wore gloves we gather from their being mentioned
in an old romance of the seventh century known as the "Poem of Beowulf,"
and according to the laws of Ethelred the Unready, five pairs of gloves
formed part of the duty paid to that Prince by certain German merchants.
In Planché's "History of British Costume," an Anglo-Saxon lady appears
to be wearing a glove with a separate division for the thumb but without
fingers, and exactly resembling an infant's glove of the present day. In
1462 Edward IV. forbade the importation of foreign gloves to England, a
law which remained in force till 1826.

[Illustration: HAWKING-GLOVE OF HENRY VIII.]

In the early Christian Church gloves played an important part. In A.D.
790 Charlemagne granted an unlimited right of hunting to the Abbot and
monks of Sithin, so that the skins of the deer they killed could be used
in the manufacture of gloves, girdles, and covers of books. In some
cases it was commanded that the clergy should wear gloves in
administering the Sacrament, and a writer in the "Antiquary"
states:--"It was always looked upon as decorous for the laity to take
off their gloves in church where ecclesiastics alone might wear them. It
was perhaps regarded as a proof of clean hands, for to this day persons
sworn in our law courts are compelled to remove their gloves." In the
ancient Consecration Service for the Bishops of the Church, a blessing
was invoked on the gloves they wore. Those of William of Wykeham
preserved at New College, Oxford, are adorned with the sacred monogram
in red silk, and ecclesiastical gloves were often lavishly decorated
with embroidery and jewels, and were bequeathed by will with other
valuables.

[Illustration: GLOVE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS]

Formerly judges were forbidden to wear gloves when engaged in their
official duties, but are no longer bound by this restriction, and
receive as a memorial of a maiden assize (that is, when there are no
prisoners to be tried) a pair of white kid gloves from the sheriff, and
during the time fairs were held their duration was marked by hanging a
glove outside the town hall. As long as it remained there all persons in
the place were exempt from arrest, but directly it was removed it was
the signal for closing the fair, and the privilege was at an end.

Throwing down a glove was regarded as a challenge to combat, and this
curious old custom is still retained in the English coronation ceremony.
Kings were also invested with authority by the delivery of a glove. As
_un gage d'amour_ it has for centuries been esteemed, and in the days of
chivalry it was usual for knights to wear their ladies' gloves in their
helmets, as a talisman of success in arms. In old records we also meet
with the term "glove money," a sum paid to servants with which they were
to provide this portion of their livery, and till quite recently it was
the custom to present those who attended weddings and funerals with
gloves as a souvenir.

Shakespeare often mentions gloves, and some assert that he was the son
of a glover. A pair which belonged to the dramatist is still preserved.
They are of brown leather, ornamented with a stamped pattern, and are
edged with gold fringe. They were presented by the actor Garrick to the
Mayor and Corporation of Stratford-on-Avon at the Shakespearian
commemoration in 1789.

[Illustration: GLOVE OF QUEEN ELIZABETH.]

Many royal gloves have found a place in private collections. Henry VI.'s
glove has a gauntlet, is made of tanned leather, and is lined with
deer-skin, and the hawking glove of Henry VIII. is another interesting
relic of a bygone age. The King kept his hawks at Charing Cross, and in
the inventories taken after this monarch's death we read of "three payre
of hawkes' gloves, with two lined with velvet;" and again at Hampton
Court there were "seven hawkes' gloves embroidered." The hawking glove,
of which an illustration is given, may be seen in the Ashmolean Museum.
It is of a simple character, evidently intended for use rather than
ornament.

Gloves were not generally worn by women till after the Reformation; but
during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries their use gradually
extended to the middle classes. Queen Elizabeth's glove may be seen at
the Bodleian Library, Oxford, and is believed to have been worn at the
visit of the Virgin Queen to the University in 1566. It is fringed with
gold, and is nearly half a yard in length; it is made of white leather
worked with gold thread, and the cuff is lined with drab silk. Mary
Queen of Scots' glove in the Saffron Walden Museum is of light buff
leather, wrought with silver wire and silk of different colours. It is
lined with crimson satin, edged with gold lace enriched with sequins,
and the opening is connected with bands of satin finished with lace
insertion. This glove was presented on the morning of her execution to a
member of the Dayrell family, who was in attendance at Fotheringay
Castle. In happier days Queen Mary gave an exquisitely embroidered pair
of gloves, with a design in which angels' heads and flowers appear--her
own work--to her husband, Lord Darnley; and the gloves generally of the
Tudor period were more ornate than those which adorn beauty's hands on
the eve of the nineteenth century, and were, in most cases, wrought with
the needle.

Though the history of gloves savours of romance, there is every reason
to believe that they have sometimes been used with sinister motives, as
a large trade was done at one time in poisoned gloves, delicately
perfumed, to conceal their deadly purpose.

[Illustration: GLOVE OF JAMES I.]

Some gloves which were the property of James I. are of brown leather
lined with white, and the seams are sewn with silk and gold thread. The
embroidery is in gold and silver thread on crimson satin, with a lining
of red silk. They are finished with gold fringe, and have three loops at
the side. A glove of chaste design, worn by Charles I. on the scaffold
is made of cream-coloured kid, the gauntlet embroidered with silver and
edged with silver fringe. Queen Anne, on the other hand, wore
highly-decorated gloves of Suede kid, with raised silken flowers on the
gauntlet, and three loops of rose-coloured ribbon, to allow them to be
slipped over the hands. They are further enriched with gold lace and
embroidery. A yellow Suede Court glove of George IV. gives the
impression that the first gentleman of Europe had a fist of tremendous
proportions. Her Majesty Queen Victoria generally wears black kid
gloves, except for Court functions, when white glacé kid gloves are
invariably used.

Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales has a delicately-formed hand
with tapering fingers, and her size is six and a-half. Her Royal
Highness adapts her gloves to the occasion and toilette, and is always
_bien ganté_.

The first Napoleon gave an impetus to this branch of industry by
insisting on gentlemen wearing gloves on State occasions and at festive
gatherings, and the fashion spread through the countries of Europe with
astonishing rapidity.




CHAPTER IV.

CURIOUS FOOT-GEAR.

  "A tasteful slipper is my soul's delight."

  --_Milman's "Fazio."_


A well-shaped foot has been considered from the earliest times one of
Nature's kindest gifts, and sober history and fairy lore have combined
to give us many interesting particulars respecting this portion of the
human anatomy. The similarity of the foot-gear of both sexes makes it
impossible to treat the matter separately, and as the subject is
practically inexhaustible, I propose only to illustrate the most curious
and notable examples.

One of the finest collection of shoes in the world is that at the Cluny
Museum, Paris, formed by the eminent French engraver, the late Jules
Jacquemart. This was enlarged by the purchase of the collection of Baron
Schvitter. The Queen of Italy has also acquired a large number of
historical boots and shoes; and to Mr. Joseph Box, another enthusiastic
collector, I am indebted for some of the drawings used for illustrating
this article.

A quaint story is told in a rare book, entitled "The Delightful,
Princely, and Entertaining History of the Gentle Craft of Crispin, the
Patron Saint of Shoe Makers, and his Brother Crispianus." According to
this authority, they were the two sons of the King of Logia (Kent), and
lived in the city of Durovenum, otherwise Canterbury, or the Court of
the Kentish men. Having embraced Christianity, during the Roman
invasion, they were in considerable danger, and at their mother's
instigation, to conceal their identity, adopted humble attire, and
devoted themselves to the modest craft of shoemaking, under the auspices
of a shoemaker at Faversham, to whom they bound themselves for seven
years. This industrious citizen appears to have received the appointment
of shoemaker to the Court of Maximinus, whose daughter Ursula fell in
love with Crispin. After removing the usual obstacles (which, even in
those remote times, seem to have obstructed the paths of those who had
fallen under the sway of Cupid), this energetic lady engaged the
services of a neighbouring friar, and cut the gordian knot by marrying
her faithful adorer.

When primitive man first conceived the idea of producing some
contrivance to defend himself from cold, sharp stones, or the heated
sand of the desert, his first effort was to fasten to the bottom of his
feet soles of bark, wood, or raw hide, which were followed, in due
course, by more elaborately made sandals of tanned leather. These were
fastened in various ways, but generally by two leathern straps, one
round the instep, while the other passed between the first and second
toes. Egyptian sandals were sometimes prolonged to a sharp point, and
occasionally were made of papyrus, or some flexible material; but the
commoner kinds were, as a rule, of wood or leather. Often they had
painted upon them the effigy of the wearer's enemy, who was thus
literally trodden underfoot. Owing to their proximity, the habits and
customs of the Egyptians and Jews were in many respects similar. The
same Hebrew word denotes both a sandal and a shoe; and it has been
concluded that shoes were probably confined to the upper classes, while
sandals were used by those compelled to work; and slaves went
barefoot.

It will be seen from the sketches of Grecian and Roman shoes that they
eventually became an elaborate article of dress, bound to the foot and
leg with lacings, and ornamented in different ways. The senators had
boots of black leather, with a crest of gold or silver on the top of the
foot; and soldiers wore iron shoes, heavily spiked, in a similar manner
to those now used for cricket, so as to give the wearers a better hold
when scaling walls in the attack of fortified places. An iron boot was
also used for torturing Christians. As an instance of the luxury so
characteristic of the age, it is stated that Roman soldiers often had
the spikes on their shoes made of gold. According to the testimony of
Seneca, Julius Cæsar wore shoes of the precious metal, a fashion
emulated by Cardinal Wolsey many centuries after; and Severus was fond
of covering his with jewels, to attract the attention of the people as
he walked through the streets. The Emperor Aurelian forbade men to wear
red, yellow, white, or green shoes, reserving these colours for women;
and different shapes were prescribed by legal enactments to be worn for
the easy distinguishment of various trades and professions. In the reign
of Domitian, the stalls of shoemakers in the public streets were so
numerous as to necessitate an edict for their removal.

[Illustration: FOOT-GEAR OF DIFFERENT PERIODS.]

Our own ancestors, the Anglo-Saxons, wore shoes of raw cow-hide,
reaching to the ankles; and the hair turned outward. Those used by
ecclesiastics were a kind of sandal fastened with bands of leather round
the instep. The Norman half-boots had soles of wood, while the uppers
were of a more pliable material. Those worn by the Crusaders were of
chain, and later of plate armour. Very pointed toes were in fashion
during the Middle Ages, and these were carried to such a ridiculous
length that the dignitaries of the Church considered it necessary to
preach against the practice. However, this did not result in its
abolition, for we find the courtiers of the day improved upon the
prevailing mode by stuffing their shoes, and twisting them into the
shape of a ram's horn; the point of which was attached to the knee by a
chain. The common people were permitted by law to wear "the pykes on
their shoon" half-a-foot, rich citizens a foot, while nobles and princes
had theirs two-and-a-half feet long.

During the Plantagenet period it was usual to wear two shoes of
different colours, and they were often slashed on the upper surface, to
show the bright hose beneath. These were superseded by a large, padded
shoe, gored over the foot with coloured material, a fashion imported
from Italy, and exaggerated as much as the pointed shoe had been.
Buskins were high boots, made of splendid tissue, and worn by the
nobility and gentry during the Middle Ages, generally on occasions of
State. They were also largely adopted by players of tragedy. They
covered the knee, and were tied just below. The sock, or low shoe, on
the other hand, was the emblem of comedy.

One of the greatest follies ever introduced was the chopine, a sort of
stilt which increased the height of the wearer. These were first used in
Persia, but appeared in Venice about the Sixteenth Century, and their
use was encouraged by jealous husbands in the hope of keeping their
wives at home. This desire, however, was not realised, as the ladies
went out as usual, and required rather more support than hitherto.
Chopines were very ornate, and the length determined the rank of the
wearer, the noblest dames having them half-a-yard high. Shakespeare
refers to them when he makes Hamlet say:--"Your ladyship is nearer
heaven than when I saw you last by the altitude of a chopine." He also
alludes to the general use of shoes for the left and right foot, when he
speaks of a man:---

  "Standing in slippers which his nimble haste
  Had falsely thrust upon contrary feet."

[Illustration: GREEK AND ROMAN SHOES.]

The exercise of the gentle craft of shoemaking was for a long time
carried on in monastic institutions, and increased the revenues of the
clergy. Richard, the first Abbot of St. Albans, objected to canons and
priests of his era associating themselves with tanners and shoemakers,
not one of whom, in his opinion, ought to be made a bishop or an abbot.
It is said, however, that Pope John, elected in 1316, was the son of a
shoemaker at Cahors; and in the description of Absalom, the Parish
Clerk, Chaucer tells us, "the upper leathers of his shoes were carved to
resemble the windows of St. Paul's Cathedral," which inclines one to
believe in their priestly origin.

[Illustration: ANGLO-SAXON AND NORMAN SHOES.]

[Illustration: MEDIÆVAL SHOES.]

From various sources, we have descriptions of royal shoes. Richard
C[oe]ur de Lion had his boots striped with gold; those of his brother
John were spotted with gold in circles. Henry III. had his boots
chequered with golden lines, and every square enriched with a lion. In
the splendid Court of Edward III., the royal shoes were elaborately
embroidered. The coronation shoes of Richard III. were covered with
crimson tissue cloth of gold. Henry VIII. is described as wearing
square-toed shoes, which were slashed with coloured silk, and exposed a
portion of the foot. Some worn by his daughter, Queen Elizabeth, of
brocaded silk, are remarkably clumsy in appearance, and have lappets
which fasten over the instep. They form a striking contrast to those
used by the unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots (now in the possession of
Sir James William Drummond), which are of kid, embroidered with coloured
silks; the toes are somewhat squarer, but in other respects resemble
those in fashion at the present day.

[Illustration: QUEEN ELIZABETH'S BOOTS.]

[Illustration: SHOE OF MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.]

