The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1881-08-13

! SSlN'S III It's SlobiliH loItiS. lic titSs
! which we should wear. one would think,
might he blue. the color Of the sky. III
white, signifyiny that light which the re.
deemed soul has reached.
But custom. which makes slaves of Us
! all. has decreed that we shall wear black
As token of respect to those we have
/ lost. and as shroud for ourselves. pro
testing against the gentle miniStration OF
light and cheeTtulneSS with which oul
| Lord ever Stives to reach us. This is one
| side OF the question; but again one WORD
as to its good Offices. y mourning dress
| does not protect the wcarer while in
/ deepest grief from the intrusive gayctS
of refuge. Behind Il black veil pool
brokcn-heartcd woman can hide herself.
as she goes out for business OF recreation
| dreading lest any one shall speak to her.
| But the black veil. again. is most un
| healthy. 1t harms the eyes, andi Injuries
| the skin. As it rlbS against the nose
/
| the skin. and often makes Il painful sore
/ To the eyes. enfccbled by weeping, ii is
sure to be dangerous. and most occulist>
forbid it.
The English. from whom we borrow
| our fashions. have a limitation, provided
| by social law. which is a useful thing.
| They now decree that Grape shall only
! be Worn six months. even for the dearest
! relative, and that the duration Of mourn
! Ing shall! not exceed Il year. \ wife 5
mourning for her husband is the most
| couventionally deep mourning allowed,
! and every one who has seen an English
widow will allow that she has made :,
! hearse OF herself. Bombazine and Grape.
! a widows cap. and long thick veil
such is modern English idea. Some
widows even have the cap made of black
| Grape lissc. but it is generally of white.
! In this country widows first mournin =
| dresses are covered almost entirely with
| Grape, a most costly and disagreeablc
! maui Na"iIN ~ WY YAM
| and the duSt-a sort of pcnance and NOR
| tiiication dress. very ugly and very OK
| pensive. There are now. however. other
and more agreeable fabrics which also
| bear the dead black lustrelesS look which
| is alone considered respectful to the dead.
! which are not So costly. or 50 disagreed
! BILE to wear. as Grape. The Henrietta
| cloth and imperial scrges are chosen for
! heavy winter dresses. while for those Of
! less weight are tamiSc cloth. Bayonnai>c.
! grcnadinc. nuns yelling. and the Amcri-
| can silk.
Our mourning usage>. although Dor
| rowed from England. are not us overload.
| with what may be called the pomp, pride
! and circumstance of woe as are the Eng
| liSh funerals \ black cioth-covcred
caslet with silver mountingS is consider
| ell in the best taste, and the pall-bearerS
areat most given Il white scarf and a
| pair of black gloves. This even is not
always done. At one time the traffic in
these returned bands and gloves was
| quite a fortune to the undertaken.
Mourning is very expensive. Often it
costs Il family more than they can well
afford to 90 into it. But it is sacrifice
| which even the poorest gladly make. so
| tyrannical is custom. and those who can
| least afford it often wear the best mourn
! ing They consider it-by what logic no
one can understand. unless we believe in
the heather idea Of propitiating the
names of the departed--an act Of disre-
| spect to the memory of the dead if the
living are not clad in gloomy black.
However, our business is with the Ell
| quette of mourning Widows wear deep
mourning. consisting of WOODEN Stutls
and Grape, for two years and sonnet ines
| for life. i'll America. Children wear the
! same for their parents for one year, and
then Tighten ii with black silk trimmed
with Grape. !ialf-mourning gradations
Of gray. purple, or lilac have been aban-
| doned. and instead of combinations of
black and white are ;ised. Compliment
! airy mourning" is black silk without Grape.
The French have three grades Of mourn
ing deep, ordinary, and half mourning.
In deep mourning. WOODEN cloths only
are worn: in ordinary mourning. silk and
woollen; in halfmourning, gray and
violet. An American lady is always
| shocked at the gaycty and chcerfulneSs
! Of French mourning. In France etiquette
| prcScribeS mourning for a husband one
! year and six weeks, that is, six months
| of deep mourning, six of ordinary. and
six weeks of half-mourning. For wife
a father, or a mother six months-three
! deep. and three hali-mourning. For a
! grandparent. two months and Il half OF
slight mourning: for a brother or sister
two months, one Of which is in deep
mourning: for an uncle or an aunt. three
weeks of ordinary black. In America.
with no fiXity of rule. ladies have been
! known to go into deepest mourning fol
! their own relatives. or those of their hus-
bands. people perhaps whom they had
never seen. and have remained, as gloomy
monument Of respect for seven OF ten
Gears. constantly in black: then on losing
! a child or Il relative dearly loved. they
! have no dress left 10 express the real
! grief which fills their lives. no deeper
! black to 20 into. This complimentary
mourning should he. as in the French
/ custom, limited to two or three weeks.
( 1t has been known to affect the health OF
Il delicate child seriously to see his moth
CT always in mourning.
The retirement from the world of {;
/ mourner has been much shortened of
&lndced. So overdoue are mourning GER
emonies in England, what with the hired
/ mates. the nodding plumeS, and the eN,
/ pcnsive coffin, and gifts of gloves and
! bands, and rings, etc, etc. that Lady
! Gcorgiana Minor Of Nunappleton. il
York. II great friend of the archbishop.
/ wrote a book against the abuse and or
/ dcred her own body to be buried in a pine
coffin, and forbade her servants and rcla-
tivcs to wear mourning. Her wishes
were carried out to the letter.