The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1849-09-12
. 8 sUMTER sd HaLE, $50 sEPTEMBER l2, fsaa

]atits height ofsplendor; having mean
while, passed through many changes
and notifications, of which that exist
ing during the reign of Elizabeth was,
perhaps, the most magnificent. 1t was
decidedly the most costly; the taste of
the. queen for dress influenced that of
her courtiers; they We'd with each other
lin the richness of the materials they
aore--the 5velvets, the silks, the satina
lin the profusion Of their jewels, in the
extravaganza of their personal adorn.
ing, and in the reckless abandonment Of
their general expenditure.
No one exceeded in these points the
gallant Sir Waltter.Raleigh; the dai-
monds on whose court shoes were valu-
ed at G6000--the button Of whose hat
was pearl without pricebut the hid
eous ruff then in vogue-the peculiar
mode Of eating the hair--and the padd-
ings which it was the fashion to intro
duce in various parts of the dress, must
have rendered even SO superb costume
unbecoming to any save very handsome
men, who could wear and carry off any
thing.
But how graceful--how faultless in
effect, the dress of the martyred
Charles!- -black--adorned only with
the richest lace, and with o few splen-
did jewels; how beautiful the disposition
of the falling hair! a more kingly, a
moro calmly noblc-stylc cannot be i'm
asined; superior in such respects to the
gaycr, richer, more elaborate toilette
Of his more fortunate son.
As for the men of tho present day,
they have little advantage il dress,
nothing can be much more frightful
than modcs--from the round hat down
to the boot, from the collar. to the cuff.
Dress coats are hideous things, frock-
coats are worse; worse are paletots--
Nicols--Tagl gl;onis--Syrian guazes---..
Pilots-D'O Orsays, an abominablc thing
is waistcoat; dreadfnlis black neck
cloth, more dreadful still white one
Custom has prescribed an almost puri-
tanical formality of male dress, ana it
is considered the height of bad taste to
depart thence; no one can break through
the rules of established form; the only
chance left for men of lively imagina-
tionis to take refuge i'll striking colors;
but this course generally renders them
subicctto ridiculo and remarks, they
become conspicuous, but rarely SO for
their advantage.
The eye has become SO accustomed to
this formality, that it is impossible to
avoid allowing it to influence ones
judgement; it is impossible to avoid
suspicion Of the wcarcrs ofunything nl-
ira; how alarmed you would be, gentle
reader, at the appearance of one fyour
ac0uaintanccs in bright blue coat,
a-grcen scarf, and q scarlet waistcoat.
Yet the individual in question might be
only indulging a taste for brilliant color
ing, lie need not be either g mad-man or
a knavc; time was when taste was the
sole guide in the choice Of the male at
tire: when Rochester wore crimson vel
vet, and Scdlcy white satin piakcd with
orange.
What bad style very long hair
gives TO an individual; even moustachcs
are looked upon with suspicion (unless
worn by cavalry men:) we cannot help
lancyins they arc false, or that the
bearer is decided leg, or a Boulongitc,
driven home by the last French revolu,
ton,
i have wandered from the title Of
this paper, which professcs to treat of
"handsomc men," but positively l had
nothing to say about them, unless the
public would like to know what style of
men really think handsome; do not
admire those gcntleincn--the beauties
Of cavalry rcgimcnts--who arc tall and
slim, and have fine compilations, and
large dark eyes, and vast black NOUS
tachi9s, and aquilinc noses.
Every regiment has one at least Of
those heroes; he is always spoken of rs
"tl., handsome fellow, Tom so and so;"
he does great execution among the
bellies of the town where the depot is
quarterod, but too often, in fact, may
say invariably, he is nothing but tall
and slim, and has only that fine COM
plcylon, that vast moustache, those
black eyes.
No mind, no soul, these dwell in 9TH
or stuff, either inlittlc frail frames, worn
with the activity of the untiring essence
within, or, more rarely but more suita-
bly,, in the frames ofmen, handsome as
Apollo, strong as Hercules, calm; lofty
digniticd, as the omnipotent Jovc him
SELF
These latter are the men, / admire,
though one or two only of such have |
met; but they were fair, with the true