The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1882-12-23
PARIS LETTER.
rom our Regular Correspondent


PARIS, December 2, 1882.
A short time since man was charged
with embezzling a very large sum of
money. He had nominally been in the
receipt or a small income, and yet in the
course OF the trial it came out that his
wife had been in the habit of spending
500 year in flowers alone; her dress
makers bills We're on the same extensive
footing. Wives of this sort are likely to
lead weak, indulgent husbands who have
10 moral backbone into the prisoners
dock. But without taking such an ex-
treme case as this, many women spend a
great deal more than they ought for the
adornment of their persons. The cur
rent is strong, and hurries them along.
The resistant must be great for them to
keep their desires well in hand. FASH
ion is such charming, enticing, tickle
enchantress, and she works so cleverly
through two subtle agents-rarity and
envy. In the existing order of things, it
is meet that certain portion of our in
comes should be expended on clothes.
If we were suddenly to become members
of some Puritanic society that forbade
expensive dress, and one simple fashion
of raiment were universally adopted, q
third, at least, OF the workmen, masters
and tradesmen would starve, whereas,
they fatten on our follies, our love of
change, and our extravagances. | do not
admit that the folly and the caprice and
the extravaganza are all on the other
side, although the women have the
Lionne's share, doubtless. And, certainly,
if l did, the hosiers' shops now would
give me the lie. Theirs are socks Of the
most brilliant die--self coloured, and in
contrasts superbly inharmonious, mems
undergarmen.s of soft crape-like wollen
or spun six in delica.e he, ~ tints, mill
tary scarlet and tawny brown; mems
shirts embroidered in the Russian or
Hungarian styles in colors with the
monogram over the heart; silk shirts for
morning desiabile in the fashionable
tones of crimson, old gold, copper and
marigold; besides cravats, not only of
every tint of the rainbow-whic would
mean little enough in these days OF null
ticolour tendencies blue varied
with terra Gotta, poppy colour withgold,
moss green and olive in combination
with claret, tricolor in varied trios, ma
terials shot in two or three hues like the
breast OF the pigeon, or Of the lordly
peacock, and FURNISHED pheasant, or the
gorgeous maccaw. AS far as we can
manage it, and as far as custom will per-
nit us, we emulate our womankind's s
tastes for bright colours. Did we not
wear bright blue and green trousers last
year, with fawn and russell dust coats,
and are not the tailors trying to persuade
us now into fancy for stone-blue, mus
tard, olive and pale grey waistcoats to re-
lieve the relative somber ness of our
winter garments, and shall those amongst
us who have adopted the absurd fashion
o t paletots SO short that the tails of our
evening dress-coat are visible bel ~, have
the face to ridieule any feminin. vagary
whatsoever in the future?
The season has not fairly commenced,
there are no balls no dances even, many
quiet little dinners, and few official
dinner entertainments principally di.
plomatic-(but then French women do
not put on full dress, only for the opera
and hardly an organized reception;
nevertheless the dressmakers are busy
enough.
The hope that we were about to be
favored with fine, dry weather has been
disappointed, and heavy rains are once
more the order OF the day. Consequent
ly theinundations are steadily increasing,
and there seems moreover to be scarcely
river or stream in the whole country
which has not overhowed its banks, or is
not imminently threatening TO do SO.
The Seine is doing vast amount of ma
terial damage, but so far, most happily,
no accidents to life or limb have been
reported. From the provinces the ac-
counts are all of the same character, and
constitute one long catalogue OF damage