Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1855-05-12
Ladies'
An Old Bachelor Criticising Ladies'
ShirIS-- Home Truths.

Skirts Home Truths.
4 smart and tasty old bachelor. who
has travelled and seen the world, offers
some very shrewd and instructive remarks
for The considerations o: our cOunryWo-
men. in the columns of the Home Jour-
nal. He saws: Il am sorry Ia say that
our American ladies', with all their eXtrav-
agancies. are not the best dressed TO be
found in the wcrld-thcy overdO the
thing in the streets they are bales OF
cotton with silk coverings in their hou-
scs. ladies' maids in their Sunday clothes.
In no part of the world do ladies' put on
their best 10 draggle in the streets, and
their almost worst as soon rs they get
home, except in these United States.
Every foreigner remarks IhiS unaccOunta-
bic bad taste every travelled American
condemns it, | have known ladies put
on ,hcir persons the value of hundreds OF
dollars. and then wander up and down
Broadway without meeting single gen
rIeman of their acquaintance 4; then co
home and put on an Old dress, when, just
rs they made their appearance IN the par
Ior. the husband would come in and have
with him two or three friends to take tea.
and quiet rubber Of whist IN the even
ing.
"ln all parts Of Europe the walking
dress is simple and neat, not expensive
nor shnwy the dress OF fashion and rch-
ness is for the evening alone, when friends
call. How shall rejoice when my fair
country women learn the difference be-
tween simplicity in dress and the COM
1 mon blocks they now make Of themselves
TO show off the skill of their dresSmakers.
The question of expense Is more matter
| of individuality than reality one lady
vill dress better on two hundred dollars
year, than another Will for FIVE tunes the
amount. What | mean is thls-a lady OF
taste will look better dressed, and be more
elegant in appearance, than another will
although one may have the value Of thou
sands on, while the other had not tens.
saw this fully exempIihed a short time
since, amongst some ladies' Of my acquan-
tance. A party was about 10 be gwen,
and, as is generally the case on such occa-
sions, new dresses must be got. Two
young ladies', belonging TO different laml-
lies, but on intimate terms, were sadly
puzzled as to what they should wear at
the same time it was rather suspected, that
one Of them was deslrous 10 take her
friend down, as the saying is.
"The lady alluded to went TO Stew
arts, the great Broadway dry-goods de-
pot, and purchased most expensive bro
cade her friends proclaimed it elegant.
and every one supposed II would be the
dress OF the evening. The other young
lady was not envlous, but joined IN the
common praise, and hinted that she
would bear away the palm as far as rrgar-
ded dress not at all put out al the evI-
dent attempt 10 throw her in the shade,
she very quietly went TO work 10 prepare
for the orcasi0n. Having called IN the
dressmaker, they put their heads and
wits TO work, and so melam0rphOsed an
old ball dress that had been cast aside
two years before, that when, on her
partners arm, she entered the brilliant
parIor, she was at once proclaimed the
best dressed lady in the party 1t was,
however, NOT so much the materials o! the
dress that gained the appreciation Of the
company, but the artistic taste displayed,
and tie consummaie e. of the lady TO the
dress, and the dress to the lady.
"a few evenings since received an IN
vitatlon from a celebrated New York pro-
lessor Of dancing TO calico ball amongst
his scholars the ladies were to appear in
calico, after a recent fashion up town, and
the dresses to be afterward given 10 the
poor American females. The gentlemen
we've 10 give, In money, any amount they
pleased from TWO dollars. OF course
attended, and IL was the besl-dres sed party
ever saw III this country. How wish
the ladies could be made 10 understand
what We male creatures consider the
beauties that constitute the woman. The
simple calico adorned the lovely girls lar
more, in my estimation. than oil the most
costly silks that Lyons ever sent us could
have done"
Boys Look at This.