Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1872-11-22
After the FIRST salutation, she slowly
twirlcd herself round and sank into a
c1,afr ovoio;,.tnn.

twircd herself round and sank into a
chair, cxclaiming:
"Behold the woman who daresp'
Ahl l saw; she, too, had on new
dress. 1t was of sllvcry. gray silk, made
with one skirt, without particle of trim
ming on it, and sacque just bound with
a bias fold of the same. Yes, she had
dared. 1t was really refreshing sight,
and she looked perfectly bewitching in
the Quaker-lke costume But, then, Hes
ter Graywood is such pretty little crea-
ture, she can't help looking lovely in any
thing, and she knows it, so 1t don't require
so great courage in her to dare. Yes, she
looked charming. Yet, on second
glance, there seemed kind of baroness
about her, as If something were wanting.
Was this because had looked so long on
mountains of frippery that my eye and
taste had both become corrupted? Ten
years ago We all wore such plain, single
skirts, and considered ourselves elegantly
dressed; why should they look mean and
skimpy now?
read LOUIS note to Hester, and she
promised TO join us at dinner on Thurs
day.
"Extremes should meet" she said.
She staid on a while, and we had lit
tie talk on dress and the bondage fashion
imposes; or how the taste of the commu-
nifty is corrupted by the overloaded, un-
graceful styles in vogue now, and on
many other things such as sensible wo.
men do talk about when they get togeth-
er.
zone of the greatest evils of this ab-
surd overloading," said Hester, "is that
it so fearfully overworks women. We
hear great deal about the hardships of
the poor shirtmakers in our cities; and
they are to be pitied, l know. But there
are other women to be pitied, too. Look,
for example, at my neighbor, Mrs. T.
She is fair representative of a large
class, and not an exaggerated case. Her
husband is hard-working mechanic,
who earns good living, and ought to lay
up something for wet day; but he can't
support wife and six children in luxury,
especially as four Of them are girls. Mrs.
| I. is an ambitious woman, and says she
will have her children 'decently dressed'
that means fashionably dressed. She
can't afford to hire her sewing done; so,
in addition to all her housework, she
makes their dresses; and if you have
seen Oracle, the eldest one, you can
| judge what that implies"
''She's very stylish-looking girl" l
said.
Eyes, and her mother is very proud of
| her. as is natural. She is just seventeen; /;
and what wonderful costumes she does
bloom out inl They are all a6oat with
pufts and ruffles, quills and frills, till
there's scarce an inch of untrimmed
space about her; and Clara and Nellie go
by to school every morning, each with an
other set of furbelowed upper skirts and
under skirts, basques and sacks; while
baby Belle-bless her dear little hearts,
all afloat, too, with tiny rutlles on her
tiny skirt"
"lsn't she darling9" cried
Eyes, lovely, with her blue eyes and
apple-blossoIn cheeks; but wouldn't she
be just as pretty in plain white dress
with bit of edging round the neck and
sleeves, if it were the fashion? And the
pretty Gracie-is the charm in her, her
lovely complexion and fine expression, or
in her furbelows and fringes"
'In her, of course" said. "Children
and young girls are never so pleasing as
when simply dressed"
Certainly; and our taste is corrupted
when we do not see this. But there's
poor MIS- T. thinks it's absolutely neces-
sary to follow the last fashion plate; so
she works like slave from morning till
night, and her sewing-machine is often
going till after midnight. No wonder
she looks broken down, and has neural
gia and a diseased spine. She has done
The work of two women, and it is the
hardest kind of work, too. Every inch of
all these interminable yards of hemming
and binding, gathering and fastening,
passes through her fingers, 10 say nothing
of the contriving and fitting, and
basting and ripping. l wonder the
woman is alive. l don't believe there is
sewing woman in this city harder
worked"
"But why don't the daughters help
herr"
'"Those in school haven't any time.
Oracle does all she can; but, with her
calls and callers, practicing and picnick-
ing, croqueting and coquetting, it would
be cruel to expect her to do more than
make the plainest portion of her under
clothes.
"But it's absurd" l said, "for me.
chanics wife to go into such extravagan.
ces."
~ don't know as a mechanics wife
can be expected to be more sensible
than other women" said Hester dryly.
"a reform must begin somewhere else,
l fancy"
II suppose So" I said with sigh;
"but the whole subject is full of Difficult
ties"
"All of which might be overcome if
women had a spark of independence.
Here is a tangible evil for them to grapple
with, now they have walked up to a sense
of their strength and capabilities"
eyes, they may as we'll begin reform
here, as of the nation at the ballot box" I"
7 hny 90, 40, 10 tlo
question. Is there any standard by
which dress can be judged and regulat-
cd -
"Not now," said Hester; "but I be-
lieve the principles OF art, true art, might
be applied to dress as to other things;
that there is an essential, intrinsic beau
ty or ugliness in our garments, entirely
irrespective of fashion; in other words,
that it is one thing to be well dressed, and
another to be fashionably dressed"
"Yes," said l; "but what is it to be
well dressed ?"
81 can tell you what it isn't" said Hes
ter. ut isn't to wear "A huge protuber-
ance on your head or your back, which,
if you had been born with it, would have
been considered shocking deformity. 1t
isn't to conceal all the lines of the human
figure, or to make ii one mountain of
trimming, when trimming should always
be subservient, adding grace and defining
outlines. And then, too, it must be some
thingpermanent. 1t can't be the chang
ing thing fashionable dressing is. Art
wouldn't make balloon of us this month
and a scantily draped statue the next;
she wouldn't tilt us up on heels that ago
nize our toes, and pitch us down stairs
day, and tomorrow set us on the ground
like so many flat-footed Indians"
"rhat would be a comfort" l said.
"If, when dress was made, 1t would
stay made, and look we'll till it was
worn out, it would lessen half our la
bors."
"Well, Hepsey, believe the good time
is coming-the time when we shall have
higher civilization, and break the chains
fashion fetters us with now. Then we
shall distinguish between true beauty and
deformity; and our milliners and dress.