[Illustration: SHOE WORN BY CHARLES I.]

[Illustration: A. CHOPINE; B, BUSKIN; C, PEAKED SHOE; D, TUDOR SHOE.]

[Illustration: MILITARY BOOTS AND SPURS USED AT THE BATTLE OF NASEBY.]

In speaking of curious foot-gear, the under covering of the leg and
pedal extremities must be briefly referred to. Ancient works on costume
frequently mention hose, socks, and stockings, which were made of
woollen cloth, leather, or linen, and held in place by cross-bands of
the material twisted to a little below the knee, either in close rolls,
like the hay-bands of the modern ostler, or crossing each other
sandal-wise, as they are now worn in some districts of Europe,
particularly in Russia and Spain. Cloth stockings, embroidered with
gold, are among the articles of dress ordered by Henry III. for his
sister Isabel; and of a woman mentioned in the "Canterbury Tales," it
is said: "Hire hosen weren of fine scarlet redde, ful streite yteyed
(tied), and shoon full moist (supple) and newe."

[Illustration: ANCIENT SHOES--A, B, C, D, E, EGYPTIAN; F, PERSIAN; G, H,
GREEK; I, J, K, L, PHRYGIAN AND DACIAN.]

In the reign of Henry VII. clocks on stockings are discernible; and the
Poet Laureate of this king, describing the dress of the hostess of an
inn, gives an indication of how boots were cleaned:

  "She hobbles as she goes,
  With her blanket hose,
  Her shoone smeared with _tallow_."

It is supposed that hose or stockings of silk were unknown in this
country before the middle of the 16th century. A pair of Spanish silk
hose was presented by Sir Thomas Gresham to Edward VI., his father never
having worn any but those made of cloth. In the reign of good Queen
Bess, nether socks or stockings were of silk, jarnsey, worsted crewel,
or the finest yarn, thread, or cloth, and were of all colours,
"cunningly knit and curiously indented in every point, with querks,
clocks, open seams, and everything else accordingly." Planché states, in
the third year of Elizabeth, Mistress Montague, the Queen's silk-woman,
presented Her Majesty with a pair of black silk knit stockings, made in
England; and from that time she wore no others, in the laudable desire
to encourage their home manufacture by her own example. The Queen's
patronage, and the invention, in 1599, of a weaving frame, by William
Lee, Master of Arts, and Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge, gave a
great impetus tus to the stocking trade, which has been carried on with
considerable success ever since, particularly in the Midland counties of
England.

Spurs can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon period, which is quite far
enough for this purpose. They had no rowels, but were made with a simple
point like a goad, and were fastened with leathers. Early in the 15th
century spurs were screwed on to a steel shoe, instead of being fastened
with straps. They were long in the neck, and the spikes of the rowels of
formidable dimensions. From a sketch of a spur worn at the Battle of
Naseby, in the reign of Charles I., it will be seen that, as progress
was made in armour and military gear, considerable attention was paid to
this portion of the soldier's outfit; indeed, it was more elaborate in
design than is now considered necessary. From a very early period spurs
have been used by both sexes.

A curious custom was in vogue at the beginning of the present century
for ladies to make their own indoor shoes. This fashion was inaugurated
by Queen Charlotte, who was particularly deft in handling a beautiful
set of shoemaker's tools, mounted in silver, with ivory handles.
Tradesmen bitterly complained that worktables in boudoirs were strewn
with the implements of their craft; but, like many other feminine fads,
it soon passed away. About this period clogs were also used. These were
made of wood, and served as a protection to shoes out of doors. A
similar contrivance, with the addition of an iron ring, leather strap
and toe-cap, is still sometimes worn by farm servants, and is called a
patten. Another form of clog, consisting of a laced leather boot with
wooden sole, is extensively used by the working classes in the North of
England, and the sabot, a wooden shoe, is the ordinary foot-gear of
peasants on the Continent.

It is well known that Chinese women of high rank deform their feet by
compressing them in such a manner that it is afterwards almost
impossible to walk; and in Davis' interesting description of the Empire
of China, he relates that whenever a judge of unusual integrity resigns
his post, the people accompany him from his home to the gates of the
city, where his boots are drawn off with great ceremony, and are
afterwards preserved in the Hall of Justice.

In Japan a peculiar wooden sandal, having a separate compartment for the
great toe, is in common use. Straw slippers are also worn, and a
traveller starting on a journey will strap a supply on his back, so that
he may have new shoes in case of need. They are lefts and rights, and
only cost a halfpenny the pair. Here one never finds those deformities
of the feet so common in China, and even in our own country. A graceful
carriage depends so much upon the shoes worn. Heavy and stiff ones
oblige the wearer to plant the foot solidly at every step. If the toes
are very pointed it is at the sacrifice of elasticity, and if the heels
are too high the muscles in the ball of the foot are little used.

Orientals indicate reverence by uncovering their feet, and do so on all
occasions when Western nations would remove their hats. Their heads,
being generally shaven, are always covered, and are surmounted by a
head-dress which could not be replaced without considerable trouble;
while for the feet they have loose slippers, with a single sole, made of
coloured morocco or embroidered silk, which are easily thrown off. Few
things inspire them with greater disgust than for anyone to enter their
rooms with shoes on. They think such conduct an insult to themselves and
a pollution to their apartment; and it is considered the height of
irreverence to enter a church, mosque, or a temple without removing
them. Even classical heathenism affords instances of this usage. The
Roman women were obliged to go barefoot in the Temple of Vesta; the same
rule existed in that of Diana, at Crete; and those who prayed in the
Temple of Jupiter also followed this custom.

In the East, the public removal of the sandal or shoe, and the giving it
to another, accompanied by certain words, signifies a transfer of
authority or relinquishing possession. We are told in the case of Ruth
and Boaz, when her kinsman gave up his right to marry her, in favour of
her second husband, "he drew off his shoe." Among the Bedouins, when a
man permits his cousin to marry another, or divorces his runaway spouse,
he generally says, "She was my slipper; I have cast her off." Again,
when shoes are left at the door of an apartment, they denote that the
master or mistress is engaged, and even a husband does not venture into
a wife's room while he sees the slippers on the threshold. The idea is
not altogether unknown among ourselves, as it is expressed in the homely
proverb, "to stand in another man's shoes;" or when we speak of coming
into a future inheritance as stepping into a "dead man's shoe." Also in
flinging the slipper after a departing bride, signifying that the father
transfers his authority to the husband.




CHAPTER V.

BRIDAL COSTUME.


[Illustration: MARRIAGE PROCESSION OF A BRIDE IN LEBANON.]

Certain curious customs have been associated with the Ordinance of
Marriage from a very early period, and among others may be mentioned the
union of near relations in barbaric or semi-barbaric tribes; the
providing of husbands and wives for a family according to seniority (so
that the younger members had to possess their souls in patience till the
elder ones were disposed of); the paying of an equivalent for the
bride's services to her father in money or kind; and festivities often
lasting over several days to celebrate the nuptials. The Rabbins
acquaint us with the fact that seven days' feasting was an indispensable
obligation on all married men, and that the bride was not consigned to
her husband until after the days of feasting had expired. They were
generally spent in the house of the woman's father, after which she was
conducted in great state to her husband's home. When the bride was a
widow, the festivities only lasted for three days. Customs in the East
are perpetuated from one generation to another, and we now find among
the inhabitants of the Orient the same mode of life as was adopted by
the patriarchs of old. The description of the wooing of Isaac and
Rebekah, for example, so graphically told in Genesis, differs in few
respects from that of a young couple of the same rank in the present
day. Handsome presents, consisting of jewels, apparel, &c., are
presented to the woman and her family, and form part of her dower in
case of divorce. Rich shawls, fine dresses, personal ornaments, money,
and a complete outfit of domestic utensils are always included in such a
gift. Among some of the Arab tribes the dower received on such
occasions, and called the "five articles," consists of a carpet, a
silver nose ring, a silver neck chain, silver bracelets, and a camel
bag. Matrimonial overtures are generally made by the parents of the
contracting parties in Persia, but after all has been concluded, the
bride-elect has nominally the power, though it is seldom exercised, of
expressing her dissent before the connection receives its final
sanction. Among many Bedouin tribes the woman is not suffered to know
until the betrothing ceremonies announce it to her who is to be her
husband, and then it is too late to negative the contract, but she is
permitted to withdraw from her husband's tent the day after her
marriage, and to return to her father; in which case she is formally
divorced, and is henceforward regarded as a widow. On the value of her
ornaments the Eastern bride bases her claim to consideration; and though
the Arab, as a rule, cares little for his own dress, he decks his wife
as richly as possible, that honour may be reflected upon himself and his
circumstances. The leg ornaments and bracelets are often enormously
thick, and have no fastenings, but open and compress by their own
elasticity. It is not unusual to wear several on the same arm, reaching
to the elbow. They form a woman's sole wealth, and are not treasured up
for special occasions, as is usual among Western nations, but are used
as part of of the daily costume. Various materials are employed in their
manufacture; gold is necessarily rare, silver less so, while others are
composed of amber, coral, mother-of-pearl, and beads.

[Illustration: ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BRIDAL COSTUME.]

[Illustration: FESTIVITIES AT AN EASTERN MARRIAGE.]

We are told, when Rebekah approached her future home and saw a man
walking in the distance, she evinced a curiosity, natural under the
circumstances, and inquired about him; and on discovering that it was
Isaac, "she took a veil and covered herself." It is still almost
universal in the East for a woman, whose face is not concealed on other
occasions, to envelop her head and body in an ample veil before she is
conducted to her husband, and it is considered an indispensable part of
the bridal costume. The details of the home coming are modified by the
local usages and religions of the different countries. In Syria, Persia,
and India, the bridegroom, in person, brings home the bride; in some
other countries this duty devolves on a near relative, and he remains at
home to receive the lady on her arrival. From various sources, but
particularly from indications in Scripture, we may gather that the Jews
employed either of these methods, according to circumstances. Again, in
Egypt the bridegroom goes to the Mosque when his bride is expected, and
returns home in procession after she has arrived. In Western Asia the
procession usually walks, if the bride's future house is at no great
distance in the same town. In such cases she is often partially covered
by a canopy, and in Central and Eastern Asia it is the rule for her to
be mounted on a mare, mule, ass, or camel, unless she is carried in a
palanquin. Much, of course, depends on the social position of those
married. Music attends such processions, and often dancing; the Jews
certainly had the former, and some think the latter also, at least, in
the time of our Saviour.

[Illustration: A GREEK BRIDESMAID.]

In Halhed's translation of the Gentoo Laws, and in Mr. Roberts's
"Oriental Illustrations," reference is made to the custom of marrying
the elder sister first, and the same usage is observed with regard to
the brothers. When, in India, the elder daughter happens to be blind,
deaf, dumb, or deformed, this formality is dispensed with; and there
have been cases when a man, wishing to obtain a younger daughter, has
used every means in his power to promote the settlement of his future
sister-in-law, so as to forward his own nuptials. Fathers, too, will
sometimes exert their powers to compass the marriage of the elder
daughter, when a very advantageous offer is made for the younger one.

It is generally believed that Psalm xlv., commonly known as "The Song of
Loves," was composed on the occasion of Solomon's marriage--probably to
Pharaoh's daughter; and here we find the Egyptian bride's dress
described as "all glorious within and wrought of gold, a raiment of
needlework." Both expressions refer to the same dress, and imply that
the garment was embroidered with figures worked with threads of gold.
The Egyptians were famous for their embroideries, and some mummies have
been found wrapped up in clothing curiously ornamented with gold lace.
At the present day, both in Egypt and Western Asia, it is usual for
ladies of the highest rank to employ much of their time in working with
the needle linen and cotton tissues in gold and silver thread and silk
of different colours.

[Illustration: MODERN GREEK BRIDAL COSTUME.]

The use of nuptial crowns is of great antiquity. Among the Greeks and
Romans they wore chaplets of flowers and leaves, and the modern Greeks
retain this custom, employing such chaplets, decorated with ribbons and
lace. Modern Jews do not use crowns in their marriage ceremonies, and
they inform us that they have been discontinued since the last siege of
Jerusalem by the Romans. The information which Gemara gives on this
subject is briefly that the crown of the bridegroom was of gold and
silver, or else a chaplet of roses, myrtle, or olives, and that the
bride's crown was of the precious metals. There is also some mention of
a crown made of salt and sulphur, worn by the bridegroom, the salt
transparent as crystal, the figures being represented thereon in
sulphur. Crowns play an important part in the nuptial ceremonies of the
Greek Church; they are also still used by Scandinavian brides.

The ring in former days did not occupy the prominent position it does
now, but was given, with other presents, to mark the completion of the
contract. Its form is a symbol of eternity, and signifies the intention
of both parties to keep the solemn covenant of which it is a pledge, or,
as the Saxons called it, a "wed," from which we derive the term wedding.
The Jews have a law which proclaims that the nuptial ring shall be of
certain value, and must not be obtained by credit or gift. Formerly they
were of large size and elaborate workmanship, but now the ordinary plain
gold hoop is used.

[Illustration: A, JEWISH WEDDING RING, GERMAN, 17TH CENTURY; B, MODERN
ITALIAN; C, ITALIAN, 14TH CENTURY; D, VENETIAN, 16TH CENTURY; E,
ENGLISH, 1706; F, ENGLISH BRONZE BETROTHAL RING, 17TH CENTURY.]

A wedding ring of the Shakespearian era has a portrait of Lucretia
holding the dagger, the reverse side of the circle being formed by two
clasped hands. This is a very common shape, and is shown in the
illustration of the English wedding-ring E, dated 1706, where white
enamel fingers support a rose diamond. The modern Italian peasant
wedding-ring B is of gold in raised bosses, while C is of silver; F,
bearing initials on vezet, is of bronze. A is a handsome Jewish
wedding-ring, bearing the ark, and D also has a Hebrew inscription.

