FOOTNOTE:
[2] As will be seen, the tile design, [fig. 1], is what is termed a "bas relief," i.e., the forms in many cases are only just relieved from the ground, and only here and there are any of the forms in entire relief.
LOVE ON, LOVE EVER.
By RUTH LAMB.
"Love not, love not, ye hapless sons of earth."
How world-worn must have been the weary heart
When this sad strain belied its noblest part!
What! Bid us cease to love! Why life were pain
If this best attribute were given in vain.
Cease not to love. O, wherefore shouldst thou scorn
The flowers thy path beside, to cull the thorn?
Or heed the man who, all unblest with sight,
Counsels his fellow-man to shun the light?
Gazing around, 'tis ever hard to trace
The Maker's image in the Creature's face.
Seek it not there. That image wouldst thou prove,
Know the Divine gleams through our works of love.
If cruel Death a dear one rend away,
Let thy love follow; do not with the clay
Bury thy heart. Soar higher. Wherefore bow?
Yesterday's mortal is immortal now.
If thy life's labour meet with scant return,
Thou who hast wrought it should'st be last to mourn.
Nay more, rejoice. Each unpaid debt of love
Is so much treasure garnered up above.
Let cold ingratitude bring no dismay,
But rather aid thee on thy heavenward way.
Work on, love on, aye to increase the debt;
Thy God is not unrighteous to forget.
DRESS: IN SEASON AND IN REASON.
By A LADY DRESSMAKER.
The extreme warmth of September has naturally postponed ideas of winter, and our preparations are generally very backward. In fact, at the end of September many people would have said that they knew nothing whatever about new things, and that they did not want them either, and the secret of this indifference would have been attributable to the weather. It is to be hoped that we shall have a seasonable winter, less cold and disagreeable than the last.
During my visit to Paris I found but little to chronicle in the way of winter novelties. The chief changes seemed to be in materials and their designs. Checks are in high favour, and it is said they will supersede stripes; and last year, when I was there at this season, they said much the same thing, but this year they seemed more determined to vote stripes old-fashioned. To tell the truth, I think the Parisians, and the women in France generally, are great admirers of plaids, and do not find stripes becoming, simply because they are usually very short and stout. Englishwomen, who are tall and stout, like them because they decrease their apparent size, and give an effect of length while decreasing breadth. On tall people plaids have a bad effect.
AUTUMN CLOAKS, ULSTERS, AND GOWNS.
Rough-faced materials constitute the majority of those prepared, and plain stuffs are still united with plaided and striped ones in the same dress; but this is not an absolute rule this year, for some dresses are entirely of either plaids or stripes, or else are of plain material only. Many of the materials are plain, with a bordering at one edge of plaid. For instance, a grey of rough-faced stuff had a bordering of a large check in lines of a paler grey, a little relief being given by pale lines of a clear Naples-yellow. The effect was quiet and subdued by the roughness of the surface of the cloth. With this gown the underskirt was made of the plaid material, quite plain, and the overskirt of the bordered part was draped above it in simple straight long folds, the plaid part being at the lower edge of the overskirt. The bodice was of the plain, and it had a plastron, or waistcoat front, of the plaid. The buttons (as are many in use this year) are of smoked pearl, and are very small for the fronts of gowns and larger for the jacket-bodices. Bretelles of velvet are used as trimmings to the bodices of these rough woollens, and the collars and cuffs are almost invariably of the same material, which seems likely to retain its popularity through the winter. The velvet collars are both useful and becoming, and, in addition, they save white trimmings at the neck. We rather rejoice in our emancipation from that bondage, and I hear many people say they will never resume it again, now they have once found that they can look well without the once inevitable white collar or frill. The tendency in every woman's mind who is possessed of ordinary good sense is to simplify everything connected with clothes, and I feel sure we shall all be healthier and happier when we have banished many things from our wardrobes which we now think absolutely needful.
"Dr. Jaeger's sanitary woollen clothing," about which I have so often written in praise, has raised up some rival manufactures amongst our English makers, who have long been famous for their merino or lambswool stuffs. Pure woollen under-garments in England have always been thought to wear and to wash badly, and much of this has probably been owing to the fact that the washing was very bad and that no one before Dr. Jaeger ever tried washing woollens scientifically, so as to take out the grease and perspiration, and not to harden the material at the same time. By Jaeger's method this is done with lump ammonia and soap. The soap is cut into small pieces and boiled into a lather with water, and the lump ammonia is then added. This lather is used at about 100° Fahrenheit, and the clothes must not be rubbed, but allowed to soak for about an hour in the water, and must then be drawn backwards and forwards repeatedly in the bath till clean. Three waters are to be used, the two after the first lather being of the same heat, and of pure clean water. This leaves the clothes delightfully soft and supple, and their wearing qualities suggest nothing further as an improvement.
