The times., 1898-11-27
dame FASHIONS DECREE
Women Must Be Tall and
Slender as Switches.
CHARACTERISTIC COSTUMES
New Skirts Hang MS Limp as Wet
Feathers-Siecvc Are Long and
Tight, and With This Aesthetic
style the Ballroom Woman Wears
White CnmeIias.


gone into the season it is evident that
black is hardly, at least for younger wo-
men, cutting any figure at all. 1t seems
only used here and there 10 strengthen
the dazzling contrasts Of greens. b,uss
and yellows Six out of every e'ght dane
ing and dinner costumes hook or button
up in the rear and some sort of fiat trim
ming is let down over the back SO as 10
successfully imbue the uninitiated behold
er with the idea that the wearer was
born in the gown or else 1t was made on
her as neatly as her own cuticle.
After all, the trains have not developed
well. Dowagers do drag about in the
salons well folded draperies. REINFORCED
underneath to give an idea of body and
interlining but the trains the other wo-
men show are really no more than fiat,
extra long fiounces of chiffon that tog out
behind. not too tidily from three to eight
inches. How the lively bellies Will ever
foot it. in waltz polka, in their new
frocks, is a problem, for what with skirts
at the knee not two yards wide ard
fiounces falling on the floor all abjut,
cul promenade seems TO threaten destruc-
ton.
Undisputaably on a tall, slim, we'll
built woman this style of costume is
most attractive and one of the goods
worn very much. because of its capacity
for taking admirable straight folds, IS
Liberty velvet in color pink, lemon yell
low and sea green. The "elvet is exceed
ingly soft and is lined usually with China
silk or crepe de chine, and however il
may be trimmed the orthodox woman is
sure to wear one or two pink or white
or vividly red camelias directly in front
of her corsage. The unfailing camelia is
an artfully made silk flower, accompan-
led by two polished looking dark green
leaves; the leaves are allowed TO rest
against the wearer's white chest, to show
how dark one is and how fair the other.
1t is perfectly evident why long
sleeves are the mode for the evening.
In order TO achieve sufficient slender
ness to enable herself to wear these
new gowns every woman has reduced
herself until her arms are too lean to
bear exposure. though Mrs. John Jacob
Astor. for example, is so round yet slen-
der that, saving her evening glove, her
arm. is always quite bare. She is one
of the women who can wear a perfectly
square in the neck, short in the sleeve
and the bright beauty of the velvet and
the symmetry of her outlining, all unre-
lieved save by a few folds of coral chif-
fon over the bust and shoulders and a
white camelia high on the left breast.
Mrs. Astor is one Of the women who
rarely wears more than two colors at
a time, and those always distinctly
evening shades.
Apparently she does not approve of
the chromatic effects in yellows, greens
and blues. beginning with a deep tone
near the foot and shading out palely at
the shoulders. If any color is run after
this winter for evening wear it is yell
low, for If you select the right tint or
tone of yellow whether you are blonde
or dark, pale or rosy. you can wear Ii.
Canary wing is a variation in the palest
degree that takes pinkish lights under
the gas, and is much affected by the
brown-eyed, blonde-skinned girls. who
put knots of turquoise antique velvet
here and there. or veil a black crepe
with the eloud-like golden tissue. wom-
en- who have Oriental coloring will not
hesitate to put the warmest orange
chiffon over a petticoat of pomegranate
silk, and then on this drape long over
dress of tea-colored lace, frightened with
gold spangles.
Among pretty oddities In evening sleeves
are tight satin arm bags that come TO
the elbow; there they turn back deep
seweled cuff, while from this point TO the
wrist extends a ruched white chiffon
swathing that drops clear over the
knuckles. Another variety is the sleeve
10 the elbow. letting fall thence long
founces always to the knee. Narrow
black velvet ribbons as often encircle the
arm here, and dangle their loops and ends
amid the meshes of the fiounce. Hugging
the arm tight to the hand then goes a
sleeve Of white lace, TO be finished by a
satin cuff in fine slender points. that fall
over or back from the hand like petals
of a flower
There is no rule 10 set forth concerning
the shaping out of a decollete bodice
Only women with such faultlessly lovely
shoulders as Mrs. George De Forest or
Mrs. Potter Palmer can cut all the dress
away squarely over chest and shoulder
blades. A pretty style has come to pass
and benevolent one, too, of treating the
shoulders of an evening body with lace
points and letting the points converge at
the throat into a jewel collar. or lie in
bands oyer the shoulders. or otherwise
admirably veil too aquline bone, bridge
a hoiiow or break bad uae. the sat out
embroidery done in lovely coIors on net
ana muslin. the beautiful pearl Jet and
spangle passementeries are all serviceable
for trimming up in this wise some old
black silk or satin evening waist and
thereby giving thin woman the effect
of decollete waist with none of it's draw
backs.
1t Is sad to relate that on the whole
this end of the century has nothing char
acteristic in the way of hair dressing to
show. Our great-grandchildren will new
er hark back TO 1898, as We do to 1898. for
some lovely style to adopt with a fancy
dress or borrow an idea from us. Go to
the theater or opera if you like. for even
bonnets are no longer de rigeur and YOU
Will be sure to observe that the rule of
head dressing is ''go as you please"
Three horizontally fixed rear puffs is still
good way for doing the hair for the
street, though the majority of women pre-
fer 10 roll up the length of their tresses
in heavy long lump and fasten that as
low as possible on the neck With some
women this bag of hair lies even out on
the shoulders, and with a long short
toothed comb, that crosses the base of
the head behind the ears everything is
somehow made fast These combs are
nothing more than the old round pompa-
dour combs put to a new use.
One drawback to this headdress, as
adopted by day, is that IT can rarely be
kept tidy; 1t is ludicrous with the new
AitiAS anu int grease ruDS
OFF on the shoulders of the gown.
In the evening II is very pretty, for
mass of bright black, yellow or brown
hair down on white shoulders is becoming
TO most women, while some of these
combs are topped with briiliants, and at
either end the jewels form sort of ro-
sette, or two big glittering buttons behind
the wearer's ears. Not wisp of q bang
is seen feathering out on any thoughtful
white forehead, and only one new hair
ornament is talked about. This is a little
teweled chain about eighteen inches long,