The gimmal betrothal ring was formerly a favourite pattern, and
consisted of three circlets attached to a spring or pivot, and could be
closed so as to appear like one solid ring. It was customary to break
these asunder at the betrothal, the man and woman taking the upper and
lower ones, and the witness the intermediate ring. When the marriage
took place these were joined together and used at the ceremony. During
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries it was a common practice to
engrave these emblems of affection with some appropriate motto. It was
from Pagan Rome that European nations derive the wedding-ring, as they
were used in their betrothals long before there is any trace of them
elsewhere.

[Illustration: AN EASTERN BRIDE.]

In describing the bridal costumes of different nations, it should be
distinctly borne in mind that a large majority of the upper classes wear
on such occasions the traditional white satin and orange blossoms with
which we are all familiar. Many, however, prefer the picturesque
national costume associated with the land of their birth, and it has
been my principal object, in selecting the illustrations, to make them
as typical as possible.

[Illustration: GARMENT FORMERLY WORN BY GREEK BRIDES.

(_From South Kensington Museum_)]

The Greek marriage service is full of symbol, and the sketch gives a
good idea of the bridal costume. The bridesmaid is attired in a gold
embroidered jacket, a skirt of brilliant colouring, and the crimson
fez--the usual head-gear of a Greek maiden. She is depicted scattering
corn, an ancient rite always performed at the conclusion of the
ceremony. As she gracefully sways backwards and forwards, to the
accompaniment of the jingling coins, which do double service as dowry
and trimming, it is a pose and dress at once graceful and free. Formerly
a wedding garment was often passed down from mother to daughter, and
such an example is given in the soft yellow silk robe, lined with white
and enriched with elaborate embroidery. Tiny stars in delicate shades of
red, blue, and green, divided by black lines form the design and
proclaim the industry and skill of the worker. These robes, however,
have not been used in Greece since the beginning of the seventeenth
century.

In Japan, the beautiful land of the lily and chrysanthemum, the bride
usually takes little more to her husband's home than her trousseau,
which is ample enough, as a rule, to satisfy even a woman's passion for
dress. The nuptials take place in the evening, and the bride is garbed
in virgin white robes, figured with a lozenge design. These garments are
the gift of the bridegroom, and in them she passes from the home of her
girlhood to that of her husband. The household gods of both families are
assembled before an altar decked with flowers and covered with
offerings. Near stands a large table, with a dwarf cedar; it also holds
the Japanese Adam and Eve, and the mystic turtle and stork. The two
special attendants of bride and bridegroom are called butterflies, and
in their dress and colouring rival these beautiful insects, which in
this country are the symbol of conjugal felicity. The most solemn part
of the marriage ceremony is the scene of the two-mouthed vase. At a
signal, one butterfly fills the vase, and the other offers it to the
kneeling couple, the husband drinking first, and afterwards the wife.
This draught signifies that henceforward they are to partake equally of
the bitters and sweets of the coming years. Rice is thrown from either
side, so as to mingle, and the wicks of two candles are placed together,
to symbolize the joining of body and soul.

The marriage processions of other Oriental nations have already been
referred to, and in India it is customary to perform the ceremony under
a species of canopy richly ornamented and lighted by lamps. The bride
wears, in addition to the native costume, a curious veil composed of
strings of gold beads and tassels. In Hindu marriages the sacred fire or
_oman_ (which is constantly renewed by throwing upon it scented oils,
sandalwood, incense, and other aromatic perfumes) is a prominent
feature, and the union of a couple is consecrated by sprinkling a
handful of saffron, mixed with rice flour, on their shoulders. Finally,
the husband presents his wife with a little golden image called _talee_,
a substitute for the wedding ring, and worn by Indian women as their
symbol of matrimony.

A missionary thus describes a Buddhist marriage:--"The bride, loaded
with jewellery, accompanied by women richly attired, entered the room,
and sat down with the bridegroom on the floor. A number of candles were
then lighted, and the company saluted and congratulated the happy
couple, and expressed their kind wishes by blowing smoke towards them,
while a band of string instruments discoursed sweet music. Two cushions
were placed before the bridegroom, on which a sword was laid, and food
was also near them. Next the hands of each were bound together, then the
two to each other with silken threads. This act was performed by the
nearest relative present, and completed the ceremony." Brief, indeed,
are the forms of marriage indulged in by the people of Borneo. Each of
the contracting parties chews a betel nut; an elderly woman mutters some
sort of incantation, and brings the heads of bride and bridegroom in
close contact, after which they are declared man and wife, and are no
longer regarded as twain, but one flesh. The Cherokee form of marriage
is perhaps the most simple. The two join hands over a running stream,
emblematic of the wish that their future lives, hopes, and aspirations,
should flow on in the same channel. A peculiar custom of the Lascars is
the putting of a ring on the great toe when they marry. Mrs. Bishop, who
has explored Tibet and studied the habits and customs of the people,
informs us that polyandry is favoured by the women of that country. The
heir of the land and eldest son appears to be the only member of the
family who can contract a marriage in the legal sense as we understand
it, but all his brothers are accepted by the wife as inferior or
subordinate husbands. By this means they are kept well under the control
of the superior husband, whom they regard as the "Big Father," and, as a
matter of form, any children who may be born are accepted by him.

[Illustration: HINDU BRIDEGROOM'S PROCESSION.]

Thus the whole family are attached to the soil, and seem to work in
concord, and the women have the satisfaction of knowing that in the
average course of Nature they can never become widows, and that there
will always be someone to work for them and their offspring. "It is the
custom for the men and women of a village to assemble when a bride
enters her home with her husbands, and for each of them to present her
with three rupees. The Tibetan wife, far from spending these gifts on
personal adornment, looks ahead, contemplating possible contingencies,
and immediately hires a field, the produce of which is her own, and
accumulates from year to year, so that she may not be portionless should
she desire a divorce."

The African tribes, of course, differ materially in their marriage
customs, but some form of exchange for the services of the woman are
insisted on, and often take the shape of a present of cattle to the
bride's father. On the West Coast, in the neighbourhood of Gaboon,
where slavedom is recognised, there is an understanding that a wife may
be purchased for a slave bundle, valued at about £6 in English money,
and there appears to be no sliding scale as to youth, beauty, form, or
degree. A bundle contains specimens of every article sold by a general
storekeeper. The most important features of a slave bundle are a
Neptune, or brass pan used for making salt, which is a current article
of commerce, and a piece of native cloth, manufactured by these people
for dress purposes, from a species of palm which grows on the river
banks in great luxuriance. Both sexes anoint themselves with palm oil
and other greasy substances, and no greater compliment can be paid to an
African belle than to say she looks "fat and shining."

[Illustration: VEIL OF HINDU BRIDE.]

[Illustration: HINDU MARRIAGE CEREMONY.]

Mr. Hutchinson, in his interesting work, "Ten Years in Æthiopia," gives
a quaint and amusing account of the toilet of a Fernandian bridegroom:
"Outside a small hut, belonging to the mother of the bride expectant, I
soon discovered the happy bridegroom undergoing his toilet at the hands
of his future wife's sister. A profusion of Tshibbu strings being
fastened round his body, as well as his legs and arms, the anointing
lady, having a short black pipe in her mouth, proceeded to rub him over
with Tola pomade. He seemed not altogether joyous at the anticipation of
his approaching happiness, but turned a sulky gaze now and then on a
piece of yam which he held in his hand, and which had a parrot's red
feather fixed on its convex side. This was called 'Ntshoba,' and is
regarded as a protection against evil influences on the important day.
The bride was borne down by the weight of rings and wreaths and girdles
of Tshibbu. Tola pomatum gave her the appearance of an exhumed mummy,
save her face, which was all white; not from excess of modesty, for the
negro race are reported to blush blue, but from being smeared over with
a white paste, the emblem of purity." What a hideous substitute for the
classical wreath of orange blossoms, and what a contrast must be offered
when the cosmetic peels off and displays the dusky skin upon which it is
laid!

According to Russian law, no man can marry before he is eighteen years
of age, or a woman before she is sixteen; nor after he is eighty, and
she is sixty. Priests are permitted to marry once. Secret marriages
without witnesses are regarded as invalid, and both bride and bridegroom
must be baptized persons. If a Russian takes a foreigner for a wife, she
must bind herself in writing to bring up any children she may have in
the Greco-Russian faith. According to an ancient custom the bridegroom
presents his bride with the costume and jewellery worn at the marriage.
The dowry comes from her family, and consists of a complete wardrobe,
silver, linen, and household furniture of all kinds. The hair of an
unmarried woman of the peasant class in Russia is dressed in a single
plait hanging loose upon the shoulders, and tied with ribbon. After
marriage it is arranged in two braids coiled round the head, covered
with a cap tied behind, or with a cotton or silk handkerchief and a
little lappet of linen rests on the forehead, and is considered an
inevitable symbol of marriage. Marriages are performed after banns, and
much of the finery used by the lower classes is hired for the occasion;
and the crowns used in the Russian ceremony are generally the property
of the Church. Formerly they were worn for a week, but this practice has
been discontinued.

[Illustration: A RUSSIAN BRIDE.]

[Illustration: NORWEGIAN PEASANT BRIDE AND BRIDEGROOM.]

There are three distinct periods in the life of a Norwegian woman, and
each one has marked characteristics, particularly as regards dress.
During girlhood, up to the time of confirmation, a solemn occasion for
which there is much preparatory training, girls do not usually go from
home to work, or earn their own living. Among the poorer classes this
ceremony takes place when they are about fifteen. Their petticoats are
short and their hair is arranged in two long plaits. After confirmation
they are supposed to regard life from its more serious aspect, and to
engage themselves with various duties, according to their station. The
third stage, of course, is married life, and it should be stated that
neither men nor women can enter upon the holy contract unless they can
bring proof of their confirmation, and can show ample evidence of
sufficient means to provide for a household. The marriage is preceded by
a betrothal ceremony, when the young couple go to the church,
accompanied by their friends, and exchange rings of plain gold and
presents of jewellery and apparel, which must be worn on the wedding
day. At her marriage the peasant bride wears the crown. It has a rim of
brass to fit the head, and the upper portion is of silver and gold,
sometimes embellished with precious stones. Such crowns are generally
heirlooms, and it is not uncommon for all the brides of one family for
centuries to wear the same adornment for the head. A very usual dress on
such an occasion is a plain skirt of some woollen material, with a
bodice and full sleeves of snowy linen, a corselet of red and green,
ornamented with bands and buckles, and a white apron trimmed with
embroidery. A silver-gilt breast ornament is worn by Swedish brides. The
band is wrought with bosses, and depending from it are small beaten
discs, and a medallion bearing the sacred initials I.H.S. The
bridegroom's hat in the illustration was probably an heirloom too, from
its shape and fashion. He wears a red waistcoat cut short and fastened
with brass buttons, and a loose cloth coat ornamented with embroidered
revers. The black small clothes show to advantage a well-shaped leg, and
on the feet are low shoes. Usually the festivities in connection with a
peasant wedding in Norway are kept up for three days, and during the
time there is much feasting and merrymaking among the friends of bride
and bridegroom.

[Illustration: ORNAMENT WORN BY SWEDISH PEASANT BRIDE.]

[Illustration: A BRIDEGROOM'S TOILET AT FERNANDO PO.]

Gipsies are, as a rule, married at a very early age. A girl is generally
betrothed at fourteen, and becomes a wife two years later. The marriage
ceremony is performed by a priest wearing a ram's horn as a sign of
office, and, as becomes a nomadic race, the four elements--fire, air,
earth, and water--take a prominent position. The horn is the symbol of
authority, and is often made use of in Scripture. So much were rams'
horns esteemed by the Israelites that their priests and Levites used
them as trumpets in the taking of Jericho; and modern Jews when they
confess their sins announce the ceremony by blowing a ram's horn. In
ancient Egypt and other parts of Africa, Jupiter Ammon was worshipped
under the figure of a ram, and to this deity one of these animals was
sacrificed annually. It seems to have been an emblem of power from the
remotest ages. It would therefore appear that the practice of the gipsy
priest wearing a ram's horn suspended from a string round his neck at a
marriage is derived from the highest antiquity, and undoubtedly points
to the Oriental origin of the gipsy race.

Various expedients have been resorted to by different rulers of sparsely
populated kingdoms to encourage men to enter the married state. In
ancient Rome the law forbade that a bachelor should inherit any legacy
whatever, and in Sparta, under the rule of Lycurgus, they were not
permitted to have a part in the government, nor might they occupy any
civil or military post. They were excluded from participation in public
festivals, except on certain fixed occasions, and then the women had the
right to lead them to the altars, where they were beaten with rods to
the sound of scornful songs. As late as the reign of William and Mary,
widowers were taxed in England at the following rates:--Dukes, £12 10s.;
lower peers a smaller sum, and commoners one shilling each, if they
elected to remain in a state of single blessedness. Widows also,
especially those of high degree and fortune, were encouraged to dip
again in the matrimonial lottery, and children were betrothed at a very
tender age.

[Illustration: AN ENGLISH BRIDE.]

Bridesmaids in Anglo-Saxon times attended on the bride, and performed
specified duties, particularly in the festivities which usually followed
on such occasions. Even during the earlier portion of the present
century it was a common custom for one to accompany the bridal couple on
their honeymoon; and it was also her duty to prepare and present the
"benediction posset," which is referred to by Herrick in "Hesperides:"--

  "A short sweet prayer shall be said,
  And now the posset shall be made
  With cream of lilies not of kine
  And maiden blush for spiced wine."

The fashion of brides wearing spotless white is a comparatively modern
one. From accounts of bridal gowns in bygone times, we find rich
brocades, golden tissues, and coloured silks were employed for this
purpose; and at the present day white is considered only appropriate to
the virgin, and is absolutely dispensed with by those women who have
been married before.

