The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-05-12
ENGIISu NENMEH

Richard Grant White, in his free talk in
the G1i1lg ubon' English womcn, is not 40
parcnty cnrap,urra with their mode Of Dire, 5
!ag. lie says:
IS 10 dress, thy,, a, a man, / must regard
Il, purely alNcul;inGs 1uI an essentially
.upimpurlgnt matter. I feel! therefore, hat /
am saying very lille against En- ,isN women,
VIXEN say that, In genera. ticy are Tie worst.
dressed hunlan creatures WAT ! cEc: san, cN,
ccp', perhaps, the female half Of u ccr'au
elias, of Germans. The reputation lLal TIE,
have in his respect among French women
and Americans IS richly deserved. Good
taste is simply absent The notion OF iuess,
cOnCruty aud "cOnCattnatiOu aCcurdiHgly,'
does not exist In tOrm, the English womaa's
dress Is doWdy, IL color, frigatiui. II not
COlOr-blind, she seems generally 10 be blind
10 the effect of color, either Sing,y or III com.
bnatlou, At the Birmingham festival SAW
a lady III rich, lcad.purple plum color
silk-high around the neck OF course, as II
was morOing--and over this swept necklace
Of enormous coral beads. 1t made one eyes
ache to look at her THIS was not uncom.
mon, but a characteristic Instance. such
combinations may be justly regarded rs the
rule In English womcnS dress. For purple
they have strong liking. They not only wear
IL III SONilS btb lux H'N - IVA - 49, a.
bands and founces, in ribbons, in feathers
they combine II with all other COlOrs. An
English woman seems to think herself made
if she can deck herself IN some way w.,h
purple, silk or velvet, or ribbons Or feathers.
Of course | am excepting from these remarks
few who have lHtuitlre good taste, and 9th
er few who employ French modis,es, and
who submit implicitly to their authority.
The latter condition is essential; for even
when the main body OF an English wOman's
dress is in good taste she is very apt to des-
troy its effects by some incongruous addition
from her stores OF heterogeneous jewels. or
by some other ornament-a collar, cape,
tichu or a ribbon. They have Il sad way of
putting forlorn things about their necks and
on their heads which is very depressing, I'M
less it is astonishing, which happens some
times. An English woman will be tolerably
well dressed, and then will make a bundle Of
herself by tying up her neck and shoulders
in a huge piece Of lace; or she will wear
specimens of two or three sets OF Jewels; or
she will put colored feather in her hair, or
a bonnet on her head, that would tempt u ty-
rant to bring it to the block.
1t is because Of the average English won.
ans sad failure 10 dressing herself that the
notion has got abroad that English men are
finer looking than English women. For the
dress of the men is notably in good taste 1t,
is simply manly neat; and although sober in
TINT and snug IN cut, it is likely to have lis
general sobriety lightened with little touch
of bright, warm color. On the other hand,
the dress of American men is, generally far,
very far, inferior to that Of the women in the
conditions of life. This helps
to produces the corresponding mistaken no.
ton that the women in America are hand
sou err than the men upon the incorrectness
and essential absurdity of which l have al
ready commented.