The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-12-01
Miss Briggs Struggles With Skirts,

"
Miss Briggs Struggles With Skirts.
Kitty Briggs was a nice, intelligent
girl, nothing very brilliant, but about
up to the average of Boston young
women.
She had a good many friends, of var
ious degrees of cultivation, in all classes
of society. Kitty was not remarkably
quick of perception, and she didn't feel
or, rather, up to this last Centennial
summer, hadn't felt-that vital interest
in the movements and agitations of
various topics connected with woman"
which it is generally considered incum-
bent on the Boston young lady to feel.
But change was gradually coming
over Kitty; first, it was her friends;
they asked her if she had seen the new
garments? and Kitty thought they
meant some new cloak or sacque from
Paris; then they asked her if she had
been to Mrs. F's opening? mo, she
never went to Openings? Then the
friends explained thatit was a new kind
Of underclothing, and new ways of keep
ing it on, that they meant, and said she
was behind the age, and took her off to
one of the exhibitions.
Kitty acknowledged that the things
looked rather cunning, but wondered
how they felt when on. Ali the friends,
who, by the way, were recent converts
TO the new styles, cried out in chorus
that they were "splendid," as easy as
anything and the rich ones, who wore
lots of trimming, added, land so becom-
ing W Then the poor ones retorted, "SO
easy for the servants to do up-make
less work, ,"-then all, in chorus, 'Do,
do, try 'em. I'll lend you my patternW'
Then Kitty said she guessed she'd try.
Then it turned out that each friend had
made some little Improvement" which
she assured Kitty, was the most essen
tial part of the whole costume. Kitty
smiled, beamed on them all, and said
she would look them over, and take her
choice.
She "looked them over" In fact, for
three weeks she scarcely did anything
else. Being of an accommodating turn
of mind, she wished to please every
body; but it was a little difficult to ac-
cept at least a dozen patterns, and
to satisfy each inquiring friend, who
wanted to know, ii, in Kitty's candid
opinion, her particular pattern was not
the best?
garment. That was no go at all; she
tried it again, by cutting it in two, and
sewing on buttons; much worse, the
button-holes wouldn't stay made any
time at all; she tried again by sewing
up the button-holes for good, putting in
few gathers, and sewing the pieces to-
gether q LG the original pattern. 1t was
a triumph She assembled her friends,
and after long afternoon of animated
talk, they all said, "to please her, they
would try theirs that way" So they
all went home, and ripped and sewed to
their hearts content.
Then Kitty fell in with some books
by recent authors, on "Dress," and the
"Hygiene of Dress" Oh, dear how
stupid she had been all her life. Again
she called 1.-THE girls" together for a
kettledrum, and there arose a hubbub
that called Kitty's mother to the scene
of action; for each girl had pet theory
Boston girls are nothing without the
ories-and she insisted that her ideas
were the best, and wanted every other
girl to agree with her Kitty grew ex-
cited over the Question" She dis
cUssed whenever and wherever she met
a friend. Was it a street corner? Just
come to the next shop, and see the last
new thing in skirt supporters "Ah
now we have got the idea" Was it a
store 'Sit down a minute, while tell
you Bessie Jones's ideas on corsets. -
Time flew on; it was the end of the sum-
mer, and still Kitty's underwear was
not settled to her liking, and all her
friends were in the same state of mind.
"Have you found just what you want?'
was now their greeting to each other, at
church, lecture, reception, or party. II
was all one-the scene might change,
but the subject neverl
Kitty grew desperate. "You never
would believe ali I've been through, u
she wrote to an older friend, who had,
sometime since, got 'hers" settled to
her satisfaction. 81 don't believe there's
a reformed underwear place in Bos-
ton that l haven't spent hours in, and ]
can't get anything just right. AS for
the buttons, I've sewed them on-aud
ripped them off again; they are legion;
and when 1 think of the button holes
I've made, it is positively awful AS
for the patent skirt supporters, don't
mention such thing to me unless you
want 70 make NE mad! I've tried every
kind, looked far and near, seWed on
hooks, ripped 'em off, sewed on rings
WlSneQ naun'G-trlcu SCrlngS-WOrSe
than anything else. This week I've ia
ken off the last patent thing, gone back
to pins, aud 1 guess theae are all of a
dozen about me-not, you know, that
mean to keep them, but l am just wait
ing; some of the girls will soon be in
with something new,' and Pll try it,
just for variety, and if it doesn't do,
there's an end of skirt supporters for
Kitty Briggs P'
A week after this, a quiet-looking
young lady walked in to II Temple
Place, and stepping up to the counter,
said in tone of desperation to the at
tendant matron, MADAME have you
a pair of suspenders T' "Oh, plenty
Like this, you mean ?" She showed
Kitty a neat pair, ending with sort of
guarded hook, strong and confident.
Kitty took them, gazed at them, and