The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-07-08

world of apparel greets the rising of the medieval sun, season after season, decade after decade.
 The medievalism of the day need not reflect the twelfth century of the early Britons. It can so back into the days of the Byzantium and 1t can reflect the colorful glory of Italy under the birth of the Renaissance. Every page in his-
 tory suggests @ whole field of costum
 cry to the designer who reads it alright.
 No wonder that we continue to wear the
 clothes which covered the women Of
 those centuries!
 The Napoleonic period is as deeply im-
 pressed on the minds of the designers
 There was nothing medieval about French
 costumery throughout the reign of the
 superman, but there were so many ec-
 centricities, such vast variety of beau
 tiful lines and curves. so much glowing
 narrative and tragic romance attached
 to the sweep of a skirt and the flow of a
 sleeve, that the dressmakers never get
 away from those pages of rostumery.
 Today we are again threatened with
 the Napoleonic. We are almost sated
 with medievalism The directoire beck
 ons; the First Empire allures. The mad
 ness of Mime. Tallien will not be repeated today, unless France is suddenly assured of victory, when, if history repeats itself, she may go quite mad again for short time, through the costumery of her women.
 In this glow of feeling toward the Ma poleonic period we are not even averse to the laced bodice and the gathered skirt of those 'citoyennes' who wrecked the Tullieries and parceled among them the | finery of the Austrian.
 l Already the colored cotton bodice laced 1 with cords, instead of fastened, has come | into being. The liberty cap is being l brought out by the mlliners in modern 1 form which is still the symbol of equality and fraternity.
 l The high waistline and the long skirt that droops in a simple line from bust l to ankles have been introduced by pow erful designers, who have usually had l their way in the world of fashion. l Broad stripes in taffeta and soft silk | are offered for skirts, separate peplum ! blouses, revers and hats.
 1 And so it is. And if an airman were 1 in an airplane above the fashions o1 J the hour on the battlefields of commerce | his map would show the Napoleonic l struggling with the medieval. Both l have cohorts of strength behind them I THE MILITARY INFLUENCE 1 Between the medieval and the Napo- 1 leonic which still influences the majority l of clothes that are offered this summer {. the new military dress is wedged. Il l forms salient that is being rapidly l strengthened and organized.
 l The first woman who appeared in a 1 military outfit at fashionable restau- | rant at the noon hour received as much l enthusiastic attention as did the young I artilleryman who stood behind rapid l firing gun mounted in the lobby of the 1 hotel, with poster asking for subscrip- l tions to the liberty loan as a background l The woman who wore the military cos tune had just come off duty and was ] getting her lunch in as much of hurry l as she could. It amused her very much
 that number of people thought she was 1 in fancy dress costume
 She wore the khaki of the United | States army, Russian leather, low-heeled l shoes, puttees of the material to hel