Of modern marriage customs in England there is no occasion to speak, for
what woman is there among us who has not made an exhaustive and complete
study of this vital matter? It may, however, comfort those who are
beginning to wonder if marriage and giving in marriage is going out of
fashion, to know that during the first quarter of 1894, 95,366 persons
were joined together in the British Islands, an increase of 18 per cent.
over the first three months of the previous year, 1893 and 9 per cent.
over the mean rate for the same quarter for the preceding ten years.
Figures are incontrovertible facts, so our ears need no longer be
assailed by the bitter cry of

  "DARKEST SPINSTERDOM."




CHAPTER VI.

MOURNING.

  "The air is full of farewells to the dying
  And mourning for the dead."--_Longfellow._


[Illustration: ANCIENT JEWISH FUNERAL PROCESSION.]

[Illustration: LAYING OUT AND MOURNING THE DEAD.]

The signs of mourning in ancient times were by no means confined to the
apparel. Fasting, laceration of the flesh, throwing dust on the head,
and shaving the hair, were outward and visible signs of grief,
accompanied by piercing cries of the most heartrending description. It
was also customary to abstain from ornaments, to rend the clothing, and
to put on filthy garments of sackcloth. This fabric was, and is still in
the East, made of hair, which has an irritating effect upon the skin,
and was for this purpose adopted as a penitential dress by the early
Roman Church. The covering of the head was another manifestation of
sorrow--a practice indicated by the hoods worn by female mourners, and
the flowing hat-bands for men, so common at funerals a few years ago. In
"A History of Mourning," by Richard Davey, from which many interesting
facts on this subject may be gathered, we learn that the Egyptians, over
three thousand years ago, selected yellow as the colour for mourning
garments. The Greeks chose black as the most appropriate--a fashion
followed by the Romans. The women of Rome had robes of black cloth, with
veils of the same shade; but by a wise dispensation, young children were
not compelled to adopt the symbols of woe. A year was the usual period
for mourning a husband, wife, father, mother, sister, or brother; but
relations who had been outlawed, imprisoned, or bankrupt, were not
accorded this mark of respect. Numa published certain laws for the
guidance of mourners, including one forbidding women to scratch their
faces, or to make an exceptional display of grief at funerals. The
Emperor Justinian (A.D. 537) also turned his attention to this subject,
and regulated the expenses at funeral ceremonies, so as to secure those
who remained from the double calamity of losing their friends and, at
the same time, incurring heavy pecuniary liabilities on their account.
Provision was made for burying each person free of cost, and for
protecting the survivors from various extortions. Funds were
appropriated for the purpose of interments, which were conducted by
those appointed for the purpose. All persons were to be buried in the
same manner; though those who desired to do so could, at their own cost,
indulge in certain display, but this additional expense was limited. On
state occasions, as, for example, on the death of an Emperor or a great
defeat, the whole nation assumed the mourning garb. The defeat of Cannæ,
the conspiracy of Catalina, and the death of Julius Cæsar, were all
considered of sufficient importance for the observance of this custom.
Private mourning could be broken among the Romans by certain domestic
events, as the birth of a son or daughter, the marriage of a child, or
the return of a prisoner taken in war. Both sexes were expected to
abstain from going to public ceremonies and places of amusement; and
women were not allowed to marry till a year had elapsed from the
husband's death, without the special permission of the Emperor. History,
however, does not record that their lords and masters applied this rule
to their own conduct.

[Illustration: THE MODE OF ENFOLDING THE DEAD.]

The Greeks buried their dead before sunrise, so as to avoid ostentation.
Mourning women took part in the procession, and accompanied the chief
female mourner in her visits to the grave, on the seven days following
interment. This custom, which was derived from the East, was a usual
feature in Jewish, Roman, and Egyptian, as well as in Greek funerals.

[Illustration: THE CUP OF CONSOLATION.]

The funeral feast was a common practice among the classical ancients,
and was kept up to a comparatively recent period, in various European
countries. The Cup of Consolation consisted of light refreshments
prepared and sent in by the friends of mourners, who were not supposed
to busy themselves with domestic affairs at such a time. The
illustration gives a good idea of the mourning habit adopted by the
immediate family of the deceased. Caves were used for the disposal of
the dead, as well as elaborately constructed sepulchres, of which many
remain to this day. Earth burial was in favour with some nations, but
in time of war or pestilence cremation was resorted to. The practice of
embalming we owe to the Egyptians, who carried it to a great state of
perfection. One of the earliest embalmments on record is that of Joseph,
whose body accompanied the Israelites on their journey through the
Wilderness. He was placed in a coffin, a distinction in the East only
accorded to those of the highest rank, the usual mode being to simply
swathe the corpse closely in wrappers and bandages, thus retaining the
shape of the human form. The Jews largely used spices and perfumes,
which were employed both for anointing and for wrapping up the body--a
very necessary precaution in hot climates. The Egyptians, on the death
of a relative or sacred animal (the cat, for instance), attired
themselves in yellow garments and shaved off their eyebrows. Their
funeral processions were magnificent. When a king quitted this mortal
sphere, the temples were closed for seventy-two days, and there were no
sacrifices, solemnities, or feasts. Companies of two or three hundred
men and women, in mean attire paraded the streets, singing plaintive
songs and reciting the virtues of him they had lost. They ate no meat,
or food dressed by fire, and omitted their customary baths and
anointings. Every one mourned as for the death of a favourite child, and
spent the day in lamentations. The Pyramids, those wonderful monuments
to Egyptian monarchs, are memorials of the reverence and industry of the
nation, whose high state of civilization is attested to by their works.

[Illustration: AN ANGLO-SAXON WIDOW.]

[Illustration: PRIEST OF THE 10TH CENTURY, WEARING A BLACK DALMATIC
EDGED WITH FUR, READY TO SAY REQUIEM MASS.]

Burial clubs were common among the Anglo-Saxons, and heavy fines were
inflicted on those who did not attend the funeral of a member. The
corpse was placed on a bier, and on the body was laid the book of the
Gospels, a code of belief and a cross as a symbol of hope. A silken or
linen pall was used, according to the rank of the dead person. The
clergy bore lighted tapers and chanted the psalter, the mass was
performed, and a liberal offering made to the poor.

[Illustration: HIRED MOURNERS.]

From a 9th century MS. in the National Library, Paris, is given a sketch
which clearly defines the mourning habit of that period. The gown is
evidently of black woollen cloth, trimmed with black and white fur; and
a gauze veil of the same sombre tint envelops the head. From the same
source a drawing of an Anglo-Saxon priest is given, on account of his
wearing a black dalmatic, edged with fur, a vestment only adopted when a
requiem mass was performed.

[Illustration: MOURNING IN SACKCLOTH]

[Illustration: WIDOW'S DRESS OF QUEEN KATHERINE DE VALOIS, IN THE YEAR
1422]

In the Middle Ages black was used for mourning as a rule, though purple
and brown were occasionally substituted. Chaucer, in "The Knight's
Tale," speaks of "clothes _black_ all dropped with tears," and, again,
of "widdowes habit of samite _brown_." In many cases, on the death of
her husband, the wife retired for a year to a convent, when she assumed
the nun's dress, of which the widow's weeds of the present day are a
symbol. The mourning adopted by Katherine of Valois, wife of Henry V.,
the hero of Agincourt, who died at Vincennes in 1422, may be regarded as
the typical widow's dress of that period. It consisted of a black
brocade cote hardi, edged with white fur, and further embellished with
black glass beads, which were also used for ornamenting the winged head
dress. Her black woollen gown has a deep bordering of white fur. Some
mourning habits of this period are represented in a splendid manuscript
"Liber Regalis," still preserved in Westminster Abbey. They are composed
of black fabrics in the prevailing fashion, and are furred with ermine.
Froissart relates that the Earl of Foix, on hearing of the death of his
son, Gaston, sent for his barber, and was close shaved, and clothed
himself and his household in black. At the funeral of the Earl of
Flanders, all the nobles and others present were attired in black gowns;
and on the death of John, King of France, the King of Cyprus clothed
himself in black mourning.

[Illustration: COSTUMES WORN BY KING PHILIP II. OF SPAIN AND HIS
ATTENDANTS AT THE FUNERAL PROCESSION OF HIS FATHER.]

At the end of the fifteenth century, it was considered necessary in
England to pass sumptuary mourning laws, owing to the extravagance of
the nobility in the superfluous usage of cloth and other items at
funerals. Habits and liveries were limited to certain quantities.
Planché tells us dukes and marquises were allowed sixteen yards for
their gowns, sloppes (or mourning cassocks) and mantles; an earl,
fourteen; a viscount, twelve; a baron, eight; a knight, six; and all
inferior persons, two yards only; but an archbishop had the same
privilege as a duke. Hoods were only permitted to those above the degree
of esquire of the king's household.

[Illustration: GENTLEMAN'S MOURNING--TIME OF HENRY VII.]

Margaret, Countess of Richmond, the mother of King Henry VII., issued,
in the eighth year of his reign, an ordinance for "the reformation of
apparell for great estates of women in the tyme of mourninge." "They
shall have their surcottes with a trayne before and another behynde, and
their mantles with traynes. The queen is to wear a surcotte, with the
traynes as aforesaid, and playne hoode, and a tippet at the hoode lying
a good length upon the trayne of the mantell, being in breadth a nayle
and an inche. After the first quarter of a year, the hood to be lined
with black satin, or furred with ermine; and all ladies down to the
degree of a baroness, are to wear similar mourninge, and to be barbed at
the chin." The surcotte, with trayne, hood, barbe, and tippet, are
visible in the sketch of a lady of the sixteenth century, taken from
Pietro Vercellio's famous work on costume. The gentleman's mourning of
black cloth and fur, is reproduced from a contemporary MS.

[Illustration: FRENCH LADY OF 16TH CENTURY IN WIDOW'S WEEDS.]

Among the obsolete funeral customs, may be mentioned the Death Crier,
the lying-in-state of all classes, and the waxen effigies of those of
royal rank. Before newspapers published obituary notices, it was
customary for the Death Crier, armed with a bell and attired in a black
livery, painted or embroidered with skulls and cross-bones, to announce
to the townspeople, and inhabitants of surrounding villages, that
another had gone over to the majority. This functionary was in the
employ of the Corporation, or civil authorities, and on the death of a
member of the Royal Family, he was usually accompanied by the Guild of
Holy Souls, who walked in procession, bearing lighted tapers and other
religious emblems. Lying-in-state usually lasted for three days, by
which time the arrangements for a simple interment were completed, and
the body was placed reverently in the ground. The obsequies of kings and
queens, however, were carried over a protracted period, consequently a
waxen figure was prepared, which was dressed in regal robes, and
substituted for the body as soon as decomposition set in. This fashion
was in vogue till the time of William and Mary, and in Westminster Abbey
there is a collection of waxen effigies, which may be viewed by
permission of the Dean. As likenesses they are interesting, and they are
also useful as costume studies.

[Illustration: GERMAN WIDOW'S DRESS OF TO-DAY.]

Of late years, in this country, mourning has been considerably modified,
particularly for the male sex, who often content themselves with a
black hat-band and another on the left sleeve of dark-coloured clothes.
By Scotch law, whether a man dies solvent or insolvent, his widow may
claim out of his estate, sufficient for mourning suitable to her rank,
and the same privilege applies to each of her children, who are old
enough to be present at their father's funeral. This right takes
precedence over any debts the dead man may have contracted, and is a
distinction not accorded to English, Welsh, or Irish widows.

[Illustration: THE DEATH CRIER.]

In most European countries black is the accepted colour for mourning;
though in different parts of the globe white, yellow, red, brown, and
even blue garments are prescribed by custom as the emblem of death.

These shades have been selected for the following reasons:--Black is
symbolical of the gloom which surrounds one when those who are nearest
and dearest are taken. Black and white express sorrow mixed with hope,
and white alone the light which follows the night of mourning. Blue, the
tint of the heavens, to which it is hoped the spirit forms have taken
flight. Yellow is typical of the dead autumn leaf, and brown the earth
to which the body returns. Violet, a royal colour, is generally used for
the mourning of kings and high dignitaries of the Church. Scarlet is
also used for royal mourning occasionally.[A]

[Illustration: ENGLISH WIDOW'S DRESS OF TO-DAY.]

[Footnote A: For permission to reproduce some of the drawings from
Davey's "History of Mourning," I am indebted to Messrs. Jay, Regent
Street, London.]




CHAPTER VII.

ECCENTRICITIES OF MASCULINE COSTUME.

  "The fashion wears out more apparel than the man."

  --_Much Ado about Nothing._

  "Through tattered clothes small vices do appear,
  Robes and furred gowns hide all."--_King Lear._


[Illustration: BRITON CLAD IN SKINS.]

[Illustration: BRITON AT THE TIME OF THE ROMAN INVASION.]

