The Sun.
London, England, 1851-11-05 00:00:00

1„ Li t
sGteLrlisSENfn.lo
BCIOOOSmTeUr.MEO.n
Monday,
in
.i RS. T. C. FOSTER'S LECT E ON
'Mrs. T. C.
er lecture, delivered at the Hanover-square Rooms,
o e spoke pretty sharply of the " go "
-a-head leaders
of the movement, and went no farther than to advoe
cate a molification in female costume, which may be
termed " Bloomerettism," the skirt of the dress being
curtailed of its fair proportion but by six, instead of
sixteen inches. Still the objectionable " pants" were
visible, completely spoiling the symmetry of her figure,
which was displayedto exceeding advantage in a graceful
satin gown in the earlier portion of the lecture. Indeed
the adoption towards its close of " the modification of
Bloomerism" took off full fifty per cent. of the per-
sonal attractions of the fair lecturer, whose appearance
and manners are very prepossessing, and who, in the
lady-like dress in which she made her entrance may
be pronounced singularly pretty and fascinating.
Her lecture was devoted to the history of the muta-
tions which female costume has undergone during the
last half century, and while exposing past monstrosi-
ties which in their turn have been sanctioned by
fashion, she hinted at reforms still desirable, and re-
commended the new Transatlantic costume in a modi-
fied form. The audience was rather small, but com-
prised a fair proportion—about one-third—of ladies,
who, if any one, may be supposed to be interested
in the subject of discussion. Amongst such an
auditory, " fit, though few," there was, as might
be anticipated, none of that boisterous and
indecorous mirth by which the Bloomer ad-
vocetes in other places have been saluted.
Of her address, which she delivered with very agree-
able voice, enhanced by good elocution, we subjoin a
well-condensed report from the Morning Chronicle:—
" She introduced
her subject by avowing her in-
tention to abstain from any remarks on the rights of
woman, feeling satisfied that any attempt to mix up
the subject of costume with one so widely different
would be distasteful to the majority of her audience.
This practice, she conceived,
had defeated the objects
of those who resorted to it, by preventing the intro-
duction of the desired change
in aristocratic circles,
where, to be successful, it must first make its ap-
pearance. After a few remarks on
the despotic
nature of fashion, and the slavish obedience yielded
to it in this country, the lady referred to the
absurd costumes in vogue in the time of Elizabeth,
particularising the gigantic ruff, sometimes so large
as to compel the unfortunate wearer to eat with a
spoon two feet long! Descending tothe time
of
Charles 11., she showed the ladies' dresses were then
distinguished by much ease and elegance, and re-
ferred for proof to the pictures of Vandyke. She
' traced the mutations which female attire had under-
gone—through the hoop, the high head-dress, or com-
mode (when a lady's hair was piled up to a height of two
feet, being kept in that position by stuffing and grease,
and only " opened" once in eight or nine weeks), and
the absurdly large bonnets, like an inverted coal-scuttle,
which, though prevailing till a comparatively recent
period,
were now happily numbered amongst the
modes d'autrefois. The illustrations of these enor-
mities, which were exhibited in turn, were very
amusing, and fairly melted the original
gravity of the
audience. The lady then came to what proved the
more interesting portion of her lecture. Having ex-
pressed her belief that the new " Bloomer" costume
was admirably adapted for the purpose for which it
was intended, she said it would be acceptible to the
audience that she should exhibit it in person, and with
this view she retired. In the course of a few minutes
she returned, wearing an elegant ruby velvet dress
and mantle; the dress descends to within about four
inches of the ground, and leaves visible a very
small portion of the nether garment, as we may call
it, for want of a better term. Indeed, owing to the
imperfect light on the platform, and the position in
which the lady stood, it was impossible for the ma-
jority of the audience to see how the leg. dress was
arranged. The applause having subsided, the lady
resumed her address by pointing out the inconve-
niences which would be remedied by the adoption of
this costume, without any sacrifice of modesty or
elegance. Every one knew the misery which
ladies now experienced from walking in the dirt
or dust. Some said the proposed costume was
unfeminine, and that it was an imprudent
usurpation by woman of a certain nameless gar-
ment supposed to pertain exclusively to the male sex.
—(Cheers.) This was not the first time woman had
been charged with this offence • the same complaint
had been made as early as the fifteenth century, again
in the time of Elizabeth, and in 1662 Mr. Pepys said,
' The women wear doublets, coats, and great shirts,
just for all the world like mine; so that, only for a
long petticoat draggling under their shirts, nobody
could take them for women in any way whatever:—
(Laughter.) But the Bloomer costume was neither
new nor extraordinary—it was worn in every board-
ing-school in the kingdom ; it had only been to
America, and undergone a few changes, and
now appeared under a new name. Whatever
merits or demerits it might possess, it was certain the
ladies of this country would not have any form of dress
foeced upon them, unless perfectly satisfied that it was
superior to their own. The modification of the dress
which she wore was a street dress for winter—warm,
comfortable, and convenient—made for the sake of
testing its applicability for ordinary walking pur-
poses. A much greater amount of elegance might be
obtained by lighter colours. Some objected that it
was not sufficiently short, being longer than those
represented in the engravings. But, she imagined,
few ladies would like to attire themselves in that way,
so as to resemble those indescribable beings between
a ballet dancer and a daughter of the regiment.'—
(Laughter.) If by cutting six inches from their dreses
they could attain all the objects desired, why should
they cut off sixteen ? She did not believe the other
sex would entertain any real antipathy to the change,
provided expenditure were kept within due limits.
But, while the advocates of the costume continued to
act in the imprudent and unwomanly manner they
were doing they would retard rather than advance
their cause. The costume must stand or fall by its
own merits. The prevailing mode was a long way
from perfection ; and whether the Bloomer costume
was a step in the right direction or a retrogression it
was for the audience to decide. Mrs. Foster then
thanked her hearers for their attention, and excused
any little nervousness she might have exhibited on the
ground of her being rather disappointed in the number
present. She then withdrew amidst applause."

