The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1870-07-06

all winter in New York, and which had al
ready given place to lace, straw and chip OF
quite different design Of course she did not
obtain much sympathy, and she had the pleas
ure of seeing her friends displaying charming
and distinguished "CharlOtte Corday" and
,Pamelan bonnets, with their exquisite new
toillettes of silk and crepe de chine, while she
rustled In that .horrid changable thing" and
melted IN her warm felt hat, (Which had cost
too much to permit her to buy another,) her
only consolation being that her costume was
"fresh from Paris"
A REVOLUTION IN FASHION.
The question of fashion has not yet come to
a crisis, but some time or other 1t will do. 80,
and the result will be much greater freedom
and liberality regarding the dress Of women.
Parisian lorettes and dressmakers do not In
the least understand that the times are chang
ing, that the sceptre Is passing out OF their
stand the folly and degradation Of following
like pack OF hounds the hue and cry of paid
whlppers-in-that they are beginning to rea-
lie in this country. at least, that the clothing
she wears is less than the woman who wears
it, that the question of dress should be subor.
dinated to the larger question OF duties, that all
women are not relgning expresses. or the dis,
cannot therefore afford to gratify caprice Mt
the expense of every obligation. Fashion,
which changes with every breath, which
knows no law except compliance with the de-
mand for novelty and the qualification Of eve
~ passing fancy, Is only fit for women who are
above, or out OF pale OF the usual eXlgencies
Of life, whose fortunes are so exceptional that
they cannot be tried by the usual standard, or
held amenable to the usual tribunal of public
opinion. The mass of women are beginning
to understand that life was not given to us
wholly for selfish purposes, but for the per-
formance of certain duties, and that these per-
petlal changes In dress are not only trivial and
silly, but criminal, because they absorb time,
means and energy. which are required in
other directions. To sensible locker on,
could anything be more absurd than the
changes every few weeks or months, from
rufles to pleatings, from pleatlngs to pufs,
and from puffs back to ruf1es again But then
there is a most Important difference between
the rules of the last and the rufles of the first.
Dressmakers solemnly announce 1t, ladies hear
it with little shrek, thinking Of the dress re-
Gently made, not yet worn, but which is ruf1ed
in the now old style.
WHAT IS IT?
Why, ruff1es are no longer gathered, they
are pleated, laid in single pleats all running
one way. Oh but, says some experienced
mother of several little ones that will be so in
convenient for ironing-gathe ruf1es upon
WaSnlQU UTcSSGS lEOl cdolSi.
Cant help it, madam" Is the reply, 'pleat-
ed ruff1es are the style now" so pleated ruf1es
it must be.
Women are always dying of something or
other. one time it is their shoes, another time
it Is tight laclng, a third time before hoops
came in fashiOn) the weight of skirts upon the
hips: now it is of the enormous amount OF
trimming Positively of half the women who
are dying, believe two-Lhirds are sick OF ruff
fles OF some such thing. The amount OF trim
ming upon one ordinary suit Is enough In q
few years to put any woman into lunatlc
asylum who felt bound to keep step to so fra u
tic tune, anu could not afford TO hire some
other woman to do 1t for them.
LONG SKIRTS.
Undoubtedly there will be an effort made to
revive the trailing skirts for the streets, but as
vet there is no evidence of it upon the prone
made; on the contrary, many ladies who have
been accustomed to wearing very long indoor
dresses, are having black grenadines, summer
silks and tissues made short for the house, re-
serving the demi-train exclusively for evening
wear. At very fashionable wedding recent
ly, the brides dress was Of white groS grain,
covered with flounces, and tunic Of costly lace
lay only about eight inches upon the ground,
while the bridesmaids, of white grenadine,
trimmed with blue, were short. The costumes
WSIG CUIuDlCGCO Wy onOls Oho4uSo VI WhtSO teASS
tied in with blue sashes, and bonnets of white
lace trimmed with trail Of blue forget-me-
nots mingled with dark leaves. The bride
alone wore veil arranged nearly to envel-
on her entire form, and fastened by o Vatican
wreath OF orange blossoms mixed with small
white bridal roses Ofcourse 1t cannot be ex-
pected that the lofty fates that preside over
our dresses will condescend 10 hold feathers
weight against the simple assertion OF their
bat; ;t of ba c,,rpricino IF
an effort to bring back long skirts, or some other
equally inconvenient and disgusting nuisance,
should result in a general strike, practical
protest, which would give women freedom
from calling and oppressive thraldOm- Let
American women determine upon retaining a
sensible street dress which does not embarrass
their movements, and the whole world OF IN.
telligent, active, conscientious women will
quickly follow their example.
BATHING DRESSES.
Suits of every description tor this purpose
are exhibited in all the ladies' furnlshing-goOds
houses at from tour to five dollars each. They
are generally composed, however, Of striped
cotton or some ugly woollen material that can
not be got rid Of in any other way, and are
bought because ladies think it matter Of
very little consequence of what bathing
dress is composed. And some are actually
persuaded into the belief that thick, striped
cotton stuff IS as good as any other. Do not
believe it. The best material is soft mot fne)
Atwood flannel, marine blue or Russian gray.
Make it into trousers and belted blouse; trim
the blue with black alpaca braid, the gray
With scarlet Bend in flat straw hat, and tie
L down with ribbon, and the costume is COM
plete. The cost of it, homemade, will be
.hree dollars without the hat; but ii will be
tasteful and pay for the additional trouble in
The fitness, comfort and becomingness, and oil
his is something, even in bathing dress.