Sentence:  Mind you, clothes were clothes in those days. [...]  Frills, ruffles, flounces, lace, complicated seams and gores: not only did they <WSD>sweep</WSD> the ground and have to be held up in one hand elegantly as you walked along, but they had little capes or coats or feather boas. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  to brush against or over; to rub lightly along