Morning journal and courier., 1893-02-23
The origin OF Fashions.

tEEOI Ilc LOloOu CptClAIOEt
There is great nesd at the present mo-
ment of some patient and industrious phi
losopher who will make it his business to
trace TO their source the varying fashions
of female dress, and to inform a long-suf-
fering race of the secret origin of despo-
tism whose oppressive mandates they seem
quite unable to withstand. No man, who
happily wears the same kird of clothes to-
day that he did some thirty years ago, can
have the least conception of the weary
tyranny exercised over the other sex by
fashion. Year after year he goes to his
tailor, and orders suits of clothes ''to be
made as ususl," with cheerful disregard
of the almost imperceptible changes which
may have taken place in the dress of his
more fashionable contemporaries. But
with q woman the case Is far different; she
muet conform to the law of change, and
the changes in her dress are as strongly
marked as they are frequent.
During the last two or three weeks we
have been treated to n striking illustrstion
of the utter helplessness of womsnkind in
ths matter of fa-hion. A rumor wss re-
Gently started to the feet that an attempt
would shortly be made to re-introduce the
crinoline. It would appear, from the let
tiers that appeared in all the newspapers.
that the wearers of pet.icOats were unsni-
nous in their condemnation of the hate
full cortrivsnce, and one might reasonably
have expected that they would have been
contented with that expression of their
feelings, and have assured themselves tbst
their milllners and dresEmAkers would
speedily rencnEce an idea which SO
evidently dizsastefui to thsir customers.
That comfortable assurance, however. was
very far from their thoughts. They have
not the slightest con i3eEcs In the weight
of their wiehos. aud firmly bslieve that
whether they desire il or not, they will
have TO wear a crinolIns-if only fashion
bids them. Who ia fsshioni What is she
that all women should obey heri They
frankly confess that they do not know
When one considers how blindly and i'm
plic!ty they have obeyed her every whim
for yesrs-nsy, for csuturies-surely the
confession should bs a mortifying one.
We have always hs ard q great deal about
the leaders of fashion; now we learn that
those powerful percentages are more or less
mythical. Through the mouth of Sir
Henry Ponscnby we hear that her gracious
majesty does not consider that fashion Is q
subject upon which shs can give an Opin-
ion, and like answer has been received
from the Princess of Wales. Evidently,
therefore, the leaders of fashion are not to
be found in the precincts of the court, or,
We may slso supposc, among the great Ia
dies Of society. Common report assigns
some of the most startling changes In wo-
mans attire to Paris In the days of the
second empire there Was, without doubt, q
good deal of resson for imagining that our
fashions came from our n.ighbors across
the channel, ard thst the French stsge,
controlled to q certain extent by the court
of the Tuileries. was responsible fer each
fresh innovation. To-day We do not fancy
that our French neighbors are more dis
posed TO lead ne than to follow us; at sny
rate they themselves no longer posse Sc q
supreme ar5Iter of fashion, and, as far as
one can judge, are every whit as much at