The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1876-04-01
AIRY ATTIRE.
Hosc the Bellies of Seventy Years Igo We're
Dressed.

1
this great city of New York was moo
crate sized town. From Mrs. D., yer
reable dame who was herself great bell
in those early days of the century,
have gathered full description of til
costumes and the fashions of those by
gone times.
The earliest ball to which this lad
ever went was one given by the Dutcl
minister to this country in 1915. 1t too
place at Castle garden, and was held il
honor of the entrance of the allies int,
Paris and the freedom of the Netherland
from the power of the mighty conqueror
Napoleon. 1t was called the Orang,
ball. and in honor of the occasion ever,
lady displayed orange color in some par
of her dress. Mrs. D., who was very
young at the time, wore a simple white
muslin dress, extremely scant in the Skin
and so short-waisted the belt was iust
below the armpits. On this she wore
orange-colored satin shoulder braces, 8
form of trimming then much in style
Broad ribbon was crossed on the back
and passed around the arm-holes, exactly
like the braces used to strengthen stoop
ing shoulders; it was then twisted about
the waist and tied in sash at the back
When this lady first made her debut
into society the waists we're at the short
est. and the "classic STYLE" as it was
called, the prevalent mode. And these
excessively short waists were disagreed
bic and painful to wear. A dress in
those days measured two yards and a
half at the bottom of the skirt, and was
gored upward until the little fitness that
remained was gathered in by drawing
string at the neck.
There was one advantage about the
style-corsets were unknown and no lady
laced herself, as only the outlines of the
figure appeared below the waist and the
more natural they were the more fash
ionable. Indeed, every pains was taken
to show the lovely proportions of the
women of those days, and the revelations
of the modern "pull-back" are nothing
to the lavish display of that period.
No well dressed woman wore anything
but white muslin; winter, and summer
those fimsy dresses were always out with
low or at most only halfhigh necks. Be-
meath them was worn only one scant
white petticoat; even in winter flannel
skirts were avoided by the fashionables.
No starch was put into either dress or
petticoat, and some ladies, in order to
make the material cling the better to
the form one would think sufficiently re-
vealed, actually had their dresses damp
ened as the last finishing touch before
starting for ball. Truly their appear
ance must have justified rhyme which
was popular at that time:
Ladies fair this gay garb dressed in
Look Eve-like, angel-like and interesting"
One wonders that the bellies did not
positively freeze to death in the long Sc
we're winters. The houses were heated
only by open wood fires, stoves l'eing al
most unknown. And in rooms only half
warmed, these thinly-attired ladies lived.
Worse yet, the "modiste" length or
skirt was just to the ankle bone, and
silk stockings and slippers were the only
covering for the feet, even to the walk in
Broadway in the snow and slush of mid
winter. Pattens or clogs might be put
on to go out of an evening, but they
looked so "old-maidish that the gay
girls did not like to use them much.
There was one mitigation of the hard
ships of this dress-the outer garments
in winter were worn long, and Mrs. d.
describes her street costume in one OF
those years when she was society queen.
Over the white muslin frock she wore a
long scarlet broadcloth pelisse, which
was fitted to the figure and ornamented
with a small cape. Her hat was very
-brimmed, made of white satin and
crowned with ostrich feathers.
1t was at this time, when scantiness of
drapery was at its:.e<sreme, that Miss
Patterson married. Jerome Bonaparte. A
cousin of Mrs. D. was at the wedding,
and when asked afterward to describe
the brides toilet replied: "All the
clothes she had on could have put into
my waistcoat pocket" Her dress was of
muslin, richly embroidered, and of
extremely fine texture, and it is said
that beneath it she wore but single gar
ment.
Of course, when white was so univer-
sally adopted, any device was resorted to
in order to give variety to the dress.
Various materials were used-mull,
nainsook, bishops lawn and India mus
lin, which was extremely soft and deli
cate; none of these fabrics at all resem-
bled our modern organdie or Swiss, as
they were neither stiff nor wiry. softness
being a requisite of style.
There were devices for covering the
neck, which fashion barred. Three cor
nered handkerchiefs of muslin or lace,
and small silk capes or squares, were
thrown carelessly over the shoulders. A
very favorite wrap was the pe'erine, a
cape with long tab ends; this was made
for opera wear in pink or blue silk trim
med with swans down, and for the street
of black silk with ruffles.
Gloves were worn long, very much as
they are to-day, except instead of but
toning all the way up, they were made
with salt only at the wrist and fitted
loosely on the arm. At the great ball
given at Castle garden in honor of the
Marquis de Lafayette, the gloves made
for the occasion had a portrait of the
marquis on the back.
RUSKIN ON HER4LDRT.
Mr. Ruskin delivered a lecture on pre-