The herald., 1895-09-01

conventionalities, Mr.. Cleveland will
surely be found inside of some dignifed
sty 10 of small clothes. What would he
wear? There are more styles OF knicker-
bockers than there are OF pantaloon suits.
but the former are so be-ribboned and
fancified that quiet, ssdate man like Mr..
cleveland may have considerable trouble
in selecting befitting style.
Mr. Cleveland would first try and dis
cover something which would include a
semblance OF his beloved frock coat. If
he looked over all the fashion plates
showing costumes back for several GEN.
turies, the best that he could find would
be that worn by the "lncroyables OF
Just 100 years ago.
The Incroyables wore dou BILE breas ted
coat which almost reached to the knees;
skin-t tight fitting breeches reaching to the
ankle and boots as high as the calf of the
leg. They wore ponderous stocks and q
W wide- -brimmed felt hat with a crown,
shaped somewhat like our silk hat.
Bunches of gay ribbons were fasteneu at
the knee bnt these could be dispensed
with. In fact very sensible modlflca-
ton OF this suit could be affected In
stead of the long skin-tight breeches,
loose knickerbockers, stockings and or
dinary shoes could be worn.
Political men of the PETER stamp may
find 1t difficult TO adopt the knicker-
booker costume to their ideas. but there
is some hope for them in a citizenized
edition of the Continental army uniform.
1t is plain. businessike and matter-of-
fact with few trills and able to stand
lot OF wear and tear. OF course the three
cornered hat and queue would be dis
pensed with and it is som ething OF
question,to figure out how long flowing
whiskers might disturb the general effect.
The Continentas wore lung coats the
skirts of which could be turned aside IN
Co.. . I, hpnl IInn
gaiters reaching to the knee were worn.
and this fashion can be revived for the
benefit of thin-legged men. The knicker-
bockeTs worn by the Contihentals were
snug fitting and the waistcoat was trlhe
too gay in hue for n modern use.
1t will be worth going long way. to
see the Hon. Chauncey NJ. Depew going
to his duties at the Grand Central depot
in the work-a-day suit which the swell
tailors say will soon be worn. This suit
ID purely modern and has nothing what
ever to do with the fashions of long ago.
1t is simply an offspring of the bicycle
and golf. What is more it is eminently
sensible, business like and comfortable.
An ordinary coat and vest is worn, the
most suitable coat being the double
breasted affair. Loosely fitting knicker-
book er trousers tightly strapped in at the
knee with heavy golf stockings and or
binary walking shoes complete the outfit.
A man IN this dress will hardly attract
any attention these days, by reason of its
close resemblance TO the accepted bicycle
costume. These stockings are now made
thick and heavy which. together with the
overlap at the top. MAKE pipe-stem legs
appear of passable dimensions.
The hest stockings are those knitted by
the Scotch peasant, although the colors
are inclined to be extrayagant. The feet
are thin, but from the ankle up there is
an increasing Thickness. Tney are quite
expensive, costing as high as $5 pair.
The feature of the knicke erbockers is the
deep band Just below the knee. The band
is made of leather or canvas, usually the
latter and is fastened with buttons which
require the aid of a button hook before
the ends can be joined. In rainy or
stormy weather canvas leggings worn
from the knee down will form better
protection than the long pantaloons
which so quickly become water soaked.
The society man who loves to adorn
himself will have a limitless scope for
his pet enjoyment when the knickerbock-
er era is in full swing. He can be as ex-
trayagant in colors and styles as his