"Vanity, thy name is woman," "As vain as a woman," and similar epithets,
are hurled at our defenceless heads by our teachers and masters; yet how
few of them pause for a moment to consider whether they are altogether
free from this human weakness or exempt from that love of dress which
they so strongly condemn in others. It does not require a deep study of
the history of costume to reveal some curious anomalies in this respect,
and the sketches chosen for the purpose of illustrating this chapter
will only give a faint idea of what has been considered appropriate and
becoming to the manly form at different epochs. In Pelautier's "Histoire
des Celtes," we learn that "the toilet of the ancient inhabitants of
Britain, somewhat resembled that of the North American Indian of the
present day, and consisted of a series of elaborate paintings over the
whole surface of the body, which were no doubt originally intended to
protect the skin, from the inclemencies of the weather, but were
afterwards used as a mode of embellishment and a means of distinguishing
the different classes, for it was reserved to freemen, and strictly
forbidden to slaves. The lower classes confined themselves to small
designs drawn at a considerable distance from each other; but the nobles
had the privilege of ornamenting their persons with large figures,
chiefly of animals, subsequently transferred to their shields, after
they adopted a less scanty costume, and this may be looked upon as the
origin of family arms." The Picts, who inhabited the north of Britain,
were remarkable for their pictorial decorations, hence their name,
derived from an ancient word, _picti_, which signifies painted. Our
remote ancestors also added to their other charms (which were doubtless
irresistible to the belles of that period), by deepening the tone of
their naturally ruddy locks, by washing them in water boiled with lime.
Their clothing was of skins of animals killed in the chase, and they
were armed with implements of bone and flint. The Tyrian traders taught
them how to construct various weapons of war from a composition of
copper and tin, and their flat wicker shields were superseded by those
of metal ornamented with concentric circles. After the Roman Conquest of
Britain, the skin garments were laid aside for dyed tunics and close
trousers. Over the tunic was worn a sagum, or short cloak, so named by
the Romans from _saic_, a word of Celtic origin, which signified a skin
or hide. When the head was covered it was with a cap, from the British
_cab_, a hut, which, from its circular shape, it somewhat resembled, for
the dwelling-places were composed of wattles firmly fixed in the ground
and fastened together at the top. A curious remnant of this fashion is
the horn-like cap of rushes still made by Welsh children. The hair was
usually long and flowing. Men of rank shaved the chin and allowed the
moustache to grow to an extraordinary length.

[Illustration: CANUTE.]

The Saxons and Danes are spoken of as wearers of "scarlet, purple, and
fine linen," and the latter combed their hair once a day, bathed once a
week, and frequently changed their clothing. By these means they found
favour in the eyes of the women, and delighted the wives and daughters
of the nobility. In a curious MS., written in the reign of King Canute,
the monarch is represented in a tunic and mantle embellished with cords
and tassels. The tops of his stockings are embroidered, but he wears
simple leather shoes. A vestment presented by Canute to Croyland Abbey
was of silk, embroidered with golden eagles, and the rich pall which he
ordered to be laid over the tomb of Edmund Ironside, was "embroidered
with the likeness of golden apples and ornamented with pearls." From
this, we see that the needle played an important part in the
ornamentation of clothing, and to it we also owe the splendid Bayeux
tapestry, worked by Matilda, wife of William the Conqueror. This
priceless curiosity is not only remarkable as a magnificent piece of
workmanship, but affords a good idea of the dress of that period--the
11th century. A tunic reaching to the ankle, leg bandages and shoes, a
flowing mantle and flat cap, were the chief characteristics of the civil
dress of this and succeeding reigns. The Normans, however, were
clean-shaven.

[Illustration: WILLIAM THE NORMAN, FROM BAYEUX TAPESTRY.]

[Illustration: GENTLEMAN OF THE 14TH CENTURY.]

[Illustration: PARLIAMENT ASSEMBLED IN THE REIGN OF RICHARD II.]

[Illustration: A CAPUCHON OR HOOD, TIME OF EDWARD II.]

During the Middle Ages extravagance prevailed in both male and female
costume. Handsome furs were in great request, and several times
sumptuary laws were passed. Men wore eight indispensable articles of
dress, the shirt, breeches, stockings, shoes, coat, surcoat or
cotehardie, mantle, and head dress. The coat or under-dress corresponded
with the tunic of the ancients, and was entirely hidden, with the
exception of the sleeves, by the surcoat. There were two kinds of
mantles, one open in the front, the two sides connected by a strap
resting on the chest, the other was open on the right side and had one
end thrown over the left shoulder. Head coverings were of various
descriptions; but many adopted hoods with long points, which were used
to attach them to the belt when not in use. The assembling of Parliament
in the reign of Richard II. gives the lay, spiritual, and legal peers in
their usual costumes, and is reproduced from Planché's "History of
British Costume." The Bishops are in cowls near the throne, the judges
in coifs and furred robes, the Earls of Westmorland and Northumberland
stand in front. The Duke of Hereford, in high cap, is to the left of the
throne, and Exeter, Salisbury, and other peers are seated opposite the
judges. During the reign of Richard II., which lasted over twenty years
(1377 to 1399), there were many curious fashions in masculine attire.
The peaked shoes, chained to the knee, were not more ridiculous than the
deep, wide sleeves commonly called pokeys, which were shaped like a
bagpipe and were worn by all classes. Many writers refer to them as the
devil's receptacles, as whatever could be stolen was hidden away in
their folds. Some were wide and reached to the feet, others to the knee,
and they were full of slits. Hose were often of different colours.
Parti-coloured suits were also in favour, and these were frequently
scalloped at the edges and embroidered with mottoes and other devices.
Chaucer, who wrote the "Canterbury Tales" towards the end of Richard's
reign, describes in the most graphic manner the apparel of his
contemporaries. "The haberdasher, carpenter, weaver, dyer, and tapestry
worker, all wealthy burghers of the City of London, were clothed in a
livery, and the handles of their knives, pouches, and girdles were
ornamented with silver. The clergy were not to be distinguished from the
laity, and rode on horseback, glittering with gold, in gowns of scarlet
and green, fine with cut work. Their mitres embellished with pearls like
the head of a queen, and staffs of precious metals set with jewels."
Even the parish clerk is said to be "spruce and foppish in his dress."
The author of an anonymous work called the "Eulogium," of this date,
says:--"The commoners were besotted in excess of apparel. Some in wide
surcoats reaching to their loins, some in a garment reaching to their
heels, closed before and sticking out at the sides, so that at the back
they make men seem like women, and this they call by the ridiculous name
_gowne_. Their hoods are little, and tied under the chins. Their
lirri-pipes (tippets) pass round the neck, and hanging down before,
reach to the heels."

Towards the end of the 14th century men began to wear short clothes made
to fit the body so closely that it often required the assistance of two
people to remove them, and it is from this period we can distinctly
trace the difference between ancient and modern dress; in fact, our
present fashions--masculine and feminine--resemble to a certain extent
those worn during mediæval times. Then, as now, men wore overcoats with
tight sleeves, felt hats also with feathers, worn over a skull cap, and
slung behind the back, and closely-fitting shoes and boots.

The Tudor monarchs paid considerable attention to the adornment of their
persons, and were responsible for stringent legal enactments calculated
to encourage home manufacturers. Felt hat-making--one of our oldest
industries--was introduced into this country from Spain and Holland. A
great impetus was given to this branch of trade by a law passed in 1571
which enjoined "every person above the age of seven years to wear on
Sundays or holidays a cap of wool, knit made, thickened, and dressed in
England by some of the trade of cappers, under the forfeiture of three
farthings for every day's neglect." In 1603 the felt makers became a
Corporation with grants and many privileges. Throughout the Middle Ages
the upper classes frequently engaged in commerce. Bishops, abbots, and
nobles personally superintended the disposal of the produce of their
estates, and a considerable number of the younger sons of good families
were the leading traders of the 15th and 16th centuries.

[Illustration: COSTUME OF THE REIGN OF HENRY VII.]

The "frocke" frequently mentioned, and of which the modern frock coat is
the degenerate descendant, was a sort of jacket or jerkin made
occasionally with skirts, a style associated especially, with Holbein's
portraits of Henry VIII. and his contemporaries.

The uniform worn at the present day by the Yeomen of the Guard stationed
at the Tower of London, gives us the military costume of the Tudor
period. It is the oldest corps in her Majesty's service, and was
instituted by Henry VII. as the bodyguard of the sovereign. In the dress
of the Bluecoat Boys at Christ's Hospital we have that of the citizens
of London during the reign of Edward VI. and Mary, when blue coats were
habitually used by apprentices and serving men, yellow stockings also
were in common use. The badges on the jackets of firemen and watermen
date from this time; they were made of metal and placed on the sleeve,
in the 16th century, instead of being embroidered on the back or breast
of the garment as they had been previously. Retainers in the households
of the wealthy, were provided with surcoats and mantles twice a year, of
their patron's favourite colour, and this was called the _livrée_, from
a French word signifying to distribute. Trade guilds and members of the
learned professions, also adopted a distinct style of costume. Lawyers,
who were originally priests, of course wore the tonsure; but when the
clergy ceased to interfere with secular affairs the lay lawyer continued
this sign of office, and also wore a coif. Their gowns were capacious
and lined with fur: and the Justices of the King's Bench were allowed
liveries by the King, of cloth and silk. Budge, or lambskin, and miniver
were provided for the trimming thereof, and the colour appears to have
varied in different reigns, but for a long time green prevailed.

[Illustration: COURTIER IN THE REIGN OF ELIZABETH.]

The courtiers of Elizabeth discarded the "frocke cote" for quilted and
stuffed doublets and trunk hose, slashed and ornamented in the most
quaint and extravagant manner. Below these were worn stockings
embroidered with birds, beasts, and other devices, "sewed up close
thereto as though they were all of one piece." Trunk hose were
appropriately named, as they were often filled with wool, bran, and
other materials. At last they became of such enormous size that it was
necessary to construct swings in the Houses of Parliament in place of
the ordinary fixed seats, for the accommodation of those wearing this
singular article of attire. Enormous ruffs of muslin and lace encircled
the necks of dandies of the Elizabethan era, and they appear to have had
waists which would excite the envy of the belles of the latter part of
the 19th century. In fact, the gallants of that day were even in advance
of the fair sex, in their love of fantastic costume; and as
Hollingshead, in _The Chronicle_, justly states in reference to the
fashions of the period: "Nothing was more constant in England than
inconstancy of attire."

[Illustration: EARL OF SURREY, TIME OF HENRY VIII.]

A few years since, behind some ancient panelling at Haddon Hall,
Derbyshire, was discovered a washing bill (with other things
appertaining to the 16th and 17th centuries) which gives us a good idea
of the various articles of dress then worn. Reference is made to the
_ruff_, which is too well known to need description; to _bandes_ made of
linen and cambric, from which those now used by the clergy took their
origin, and from which we derive the modern word bandbox. There were
three kinds--some that stood upright, others were allowed to lie flat
upon the shoulders, as shown in the drawings of Charles I. and II., and
those which were embroidered and trimmed with lace. The _shirt_ applied
to the under-garment of both sexes, and the half-shirt referred to the
stomacher over which the dress was laced. _Boot hose_ were made of a
variety of materials, and were occasionally called nether stocks;
_socks_ were sometimes put over them; and _tops_ were of Holland linen
or lace, and formed the lining of the full hanging boots of the
Cavaliers.

[Illustration: CHARLES I.]

During the Civil War the dress worn by the King's adherents, consisted
of a doublet of silk or satin with loose sleeves, slashed up the front;
the collar was generally of point lace, and a short cloak rested
carelessly on one shoulder. The hat was a broad-brimmed beaver with a
plume of feathers, and trunk hose gave way to breeches. The Roundheads
or Republican Party went to the opposite extreme. They cut their hair
close, avoided lace and jewels, had plain linen or cloth suits of a grey
or brown tint, with a hat somewhat resembling the modern chimney pot.

[Illustration: CHARLES II. AND HIS QUEEN (1662).]

[Illustration: WILLIAM III. (1694)]

[Illustration: GENTLEMAN AND LADY OF 18TH CENTURY.]

       *       *       *       *       *

About this period we also hear of the waistcoat, which was cut high at
the neck, and was made with sleeves. Neckcloths and cravats of
Brussels and Flanders lace were tied in a knot under the chin, and had
square ends. Another peculiar feature of masculine costume towards the
end of the 17th century consisted of petticoat breeches with drooping
lace ruffles, such as adorn the nether limbs of Charles II. Patches and
perukes were also adopted, and the former fashion, a revival of an old
Roman custom, had political significance according to where they were
placed on the face, and were bitterly ridiculed by numerous satirical
writers. "I know many young gentlemen," says Middleton, in one of his
plays, "who wear longer hair than their mistresses." The beard was worn
in different ways, but the most usual shape was what Beaumont and
Fletcher, in their "Queen of Corinth," call the T beard, consisting of a
moustache and imperial:--

                       "His beard,
  Which now he put i' the form of a T,
  The Roman T; your T beard is the fashion,
  And two-fold doth express the enamoured courtier."

Shakespeare also tells us, it was often dyed different colours.

[Illustration: WALKING DRESS, 1830.]

Everyone tried to rival his neighbour in the size of his peruke, till
they became so preposterous that Charles II. showed his disfavour by
writing a letter to the University of Cambridge forbidding the members
to wear periwigs, smoke tobacco, or read their sermons. History does not
relate what effect the King's censure had upon the head-gear of students
attending the colleges, but it is absolutely proved that they paid no
heed to his latter commands. It was the fashion for men to comb their
perukes in public, and curiously-chased combs of bone and
tortoise-shell, were carried in the pocket with the snuff-box, another
indispensable appendage of a fine gentleman.

In the 18th century the broad hat brims were turned up at the sides,
and, in the racy vernacular of the day, "each gallant cocked his hat
according to his fancy." Shoe buckles became general in the reign of
Queen Anne, and displaced the ribbon rosettes formerly worn. Planché
accurately describes the fashions of that day. "The square-cut coat was
stiffened with wires and buckram, and the long-flapped waistcoat with
pockets almost met the stockings. There were hanging cuffs with lace
ruffles, square-toed shoes with red heels, and hats laced with gold or
silver galloon."

At the beginning of the 19th century many important changes took place.
Excepting for Court dress, cloth was substituted for velvet and other
rich fabrics. The coat was open, displaying an elaborate shirt-front,
stock and flowered waistcoat; and the skirt, though full, fell in
natural folds. Trousers were very tight, and held in place by a strap
beneath the foot, and hats displayed narrow curved brims.

