Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-01-16
THE RATIONAL DRESS SOCIETY.
An Account of One of Its Very Interesting
 Sessions in London.

Before a meeting of the Rational Dress So- ciety in London, Viscountess Harberton urged upon members the desirabihty of adopting the divided skirt as distinctive costume She would say that q woman dressed according to the present fashion took up at least the space of three men.
 Hon. Mrs. Beaufoy Heneage desired to ask, why not the time, alsoa Lady Harberton re- piled that Mrs. Heneage's interruption was outside of the present discussion. Continu- ing, she complained that when q woman travelled with bag and rug it was impos- sible to enter a railway carriage elegantly.
 Lady Glencora Abernethy - Then why travel with bag and rugs
 Mrs. Civilian Civilian would be glad to be informed why it should be considered inelegant to show half an inch of a lace petticoat.
 Lady Harberton thought that the good sense, she would not say delicacy, of mem bers ought to furnish them with the answers to such questions, if not point out to them the logical continuation of the inquiry. The calculation of inches and half inches was obviously no proper occupation for this society.
 Mrs Civilian Civilian was greatly obliged to Lady Harberton.
 Lady Harberton trusted Mrs Civilian Civilian would would not mention it. Con- tinuing, she remarked that ladies travelling in sleeping cars could not dress quickly on an emergency. Here the MarchioneSs Landraie asked for five minutes of Lady Harbertons $ time This was refused The marchioness | then stated that she had had the advantage of strict bringing up among circles to which the resolution of social questions was perhaps familiar, and desired to say that, ac- cording to the best sense of these circles, ladies did not travel in sleeping cars. Lady Harberton begged to ask how the marchioness had come on from Edinburgh last week.
 Lady Landraie replied that the journey referred to had been taken under exceptional circumstances. A report had reached her that her son, Lord Glen Innes, was about to marry an actress. She might observe that she had not gone to bed, but had sat up in a chair all night.
 The matter then dropped.
 A resolution that women ought not to dress quickly on any emergency was offered by Mrs. Carnaby Brown, and ruled out of order by the chair.
 Continuing, Lady Harberton said that fash ion had ordered that woman must wear but one or two garbs-that of Venus Ia voice "Oh, oh !'l or that of Noah's Ark figure.
 Mrs. Civilian Civilian again displayed some agitation. She would beg to be in formed to which of Lady Harberton's type she was to consider herself compared.
 Lady Harberton begged to say Venus Mrs. Civilian Civilian resumed her seat.
 Dress reform, said Lady Harberton, should be not half but a whole measure. IA voice
 ''Is not the divided skirt half measurea'' Lady Herberton would not notice verba ! pleasantries. They might be meant as pleas antries, but their effect, especially upon tn representatives of newspapers present, wa not elevating in tone. She would say tha l for obvious reasons the Noah's Ark figur
 had been selected as the model on which t. clothe the female form.
 l Several ladies rose and would be glad to b informed what were the obvious reasons Lady Harberton replied, the dressrnakers l Hon. Miss Revers begged permission to sa. that the most sensible woman she had eve : known had been a dresmaker. } Lady Haberton-That does not prove tha \ your judgment Is sound.
 l Here there was some disorder and the chai
 was appealed to. After discussion Lad
 Harberton consented to withdraw the ez
 precision. Hon. Miss Reyers' request tha
 Lady Harberton should order a basque of tn dressnaker referred to, was considered b the chair to be unnecessary. I Lady Harberton must insist that she fo one had no desire to be mistaken for the wifi |. of either Shen, Ham or Japheth. IA voic v from the platform: "Y lou are not so old q 5 all that, my dear."l
 . Lady Harberton would be glad to kno' who was the speaker. Unless the speaker at l. knowledged herself the chair would order th l platform cleared
 The speaker not acknowledging herself, th & chair did order the platform cleared. Tn n officers, however, were unable to carry oy s the chairs orders, and Lady Harberton el a deavored to continue Fashion, she sait
 demanded a small waist of women. MT
 Civilian: "Mine is naturalr'1 and she a.
 cordingly contrived 1t. No woman ever ha }. a small waist naturally; in no aspect of n st , tre did two thick limbs ever spring out of l. circumference smaller than themselves. T. Many ladies here demanded to have tl speakers words taken down. T Lady Harberton was endeavoring to repe' Il them when the meeting broke up in son l. disorder.-Philadelphi Times.
 Sn(IErN AND CI.UR MEETINGS.