The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-10-10

! Traced to her ruff At the mention of her
name figure rises before us from out the
| year l5SS-a figure with a Understanding
| lace-edged run, spreading into wired wings
OF gauze and jewels. with be-gemmed
| stomacher and with pOrtentious farthin-
| gales Thus was the famous woman attr-
| ca When she went to church to give thanks
Tor the defeat of the Spanish armada, and
| II is IN this historic garb that her shade
! generally chooses to walk Anne Boleyn
| had slender, defenseless neck; Eliza beth
Tudor had scrawny one, but it was well
defended by plump ruffs and high-temper-
! ed energy.
Runs We're first made of holland, but
| TINS FABRIC yielded to lawn and cambria
! when starch was brought into England 1t
| was in 1864 that Mrs. Wingham, a Flem-
| ing, came to London as a starcher of rufus
| and teacher of the art. She drew
around her large classes of pupils, and as
she charged 20 per pupil, with an addi-
tional fee Of 20 shillings for instruction in
'seething the starch" she found her
handicraft profitable. Amid general en-
thusiasm for starch and its results there
were, however, unreconciled spirits. Philip
STUDIES, in his "Anatomie of Abuses"
thus vents his feelings: THE devil hath
learned them to wash and dress their ruffs
which, being dry, will then stand stiff and
infexibe about their necks."
All this FILLING and starching preceded
the use of the umbrella, consequently gal
lants and ladies, when caught in show
ers, were wont to present a most disman-
tied appearance. This sorry sight stirred
Mr.. Stubbes to derisive laughter. 1t
seemed to him that the shower was a di-
rect Judgment from heaven upon the inn
pious ruff.
In the reign of James I the ruff contract,
ed its circumference somewhat, and then
it assumed a modified form known as the
banda wide, stiff collar, horizontal
and square, starched, wired and edged
with lace. About this time yellow starch
| had a brief reign. Fashion everywhere
rayed out in lemon, orange or saffron, but
when the importer of yellow starch, Mrs.
Turner of France, was executed for the
poisoning of Sir Thomas Overbury, there
was revulson in public taste. The wo-
man went to her death in a yellow ruff,
and the collar and crime being thus asso-
ciated had to be punished together. Aud
thus it has been said that yellow starch
died at the gallows.'
Charles 1 introduced to his courtiers a
picturesque collar of point lace, with Van
Dyke edge, and Henrietta Maria to her
ladies a dainty handkerchief. To these
fashions cavaliers held through the civil
war and the severe styles of the common
wealth.
Charles II adopted "the neckcloth," or
CIdNdl, with GIlNiS VI ldC6 ne btN ne was
an expensive one, to judge from a royal
entry of cost-"f2O 10 shilllngs for cravat
to be worn on the birthday of my dear
brother" This outlay seems to Justify an
early definition of the word "cravat'-
namely, "a handsome, gracious, new
fashioned gourget."
Linen as a fabric for neckwear came
into use very tardily, considering it's an
tiquity and that it was ever at hand for
experiment. 1t would seem that. though
the rich wore the fabric with their purple
and though saints were reputed to wear it
in heaven, common mortality did not seize
upon it for a practical standard collar I'M
til starch had done its utmost with lawn
and other half-hearted textures. 1t has
the general word this year 1897 under de-
| sirable rule. Since the rise of the linen
collar men have never rebelled against its
rules; women sometimes ,have, just now
they are acquiescent. And so the popular
| cry is:
Let us have standing collars in the fason;
All are becoming a stiff-necked generation