We have only to cast our eyes down the vista of ages to find that
British costume has been suited to the needs, habits, and customs of the
people, and periods at which it was worn. Skins of animals were
appropriate to the hardy cave dwellers who inhabited this country at an
early period in the world's history. The simple dress of the
Anglo-Saxons fulfilled the requirements of a primitive race; and the
furs and rich fabrics brought home by the Crusaders were adapted to the
higher state of civilization which prevailed in the Middle Ages. In the
16th century the Renaissance (of art and culture) was specially noted
for richness of attire. During the 18th century a mixture of styles
which had found favour with previous generations was the most marked
feature in the costume of that period, and this equally applies to the
two first decades of the present one. Masculine attire at the present
day, though simple and practical, has few points of beauty to recommend
it. Briefly, it resolves itself into a series of woollen cylinders which
changeth not from generation to generation.




CHAPTER VIII.

A CHAT ABOUT CHILDREN AND THEIR CLOTHING.

  "The childhood shows the man,
  As morning shows the day."--_Milton._


Of children's dress in olden times we have singularly few details, and,
as a rule, it may be concluded that their raiment was fashioned on
similar lines to that worn by the men and women of the country in which
they lived, and was more or less ornamented, according to their station
in life.

[Illustration: CHILDREN OF CHARLES I. (_After a painting by Vandyck._)]

One or two biblical references enlighten us as to Eastern customs. On
the authority of St. Luke, our Saviour in infancy was wrapped in
swaddling clothes. "Samuel," we are told, "being a child, was girded
with a linen ephod," which appears to have been a close robe or vest
reaching from the shoulders to the loins, and confined by a girdle.
Considering the climate and the habits of the people, it was probably
the only garment used in summer, but in cold weather was supplemented,
we presume, by the little coat his mother bought him from year to year,
when she and her husband came to offer the annual sacrifice, at Shiloh,
where Eli, the High Priest, lived. A coat of many colours was also
presented to Joseph in his youth as a mark of Jacob's affection for the
child of his old age.

Greek and Roman children of the gentler sex are usually represented in
the chiton, or loose classical gown, combined with a shawl or himation
weighted at the four corners, so as to assist the wearer in adjusting
it. How to put on this garment was carefully taught as part of a girl's
education. The long end was first thrown over the left shoulder. The
front part was arranged in folds across the body, passed under the right
arm and over the left shoulder or forearm. The girdle sometimes
consisted of a cord, at others of metal bands, and by drawing the chiton
over it, a double thickness of the fabric covered the vital organs of
the body. Boys wore the tunic and toga, and the latter is supposed to
have been oblong, with the corners rounded off, so as to give a
semicircular effect. Hats were not commonly worn, except by the poor or
when on a journey, a fold of the toga or mantle serving for a head
covering, and sandals protected the feet.

The Egyptian labouring classes allowed their children to be nude, and
infants were unfamiliar with swaddling clothes. The working man and boy
had simply a loin cloth and girdle, and the girl a loose tunic fastened
with strings at the neck and reaching to her feet. On the other hand,
children of the upper classes in Egypt were repetitions of their elders
on a small scale. Girls wore a linen skirt embroidered in colours and
fastened with a bright sash, or suspended from the shoulders, and over
this a loose transparent robe with long sleeves. The male costume
consisted of a loin cloth, and a full robe with short sleeves, or a
tunic, and both sexes had elaborately curled or plaited wigs, as the
natural hair was only allowed to grow in times of mourning.

The Roman occupation of Britain left its impress for a long period on
the costume of the Anglo-Saxon race. The long-sleeved banded tunic was
the usual habit of the industrial classes through the Middle Ages and
leg bandages and cross gartering preceded breeches. Quite young boys
appear in this dress, and little girls are seen in ancient MSS. in the
kirtle and gunna, the equivalents of the modern petticoat and dress.
Their hair, however, was allowed to fall naturally, or was dressed with
two pendant plaits, and was not concealed, as was so often the case with
adult females, by means of the head-rail. The materials used in clothing
were to a great extent the produce of household industry. The women
servants were employed in spinning, weaving, and sewing, and ladies of
the highest rank did not disdain to participate in such labours. Several
articles of dress were derived from the tanner, who worked up his
leather into shoes, ankle leathers, and leathern hose. The art of
tanning skins with the wool or hair on, was also practised, and dyeing
was in great request, for in a rude age a love of gaudy colours is a
natural characteristic of the people. The most skilful artificers were
found in the religious houses, but under each landowner serfs were
trained in the mechanical arts. Silk was worn by the wealthy, but the
common materials for wearing apparel in this country were cotton, linen,
and woollen.

[Illustration: CHILDREN'S COSTUME, PRESENT DAY.]

Among the Anglo-Saxons and their pagan ancestors the desertion of
children sometimes occurred, but as the influence of Christianity
increased, it was regarded as a crime, and a law was passed for its
repression. For fostering a foundling the State allowed 6s. the first
year; 12s. the second; and 30s. for the third year; and afterward the
foster parent was to receive a sum varying according to the appearance
of the child. Children bereft of their father, remained under the
mother's care, but until the eldest child became of age were subject to
the guardianship of the husband's relations. Mothers usually nursed
their own children, cradles were used, and for the first few months
their clothing was swathed with a bandage. In this compact form they
were more easily carried, though the constraint to which they were
subjected, probably prevented that free development of the limbs, which
we now consider so essential to health and beauty. If very poor, the
father was allowed to sell his son into slavery for seven years,
providing the consent of the child was obtained, and one ten years old
could give evidence. Until a daughter was fifteen years of age, her
father could marry her as he pleased, but afterwards had no power to do
so. A boy of fifteen could enter the monastic life if so disposed, and a
girl at a somewhat later period. Monasteries offered the best education
then procurable, and the clergy were directed to "teach youth with care,
and to draw them to some craft." Schoolboys appear to have been kept in
order, by the dread of personal chastisement, and great respect and
reverence was exacted by their elders.

[Illustration]

In the dress of the Blue-coat School (Christ's Hospital), we see the
ordinary costume of boys of the Tudor period. It consisted of a long
coat reaching to the heels and knee-breeches, a striped vest, yellow
stockings, and a small round cap placed on the side of the head. The
dress of little girls may be found on various monumental effigies, in
which they appear like their mothers, in full skirts, sometimes
distended by a fardingale, the body imprisoned in whalebone to the hips,
a folded ruff encircling the neck, and their stockings (according to
Stubbs) were of the finest yarn, silk, thread, or cloth that could
possibly be had, of changeable colours, cunningly knit, with curiously
indented points, clocks, and open seams. The shoes were of black, green,
white and yellow velvet, or of leather stitched with silk and
embroidered with gold and silver all over the foot.

[Illustration]

The paintings of Vandyck bring graphically before us the picturesque
elements of the dress of the Stuart era. There is an air of richness and
refinement about the long skirted silken frocks embellished with lace,
the pointed collars, and beaver hats with trailing feathers universally
worn, and the quaint lace caps, which, by a turn of fashion's wheel,
have been remodelled for the children of today.

[Illustration]

At no period in the history of costume were the styles so offensive to
those with a true conception of colour and form than in the first half
of the nineteenth century. We have only to turn to the sketches of Leech
and contemporary artists to find bare necks and arms, conspicuous
underwear, very short skirts distended by a stiffened petticoat or
crinoline, white cotton stockings, low shoes fastened by a strap and
single button, mushroom hats, aprons and pinafores devoid of elegance
and grace, and the hair cut close to the head or arranged in rows of
stiff ringlets. Nor did the boys of England, in trousers buttoned high
on short jackets, or with tunics worn with frilled linen collars and
leathern belts, show to greater advantage. Queen Victoria inaugurated a
new system of clothing for boys, when she dressed the young Princes in
Scotch and sailor suits, and the wardrobes of all classes have been
considerably extended of late, by the open-air life and outdoor sports
in which every self-respecting lad indulges. Cricket, tennis, boating,
football, and cycling, all imperatively demand appropriate apparel, and
tailors now give reasonable attention to this important branch of their
business, and provide fabrics and designs suited to the needs of the
rising generation.

[Illustration]

Habits of personal cleanliness and the influence of dress on the minds
of growing girls is hardly realized except by those directly concerned
in education. Many a sensitive child's character has been warped by the
thoughtless jeers of schoolfellows, who were quick to perceive that her
clothing was not up-to-date or of such good material as their own. On
the other hand, vanity, envy, and uncharitableness have been engendered
by foolish mothers, who have provided their daughters with inappropriate
and extravagant outfits.

[Illustration]

Though many advocate uniforms with distinctive trimmings for girls'
colleges, there are drawbacks to the scheme being adopted. Such a course
would probably destroy the individuality which we all desire to see
applied to the choice of clothing, and it would leave no field for
original ideas. Children must be _trained_ to select and wear their
clothes to the best advantage, and it is folly to think that they will
do so by intuition. Some may possess naturally an artistic sense and a
keen eye for colour, but they are certainly in the minority, and
rational dress reformers have pushed sensible ideas to the verge of
absurdity, till now the name is almost regarded as a term of reproach.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

How much we owe to pioneers of children's dress reform, and especially
to Messrs. Liberty, who evolved what is generally known as the æsthetic
style in dress. From sketches courteously placed at my disposal, I am
enabled to put before the reader examples of children's clothing which
are artistic in form, light of texture, and which in no way impede the
physical development. Those who have the care of children should
remember what a sacred charge is imposed upon them, and that their
future health mainly depends, upon the manner in which they are clothed
during the first few years of life. There must be no tight bands, belts,
or garters to prevent circulation and to cause organic troubles; and
where corsets are dispensed with, as happily they are in many cases
where growing girls are concerned, the weight of the clothing should be
borne by the shoulders, not the waist, and this is ensured by cutting
undergarments in the princess or combination forms. Many young people
suffer from being carelessly shod, and hideous malformations of the feet
arise in consequence, while obscure diseases of the brain can sometimes
be traced to heavy head-gear, and the strain of over-study. Hats should
be of light construction, and afford a grateful shade to the eyes, if
that far-reaching ailment of civilisation, short sight, is to be
successfully combatted; and special attention must be paid to infants,
who may often be seen in public thoroughfares with a hot sun beating
down upon them, and the nurse oblivious to the fact. The sight of a
tender infant entrusted to the care of a young woman, who has not the
glimmering of a notion of how to look after its fragile body, must fill
any right-minded person with indignation. Is it unreasonable to expect
those who undertake the charge of children to acquaint themselves with
at least an elementary knowledge of the construction and functions of
the human body? The ignorance of the average nursemaid is appalling;
and though a board school education may have acquainted her with the
mysteries of the First Book of Euclid, or the rudiments of music, the
curriculum rarely includes the simplest instruction on the healthy
training of children; and, in consequence, the high rate of infant
mortality in this country is a national disgrace.




CHAPTER IX.

FANCY COSTUME OF VARIOUS PERIODS.

  "The dome, where pleasure holds her midnight reign,
  Here richly decked, admits the gorgeous train;
  Tumultuous grandeur crowds the blazing square,
  The rattling chariots clash, the torches glare."


During the Roman occupation of Britain, many sports and pastimes, with
their appropriate costumes, were introduced into this country from
Southern Europe and the East, and at a very early period mummings were
popular with the people. These were primitive masquerades, where the
actors, if we may judge from antique illuminations, generally mimicked
the brute creation rather than human beings. They often appeared between
the courses at banquets, and on important occasions elaborate pageants
were arranged. Ships filled with mariners were sometimes introduced, or
towers garrisoned with armed men, while the actors portrayed some
allegorical lesson or historical incident.

A well-known event intimately connected with masking was the narrow
escape from death by fire of Charles VI. of France, on January 29th,
1392. The king, with eleven of his knights, for the amusement of the
Court, dressed like savages, in tight-fitting garments of linen covered
with flax, and were dancing before the Queen and the Duchess de Berri,
when the Duc d'Orléans with a torch accidentally ignited the inflammable
costume of a masker, who was chained to four others. The Duchess
protected the King by wrapping him in the train of her mantle, but four
persons died in great agony.

Edward III. issued an ordinance against vagrants who exhibited
scandalous masquerades in low ale-houses, and directed that such persons
should be whipped out of London. The Feast of Fools was one of the most
singular of these exhibitions. It somewhat resembled the Roman
Saturnalia, and was enacted at Christmas. In England the celebration of
this festival does not appear to have been attended with the same
excesses as were commonly practised on the Continent, but it was
nevertheless a season of licence, in which order and discipline were
reversed. The churl was elected to represent the Pope; the buffoon was
made a cardinal; and the lowest of the mob assumed for the time being
the garb of the priesthood, and took possession of churches, where they
parodied every part of the sacred service, and sang masses composed of
obscene songs.

Dramatic representations were so tainted by the grossness and
licentiousness of the age, that priests were prohibited from attending
them, till the Church introduced religious plays, founded on scriptural
incidents, and which were known as miracles and mysteries. For these the
actors were trained by the clergy, and sacred edifices and vestments
were placed at their disposal, to give truth and lustre to the
representations.

There were frequent tournaments after the Norman Invasion, and these
were patronized and encouraged by Richard C[oe]ur de Lion. From this era
they occupied a prominent place in the national institutions and
history, and afforded many opportunities for the display of picturesque
costume. Ladies on these occasions were conspicuous, and sometimes rode
in parti-coloured tunics with short hoods and tippets wrapped about
their heads. Their girdles were decorated with gold and silver, and they
carried small swords. The space marked out for the combat was surrounded
by raised seats for high-born dames, princes, and the judges of the
conflict. Knights wore their ladies' colours on their helmets,
emblazoned on their clothing, and on the trappings of their horses; and
throngs of troubadours, heralds, and minstrels dressed in gorgeous
attire, were present to discharge their duties, and to give importance
to the spectacle.