ST. JAMES'S, HATCHAM.

The interesting ceremony of laying the foundation
stone of the Hatcham National and Infant Schools,
took place yesterday afternoon by that ornament to
his order, the Right llon. the Earl of Shaftesbury.
The site is on a part of the ground well known as
formerly Mr. Cormack's nursery, and very near the
Royal Naval School. After an excellent sermon had
been preached at the room now used as a temporary
church, by the Rev. J. V. Povab, A.M., rector of St.
Anne and St. Agnes, Aldersgate-street, London, and
one of the minor canons of St. Paul's Cathedral, the
Noble Earl, supported by the Rev. A. K. Granville,
M.A., the incumbent of Hatcham, the Rev. Smith,
of Camberwell, Rev. English, of Sydenham, the
Rev. A. E. Sketchley, vicar of St. Nicholas, Dept.
ford, and the Rev. W. Masters, one of the curates of
Greenwich, followed by the builder, Mr. Walter
Granville, the churchwardens, Messrs. Covell and
Press, the committee, and the children of the
church schools in procession, proceeded to the
scene of operation, where a great number of resi-
dents of the hamlet were assembled, and after
a prayer had been offered up by the Rev.
Mr. Granville, the Noble Earl with the
usual formalities laid the stone amid loud cheers. He
then, in an excellent address, during the delivery of
which he was repeatedly, cheered, inculcated princi-
pally the urgent necessity of the parents of the chil-
dren, who were about to receive the benefits of in-
struction to be given to their children, to set them an
example of Christian conduct themselves, in order to
give due effect to such instruction. A prayer of
blessing on the undertaking was then read, and
an appropriate hymn sang, and after the usual bene-
diction, the parties left the ground. A
splendid
luncheon was provided for the principal supporters of
the school, and the intended new church, the site of
which is near that of the former, and at
_whichh the
t
Rev. Mr. Granville, presided, supported on
eis ntied
right
and left by the Noble Earl, and the clergy mentioned
above, and faced by Mr. Covell, the
.he proceedings excellent
on
many lathes also being present. Several
t
addresses were delivered bearing ts
of the religious
of the day,
P to be expected from the
welfare of the neighbourhoodh
eh, the school, Ste. The
erection of the
and the future prospects
TSuftesbur the Chairman the
churchwardens, the b &
candably er, c.,
were drunk with due honours,
residenttoas tsof
ctlheregEy,atrhll3eoe
responded to
by the several recipients, and the party retired after
a most delightfully spent day. We shall give a fur-
ther report of the speeches made on the occasion in
our next number, contenting ourselves at present,
with adding that out of the 6,0001., the estimated
cost of the intended new church, not more than 3001.
is required to make up that EMlL—Kentish Mercury.

MONEY MARKET.—The quotation of gold at
Paris is about at par (according to the new tariff), which,
at the English Mint puce of 3/. 17s. tOid. per ounce for
standard gold, gives an exchange of 2 ).17 ; and the ex-
change at Paris on Landon at short being 25.25, it follows
that gold is about 0.32 per cent. dearer in London than in
Paris. By advises from Ilamburgh the price of gold
is 430 per mark, which, at the English Mint price of
3/. 17s. 10id. per ounce for standard gold, gives an exchange
of 13.74 ; and the exchange at Hamburgh on London at
short. being 13.81, it follows that gold is 0.46 per cent.
dearer in London than in Hamburgh. The course of ex-
change at New York on London for bills at 60 dayste r seiasgtt th
h. t is
ansie
110 i per cent., and the par of exchange .between England
and America being 109 23-40 per cent.,
in
e eenrt,nicte favourfollowsofof
in h
exchange is nominally 0.67 per ceEngland;
and, after making allowance for c
charges of transport, the present
rate leaves a small profit on
the importation of gold from the United States.