The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-10-10
"NOTHING TO WEAR"

We mentioned few days since tnat pro-
fessional gentleman in New York, who, it is
said, "advertises largely" has brought
suit against an insurance company for the
insurance on his daughters wardrobe. lately
destroyed by fire. The company, is is said.
were astounded by the magnitude of the
items presented in the claim, and refused to
settle. Hence the action in court, which
brought out list of the young lady's ward
robe as drawn up under her own supervis-
ion.
The descriptive list occupies column and
half in the New York Herald, and en-
braces nearly five hundred articles. Among
them is enumerated satin dress, appraised
at $4,000, and another at $500, the whole
wardrobe being valued at $4,000. The
Herald says:
1t is very easy 40 say that wardrobe like
that enumerated in this schedule is extrava-
giant but the fact is that the list scarcely
gives full idea of extravaganza OF Ameri-
can toilettes. Twenty one thousand dollars
is on immense sum to have invested in cloth
ing; but it must be remembered that the orig
inal cost of these articles was much more
than $4,000. Many of the dresses, shawls,
bonnets, and other portions of the young la
dy's costume had been more or less worn,
and the prices affixed only represent their
values at the time they were burned, which
is all the loser has right to recover. For
example, '.nine pairs boots and shoes would
be very cheap at $45 a dust wrapper from
Cashmere, could hardly be purchased for
SIS; four magnificent opera cloaks are val
ued at $t75, when one of them would have
cost the sum if new; cloth cloaks at So,
$40, and $12 must have been much used to
be worth only that amount of money. No
fashionable milliner could sell four bonnets,
some exceedingly elegant, for 500, but
would charge as much for one elegant bonnet.
1t is evident, then, that to get at the real cost
of the wardrobe ola young lady of fashion
IN this metropolis we must add several thou
sand dollars to the amount claimed. The
articles when first purchased must have cost
$4,000. at least.
We learn from this schedule that to
make figure in the fashionable world q
young lady requires twenty-six robes of silk
and satin, two of velvet, twenty-four dresses
of poplin, cashmere. granadine, and Swiss
and India mnslin, with underskirts and bod
les of silk nine Jackets to wear over these
dresses in the house seventeen cloaks, man
tillas, and capes for out door wear; fifteen
muslin skirts, besides the underskirts already
enumerated; twenty-one sets of founces and
capes of lace, of all qualities, from Hinton to
Maltese and in addition to all these, aquan-
tity of worn dresses, cloaks, and jackets too
numerous to mention We must take into
consideration, moreover, the fact that the
lady was probably not deprived of all her
clothing by the fire. The schedule shows
what she lost; but we have no means of as
certaining what she saved. Yet it is only
by getting at this unknown quantity that we
shall lie able to realize the full extent of the
young lady's requirements At present we
really feel that the list we publish does her
some injustice. Twenty-six silk robes and
| twenty -four other dresses would not satisfy
any but the most reasonable and economical
Flora McFimsey. There are houses in the
fifth avenue that could reveal much more ex-
tensive wardrobes. The jewels and jewelry,
too, which cost more heavily than dresses, as
many a husband knows, are not set down in
this list which must consequently be pro-
nounced inadequate Still it will serve to
convey to the uninitiated and to posterity
some conception of the expenses of Amerscan
fashionable life.