The ancient English Morris Dance, performed with other quaint usages on
the 1st of May, is supposed to be of Moorish origin. It is depicted on
an antique stained glass window at Betley, in Staffordshire. The
May-pole and the Man with the Hobby Horse (who represents a Moorish
King, and is the consort of the May Queen), occupy a prominent position.
The other characters are the Fool, the Lesser Fool, Tom the Piper, a
Spaniard, the Franklin or private gentleman, a Churl or peasant, the May
Queen, a Nobleman, and a Friar. The dresses were adorned with bells,
intended to sound the measure of the dancers. They were of different
sizes, and were called the fore bell, the second bell, the treble, the
tenor, and the great bell.

Planché, in his valuable work, the "Cyclopædia of Costume," states the
earliest illustration of a _bal costumé_ is in a MS. of the fifteenth
century, in the Ambrosian Library at Milan, and he gives a reproduction
from an old painting on wood dating from 1463, representing a dance by
torchlight at the Court of Burgundy. Each person holds a long lighted
taper, and this dance, up to the sixteenth century, was usually reserved
for wedding festivities. In England masked balls were rare before the
reign of William III., and in France they first took place during the
regency of Philip, Duke of Orleans, when the Opera House was converted
into a ball-room. Father Sebastian, a Carmelite friar, devised a means
of elevating the floor of the pit to the level of the stage, and of
lowering it at pleasure.

Ranelagh and Vauxhall Gardens, and Belsize House, Hampstead, were also
places of popular resort, and scenes of many entertainments during the
eighteenth century. There were pyrotechnic displays, bands of music,
frequent balls, and facilities for dinner and supper parties. The lawns
were dotted with arbours, lakes, and artificial cascades; the trees were
festooned with coloured lamps, and the costumes of those who frequented
these gatherings were elaborate and costly.

From the writings of Horace Walpole and others, we learn that private
open-air galas were of common occurrence among the aristocracy, and he
gives a description of a _festino_ at Northumberland House in honour of
the Marquess of Tavistock and his bride; when arches and pyramids of
lights alternately surrounded the enclosure, and festoons of lamps edged
the railings. In 1761 Her Majesty Queen Charlotte surprised her husband
on his birthday with a splendid garden party, followed by fireworks, a
cold supper of a hundred dishes, and an illuminated dessert. The Duke of
Richmond celebrated a similar occasion with a masked ball and music--the
vocal parts performed by many of the nobility, in fancy dress. Here,
too, there was a display of fireworks in the garden and from the river.
Almack's new Subscription and Assembly Room was opened in February,
1765, under distinguished patronage; and Gibbon mentions a masquerade at
a rival establishment, the Pantheon, which he states was above par in
magnificence, and below par in humour, and cost £5000.

Five o'clock was the dinner hour of fashionable people during the
eighteenth century, and three for those of lower rank. At eleven p.m.
supper was usually served, and breakfast was from nine to eleven a.m.
The House of Commons commenced sitting at two, and the Opera began at
seven.

At this period the domino (evolved from the priestly cowl) was in great
request, and was used in the boxes of theatres for purposes of
concealment, and by those of questionable morals. Though the large hoop
towards the close of the eighteenth century was only worn at Court, or
in full dress, the pocket hoop for distending the panniers was still in
vogue. For the abolition of the Court hoop, we are indebted to George
IV., whose taste in dress was unimpeachable. Powder and patches
maintained their ground till 1793, when they were discarded by Queen
Charlotte and the Princesses. Aprons were regarded as a necessary item
of a fashionable costume up to 1750, and the watch and etui adorned the
waist, necklaces sparkled on the bosom, and bracelets were worn over
long gloves.

The French Revolution affected masculine costume; and in 1789 were
introduced into this country the muslin cravat, in which the chin was
partially concealed, stand-up collars, Hessian boots, and round hats of
beaver. Scarlet coats were much in vogue about 1784, and an anecdote in
"The Life of Sir Astley Cooper" represents him as returning from a
dancing academy in a scarlet coat, a three-cocked hat, a black glazed
stock, nankeen knee-breeches, and silk stockings. This may be regarded
as the ordinary costume of a gentleman at that period.

Wigs had begun to go out of fashion as early as 1763, in which year the
wigmakers petitioned King George III. to support the trade by his
example. "The hair," says Malcolm, "was dressed high on the head,
whitened with powder, and alternately plaited and turned up or queued
behind." When the hair powder tax--one guinea per annum--was enforced in
1795, thousands of heads reverted to their natural colour.

Some brilliant fancy dress balls (with a view to encouraging home trade)
have taken place during the Victorian era. Of the first, which was given
by the Queen and Prince Consort at Buckingham Palace in 1842, a
permanent memorial exists in two handsome volumes compiled by J. R.
Planché, containing carefully coloured illustrations of the various
dresses, and autograph portraits of the wearers. They form an invaluable
book of reference for those desiring accurate representations of the
costume of the period of Edward III. (1327-1377). A special feature of
this ball was a series of costume quadrilles, arranged by ladies of the
Court and others of high rank. They were danced in the following
order:--

French quadrille, led by H. R. H. the Duchess of Cambridge.

Spanish quadrille, led by the Duchess of Buccleuch.

German quadrille, led by the Duchess of Sutherland.

Crusaders' quadrille, led by the Marchioness of Londonderry.

Waverley quadrille, led by the Countess de la Warr.

Scotch quadrille, led by the Duchess of Buccleuch.

Cossack quadrille, led by Baroness Bremon.

Greek quadrille, led by the Duchess of Leinster.

[Illustration: PRINCE ALBERT AS EDWARD III.]

Prince Albert, as Edward III., wore a costume copied from the effigy of
that king in Westminster Abbey. It consisted of a long tunic of gold and
blue brocade, reaching to the ankles. The collar, which fitted close
round the neck, was bordered with purple velvet, thickly studded with
jewels. The tunic, which had an opening up the centre to the height of
the knee, was bordered and enriched with jewels to correspond with the
collar, as were the wristbands. The hose were scarlet, also the shoes,
which were embroidered with gold. Over the tunic, His Royal Highness
wore a mantle reaching to the heels, composed of the richest scarlet
velvet, bordered by a broad gold figured lace, set on each side with
large pearls. It was lined with ermine, and connected across the breast
by a band of purple velvet, studded with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds,
and in the centre was a turquoise of immense size and perfect colour.
The band was fastened to the mantle on either side by a massive gold
ornament enriched with precious stones.

[Illustration: QUEEN VICTORIA AS PHILIPPA, WIFE OF EDWARD III.]

Her Majesty the Queen as Philippa of Hainault, wife of Edward III., was
attired in a demi-trained skirt of crimson velvet, edged with miniver.
Over this was worn a surcoat of blue and gold brocade, trimmed with fur
to match, and embellished with a stomacher of jewels valued at £60,000.
The other portions of the costume were also studded with jewels. The
mantle was of gold brocade, with a floral design in silver. The hair was
encased in a gold net, enriched with precious stones, and was surmounted
by a crown.

Princess Augusta of Cambridge personated Princess Claude, daughter of
Anne of Bretagne, Queen of France. Her dress of silver tissue was
bordered with ermine, and the tunic was of light blue velvet, worked
with the fleur-de-lis in silver. The low bodice was bordered with
diamonds. The sleeves of silver tissue reached to the wrist, and were
trimmed with rows of pearls. The gloves were jewelled, and a white tulle
veil with silver embroideries depended from a turquoise and pearl
diadem. By Her Majesty's command, her own dress, that of Prince Consort,
and most of the costumes worn at this ball, were manufactured by the
silk-weavers of Spitalfields.

For the second royal ball in June, 1845, the period of George II.
(1727-1760) was selected, and 1200 guests were invited. The Queen looked
extremely well in powder, and her dress is described as of cloth of gold
and cloth of silver, with daisies and poppies worked in silk, and shaded
in natural colours. The trimmings and ruffles of exquisite point
lace--had belonged to Queen Charlotte--and the stomacher was trimmed
with lace and jewels. The sacque was ornamented with ribbons, caught
with diamonds. On the powdered coiffure was a diamond crown; Her
Majesty's white shoes had red rosettes with diamond centres, and she
wore the star and ribbon of the Order of the Garter. Prince Albert had a
costume of the same period, with the Star of the Garter, and the Order
of the Golden Fleece in brilliants. The Marchioness of Douro, the Duke
of Wellington's daughter-in-law, was the acknowledged belle of this
ball, and wore £60,000 worth of diamonds. Miss--now the
Baroness--Burdett Coutts was also present, her dress trimmed with jewels
once the property of Marie Antoinette.

In 1871 the Princess of Wales attended the Waverley Ball at Willis'
Rooms, with several other members of the Royal Family, and was much
admired in the character of the ill-fated Mary Stuart. On July 22nd,
1874, a fancy dress ball was given by their Royal Highnesses the Prince
and Princess of Wales at Marlborough House, for which some beautiful
costumes were prepared. The Princess wore a handsome Venetian dress, and
danced in the first quadrille with the present Duke of Devonshire. The
Prince in a Cavalier costume opened the ball with the late Duchess of
Sutherland. The chief costume quadrilles on this occasion were the
Venetian, the Vandyck, Characters in Fairy Tales, and a Pack of Cards.

Another historic _bal costumé_ was given in February, 1895, at Warwick
Castle, by the Earl and Countess of Warwick. No more fitting background
for such a function can be imagined than this stately mansion, which has
been a centre of hospitality for countless generations, but has never
been presided over by no more gracious and popular châtelaine than the
present Countess. Lady Warwick looked very beautiful as Marie Antoinette
(the consort of Louis XVI. of France) in a petticoat and corsage of
exquisite English brocade, with a design of shaded roses, enriched with
gold thread on a pearl-coloured ground. The train of royal blue velvet,
embroidered in gold thread with the fleur-de-lis, was attached to the
shoulders by a band of diamonds; and the Warwick jewels, diamond stars,
were arranged on the corsage veiled with gold flecked gauze, which was
also employed for the puffed sleeves. Her elaborate white coiffure was
surmounted by a white muslin cap edged with blue velvet and adorned with
diamond aigrettes and plumes of pink, white, and blue feathers. Lady
Marjorie Greville (the only daughter of Lord and Lady Warwick) with Miss
Hamilton acted as train-bearers. They wore the daintiest white costumes
of the period, composed of broché silk, with fichus of white chiffon,
and silk hats trimmed with feathers. Each carried a long crook tied with
white ribbons and bunches of flowers, and the effect was charming. The
Earl of Warwick wore a French Court costume, the coat of ruby velvet
profusely trimmed with gold lace, white cloth cuffs, and revers. The
long white kerseymere waistcoat was braided in gold, and the white
knee-breeches and low shoes were ornamented with diamond buckles. The
Earl's wig, _a la mousquetaire_, was tied with a bow of black ribbon,
and he carried a tricorne hat with white ostrich plumes, and white
gauntlet gloves. Lady Warwick's two sisters, the Duchess of Sutherland
and Lady Angela Forbes, represented Marie Letzinka, consort of Louis
XV., and Lady Mary Campbell. The former wore a magnificent gown of white
satin de Lyon. The skirt embroidered with a flight of swallows in silver
and crystals, a deep bertha of Point de Flandre, with ruffles of the
same on the short sleeves. The train of crimson velvet was embroidered
with the French emblem, and Her Grace had a stomacher of splendid
diamonds. Lady Angela Forbes' dress was of white muslin, with a blue
sash, and picturesque hat of turquoise silk, trimmed with feathers and
roses. Princess Henry of Pless, as la Duchesse de Polignac, had a dress
of rich white satin, the skirt embroidered 18in. deep, with turquoises
and brilliants, a powdered wig, and the same jewels in her hair. Lady
Eva Dugdale, sister to the Earl of Warwick, and lady-in-waiting to Her
Royal Highness the Duchess of York, wore a Louis Quinze white satin
dress, covered with pink roses, corsage _en suite_ fastened with large
diamond ornaments. A silver trellis pattern was worked round the hem of
the skirt, and white silk mittens and shoes completed the costume. Lady
Rosslyn chose a white embroidered muslin petticoat, the overdress of
pink and red striped silk, fichu and ruches of black lisse, and a
picturesque hat. Lady Flo Sturt, as Madame la Marquise de Pompadour, was
in rich cream satin, with bodice and sleeves of antique lace, and
stomacher of diamonds. A black satin toque, with aigrette of diamonds,
contrasted well with the white wig. Count Deym, the Austrian Ambassador,
was in English Court dress. Prince Henry of Pless, in mousquetaire
costume, represented the Vicomte de Bragelonne. The Duke of Manchester
was in white satin breeches, waistcoat to match, bordered with gold, and
coat of white and silver brocade with moss roses and foliage.

The scene inside the Castle was one of unparalleled brilliancy, while
those who glanced from the mullioned windows saw by bright moonlight the
Avon frozen, the ancient cedars glistening with frost, and the
surrounding country wrapped in a snowy mantle. The entire ground floor
of the Castle was thrown open, and no pains were spared to give as
complete a representation as possible of the gorgeous fêtes which made
the Court of Marie Antoinette famous throughout Europe. The finest
spectacle presented itself when the guests assembled at supper in the
oak-lined hall, where the light of a thousand candles was reflected in
the bright steel armour which surrounded the walls. Several high
screens, hung with Beauvais tapestry and shaded by huge palms, filled
the angles of the hall, and the stone walls were partially concealed by
yellow and silver embroideries. In the huge fireplace logs crackled, and
on small round tables were placed silver candelabra with crimson shades
and floral decorations, consisting of scarlet geraniums and maiden-hair
fern. The centre table was reserved for Marie Antoinette and her Court,
and here was the choicest display of family plate, including, amongst
other valuable specimens of the goldsmith's art, a golden cup modelled
by Benvenuto Cellini. From the hall you entered the Red Drawing room,
which contains a marble table, inlaid with flowers and fruit, and
formerly the property of Marie Antoinette. Next is the Cedar
Drawing-room, used as the ball-room, on whose walls are many family
portraits and other paintings by Vandyck; the remainder of the suite of
State apartments were used as withdrawing-rooms between the dances; and
at the opposite end of the Castle is the Library, the Billiard-room, and
the Countess's lovely Louis Seize Boudoir, in ivory tints, with festoons
of delicately-shaded flowers.

Dancing was carried on with great spirit till early morning, and the
tardy winter sun had risen ere the last carriage drove away from one of
the most successful balls of the nineteenth century.

Among the many important entertainments given by members of the English
aristocracy in honour of the sixtieth year of the reign of Queen
Victoria, was a Costume Ball at Devonshire House, Piccadilly, on July
2nd, 1897, when the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire received nearly all
the members of the Royal Family, many distinguished guests from the
Colonies, and members of the Corps Diplomatique. This historic mansion
was built for the third Duke of Devonshire, and it was here that
Georgiana, the beautiful Duchess of Devonshire, held her Court. It
contains a fine suite of reception rooms on the first floor; a gallery
of pictures, in which the old masters are well represented; and
extensive grounds in the rear, which on this occasion were decorated
with thousands of Chinese lanterns and fairy lamps. The principal
feature of the ball was a grand procession of the guests, headed by the
Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, the former personating Charles V. of
Germany, and the latter attired with Oriental magnificence as Zenobia,
Queen of Palmyra, in a robe of silver tissue wrought with jewels. The
mantle was of cloth of gold similarly treated, and the bodice was also
studded with precious stones. The head-dress consisted of white ostrich
plumes and a golden and jewelled crown, from which depended chains of
pearls. H.R.H. the Princess of Wales, as Margaret of Valois, was
surrounded by the ladies of her Court, their Royal Highnesses Princess
Charles of Denmark, Princess Victoria of Wales, the Duchess of Fife, and
the Duchess of York. The Princess of Wales wore a gown of white satin
wrought with silver, and a train of cloth of gold lined with silver and
superbly jewelled. H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, as Grand Master of the
Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem and Chevalier of Malta,
wore a rich Elizabethan costume carried out in black and silver, and
bearing the white cross of the Order on one shoulder. The Duke of York
represented the Earl of Cumberland, one of Queen Elizabeth's courtiers.
Prince Charles of Denmark was a Danish student. The Duke of Connaught
wore the uniform of a military commander during the reign of Elizabeth,
and the Duchess looked charming as Queen Anne of Austria in a
picturesque gown with puffed sleeves. The Eastern Queens were
magnificently arrayed and blazing with jewels. Lady de Trafford was
Semiramis, Empress of Assyria, in a dress copied from a vase in the
British Museum. Princess Henry of Pless was Queen of Sheba, in a robe
and train of shot purple and gold tissue, elaborately embroidered with
turquoises and other stones, and wore an Assyrian jewelled head-dress,
decorated with a diamond bird and aigrette. Another Queen of Sheba was
Lady Cynthia Graham, and there were two Cleopatras--Lady de Grey and
Mrs. Arthur Paget. The husband of the latter accompanied her as Mark
Antony. Lady Elcho was a Byzantine Queen, Miss Muriel Wilson was Queen
Vashti, and the Countess of Dudley, as Queen Esther, wore a dress of
white crêpe, embroidered with gold and studded with amethysts,
turquoises, and pearls.

The Elizabethan Court was represented by Lady Tweedmouth as Queen
Elizabeth, in a gown copied from a picture in the National Portrait
Gallery. Her canopy was carried by four yeomen in uniforms of crimson,
black, and gold, copied from Holbein's picture of "The Field of the
Cloth of Gold," in the Hampton Court collection. Lord Tweedmouth was the
Earl of Leicester, in slashed doublet and hose of ruby velvet and satin,
enriched with gold embroidery. Lady Edmondstone, as Mary Queen of Scots,
wore a dress of pale blue velvet, and tulle veil head-dress and ruff
worked with pearls. She was attended by the Duchess of Hamilton, dressed
in the character of Mary Hamilton, the Queen's favourite maid of honour.
The Countess of Warwick, as Marie Antoinette, was beautifully dressed in
a petticoat of rich white satin and a Court gown of English brocade,
with a train of Royal blue velvet. The hair was powdered, and she was
attended by four pages in white satin suits and three-cornered hats,
bearing over her ladyship a canopy of blue velvet. This group included
the Duchess of Sutherland, as Charlotte Corday in a gown of red _crêpe
de Chine_, a muslin fichu and cap, trimmed with point d'Alençon lace,
and dagger at waist. Lady Westmorland made a lovely Hebe, and Lady
Angela Forbes, as the Queen of Naples, wore an Empire gown of ivory
duchesse satin, embroidered with silver and diamonds, and a train of
lilac velvet, edged with jewelled embroidery and lined with satin. The
head-dress consisted of a small jewelled crown and two white feathers.
Among many other notable costumes should be mentioned the Marchioness of
Tweedale's, as the Empress Josephine, as she appears in the Coronation
picture at the Louvre, Paris; the Marchioness of Londonderry, as the
Empress Marie Thérèse, of Austria, and the Marchioness of Zetland's, as
Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I. of England; Viscountess
Raincliffe, as the Empress Catherine II. of Russia, wore white satin,
and her dress was an exact copy of the picture in the British Museum by
Lambi. The Court gown of the Duchess of Portland, as Duchesse de Savoia,
who headed the Venetian procession, was composed of white satin veiled,
with lisse wrought with silver, partially covered by a silver cloth
mantle, embroidered with pearls and diamonds, and diamonds and emeralds
were introduced in the coiffure.




CHAPTER X

STAGE AND FLORAL COSTUME.

                  "All the world's a stage,
  And all the men and women merely players,
  They have their exits and their entrances,
  And one man in his time plays many parts."


Garrick was one of the first of our English actors to realize how much
the success of a piece depended upon appropriate costume, and, on his
taking the management of Drury Lane Theatre in 1747, at once turned his
attention to this important branch of dramatic art. He refused to
tolerate the absurdity of a heterogeneous mixture of the foreign and
ancient modes, which had hitherto debased tragedies by representing, for
instance, Greek soldiers in full-bottomed wigs, and the King of an
Oriental Nation in trunk hose. The improvement, however, must have been
very gradual, for Garrick is said to have played the part of Macbeth ten
years later in a gold-laced suit of sky blue and scarlet; while Mrs.
Yates as Lady Macbeth appeared in a hooped court petticoat of enormous
dimensions, with tight-fitting pointed bodice and elbow sleeves, and her
powdered hair dressed over a high cushion. Garrick's suits for the
characters of King Lear and Hamlet also followed the fashions of the
18th century, though he played Richard III. in a fancy dress designed
with some regard to correctness of detail. Even during the present
century, an equally absurd anachronism may be recorded. The late Mr.
Charles Mathews made his first appearance in public, at the Theatre
Royal, Richmond, as Richmond in Richard III., wearing the helmet and
jacket of a modern light horse soldier.

[Illustration: A TURKISH MAIDEN.]

The first pantomime or harlequinade was played in England in 1717, and
the earliest illustration of an English harlequin in the dress now
familiar to us, is to be found in a sketch of Bartholomew Fair, dated
1721. Of the characters of columbine, pantaloon, and clown, we have no
contemporary drawings. Of the French ballet dancers of this period there
are some carefully-executed plates in Planché's "Cyclopædia of Costume."
They are all represented in long, and sometimes in trained skirts. The
first example of the abbreviated ballet skirt, reaching to the knee, is
given in the portrait of an actress personating Le Zephyr, about the
middle of the 18th century. The peasant costume of various nations has
also been adapted to stage purposes with excellent effect.

The late Hon. Lewis Wingfield devoted much time to designing the stage
dresses of the Victorian era, and Madame Alias--who has also passed
away--provided the costumes in Mr. Calvert's revival of Henry VIII., and
was also responsible for dressing many of the Alhambra ballets and the
plays at London and provincial theatres. Madame Bernhardt, Miss Ellen
Terry, Mrs. Langtry, Sir Henry Irving, and the late Sir Augustus Harris
have also brought their influence, money, and taste to bear on correct
stage costume, with the result that we have had many sumptuously-dressed
revivals and new plays, which otherwise might have sunk into oblivion.
Such spectacles as are often to be seen at our leading Metropolitan
theatres and music halls, if they fail to touch the public fancy, mean
absolute and irretrievable ruin to their promoters; and when it is
remembered that many thousands are spent annually in staging theatrical
enterprises, before a single seat is booked, it will at once be seen
what enormous sums must be involved in furthering dramatic interests.
The public, who have for the last sixty years been catered for so
generously, are sometimes apt to overlook the difficulties with which
the scenic artist has to contend.

It would be impossible within the circumscribed limit of a single volume
to minutely describe even the most notable theatrical costumes of the
last half century, but a few of the most effective floral costumes will
be appended for the benefit of those who desire to introduce them into
various entertainments.

The steady patronage of Her Majesty the Queen and the Royal Family have
done much to remove any prejudices which existed against the drama, and
as a powerful auxiliary to education the stage is rapidly gaining
ground. Dull, indeed, must the theatre-goer be if he leaves without
having assimilated some valuable lesson. To Shakespeare we owe many
ideal types of womanhood, all the more precious now that some of the
weaker sex, in an insatiable desire for progress, sometimes neglect
those lesser arts which in the past proved to them a shield and buckler.
The classical and historical pieces allow us to live again in scenes
which occurred when the world was young, and convince us, though the
tastes of the people were simpler, human nature, with its passions and
aspirations, has changed but little. Who can deny the moral influence of
such plays as "The Sign of the Cross," "Hypatia," "The Daughters of
Babylon," "Virginius," or those of the Robertson school, of which
"Caste" and "Ours" are examples? A love of music is not considered a
marked trait of the English nation, yet have not Italian and comic opera
stimulated a desire for a concord of sweet sounds among all classes of
the community? Such plays as "Patience" and the "Mikado" have developed
our instinct for colour and form, and we are taught the value of
industry and restraint when we watch well-trained actors, capable of
controlling every gesture, and of charming us with their well-modulated
voices. Our lives are cheered by viewing the comic side of things, and
on our clothing and household possessions, the stage has also laid a
refining hand.


FLORAL COSTUMES.

A POPPY.

The bodice and skirt of red accordion, pleated _mousseline de soie_, the
petals of the flower and belt in bright red silk. Large silk poppies
appear on the shoulders and bust, and one of extra size is used for a
head-dress. With this costume neat black shoes and silk stockings should
be worn, and a palm-leaf fan covered with poppies and foliage should be
carried.

[Illustration: A POPPY.]

LILY OF THE VALLEY.

Corsage and skirt of white pleated Valenciennes lace mounted on green
silk. A full berthe of the flowers. White lace hat entirely covered with
these blooms, and fan to correspond.

MOSS ROSE.

Gown of pink satin, veiled with tulle and flecked with rose buds. A
ruche of moss roses at the hem of the skirt and on the bodice. A Dolly
Varden hat trimmed with moss roses and pink ribbon.

WILD ROSE.

Dress of shot pink and white satin, embroidered or painted with clusters
and trails of wild roses and foliage. Skirt edged with full ruche of
pink tulle studded with roses, and corsage trimmed to correspond.
_Coiffure poudré_ dressed with small basket of roses and pink ribbon.

WHITE ROSE.

Gown with Watteau train of white satin edged with leaveless roses,
chains of the same flowers carried across the front of the dress, and
outlining the square-cut bodice, and elbow sleeves. Ruffles of lace. A
wreath of white roses in the powdered hair, and a crook decorated with
flowers and ribbon streamers.

SUMMER ROSES.

Gown of cream-coloured brocade, with design in shaded roses and foliage,
trimmed with garland of roses of different tints embedded in tulle.
Décolleté corsage trimmed to correspond, and a damask rose worn in the
hair.

WILD FLOWERS.

Dress of pale blue satin, veiled with green tulle. Trails of
forget-me-nots, poppies, marguerites, buttercups, and grass depending
from the waist-belt to edge of skirt, and bodice trimmed to correspond.
A Leghorn hat garnished with wild flowers, grass, and blue ribbons.

GARDENIA.

Greek dress of white crêpe de Chine, embroidered in classical design
with silver. In front diagonal trails of gardenias and their dark
foliage arranged from the right shoulder to left side of dress. The hair
bound with silver bands. A shower bouquet to correspond.

THE SHAMROCK.

Gown of emerald green satin appliquéd with velvet shamrocks of a darker
shade. The stomacher a large trefoil in emeralds, and the short sleeves
cut to resemble the Irish emblem. Corsage veiled with green tulle strewn
with tiny shamrocks, and a coronet of the same in the hair.

THE THISTLE.

High dress of eau de nil satin. The skirt edged with a wreath of
thistles, which are also embroidered in a bold design on the front of
gown and bodice. Satin hat trimmed with thistles and ribbon, and black
staff tied with thistles and ribbon streamers.

DANDELION.

Gown of yellow accordion, pleated chiffon finished on the skirt with
trails of flowers from the waist to hem of the skirt, interspersed with
the seed pods commonly known as blow-aways. The bodice of pleated
yellow chiffon with dandelions across the berthe and clusters on the
shoulders. A wreath and aigrette to correspond.

IRIS.

Dress of white satin, veiled with mauve chiffon, flecked with iris
petals. Trails of mauve and white flowers tied with bows of satin in
alternate shades, and carried across the skirt. Square cut corsage to
correspond, and elbow sleeves. A muslin cap trimmed with the same
flowers. Powdered hair.

LILAC.

Gown of cream satin brocaded with mauve and white lilac, Marie
Antoinette, white chiffon fichu, and cap trimmed with clusters of shaded
lilac and foliage. Elbow sleeves with chiffon ruffles. The white satin
fan painted to correspond, and caught by a flower châtelaine. The hair
dressed with the same flowers, and a twisted scarf of mauve and white
chiffon.