Some of the new English underclothing is very light and good, and claims to be of pure merino-wool. It is of varying thickness, and many ladies, both young and old, are adopting it for combinations; these and one petticoat forming the whole of the clothing. Of course, the thickness of these garments is to be suited to the season, and the gossamer clothing manufactured for the warm season leaves nothing to be desired in its lightness and apparent coolness.
BY THE LAKE SIDE WITH THE BOATS.
One does not associate thick materials with great heat, and the mere look of thick wool would make one begin to feel hot, however foolish it may sound to say so. When the skin becomes used to wearing wool it will be found more comfortable than either cotton or linen, and we, moreover, avoid the chance of chills after being over-heated. I know several people who date their almost perfect immunity from colds to the use of woollen underclothing, who previously had been martyrs to colds and coughs, and had been constantly imprisoned in the house during quite mild seasons. In England the climate (need I say so?) is fickle and changeable, and, singular to say, we may be, and many people are, apparently wrapped up carefully and seasonably, and yet we may all err on every hygienic point, in regard to the weight and porosity of materials.
So far as I can see in the newest styles, the loose-fronted bodices have it all their own way. Many of them only fasten at the throat and waist, either large buttons or handsome clasps being used. These jackets stretch open over the front to show a full waistcoat, this latter being a scarf long enough to continue below the waist and round it at either side, so as to form a sort of sash, showing under the edge of the bodice and ending under the long coat-tails at the back in ends or a bow.
The newest bonnets are still high in the front, or, if not high themselves, the trimmings are high. The horseshoe crowns which were introduced in the summer bid fair to become extremely popular, and the stringless bonnet will be in vogue as long as possible, and I have no doubt many people will wear it through the winter, too. Beaver bonnets are announced to take the place of kid or felt, and I have seen some black beaver crowns with open-work jet fronts, which appeared incongruous.
Leaves of all bright hues, the bramble and its berries, the blackberry, and the virginian-creeper, are likely to be in great favour for trimmings this autumn. These will be used even upon velvet and beaver bonnets.
There is a very strong feeling in many quarters in favour of restoring the "princess" cut of dress to favour. In a letter from a lady, it is very wisely said, in writing to a contemporary, "For active exercise, a dress ought to be cut all in one—'princess,' as the milliners call it—and so arranged in the skirt that there is no drapery which will catch in things, come unstitched, and look untidy; everything wants to be taut and trim, like tailor's work. But even the ladies' tailors will insist upon making a skirt and little jacket-bodice, instead of a dress in one piece. It is almost impossible to use the arms freely—to go out in a sailing-boat, for instance, and help in its management—or, in fact, to raise the arms high, without causing a hiatus between the two parts of the garment at the sides of the waist. I have noticed this happen so often, even with smart tailor-made gowns, the wearer being generally blissfully unconscious of the accident, that I feel bound to draw attention to it.
"It was curious to note the awful revelations made recently by a storm of wind on an elevated promenade by the sea. Every steel stood out in bold relief even under the most bouffante drapery. Upper-skirts broke away from the under, and displayed the sorry fact that the latter were only shams, formed of lining-calico, with patches of good material put in here and there, where the over-garment was cut open. One neat tailor-gown revealed the cotton back to the pretty waistcoat, a pretence which is carried out in every suit of clothes made for men, but which seemed an aggravated offence to art in a well-dressed woman. It was comforting to turn from such sartorial mistakes to a group of young girls sensibly clad in simple gowns, guiltless of pretence, of steels, or tournures. Gathered bodices and full plain skirts, confined by broad sashes, combined the elements of grace and utility, and exhibited no foolish attempt to distort and pervert nature."
I have given the full extract, as it contains much matter for thought for my readers, both young and middle-aged. I suppose everyone read with interest the celebration of the centenary of M. Chevreul, the great French chemist, who has been for years a great student of colour, and to whom we owe many alterations, inventions, and suggestions in dyes and colours. Trade has been assisted and developed by his researches, and the subject of colour harmonies has been placed by him in the position and basis of a science. When we admire the loveliness of our coloured materials, and notice the wonderful improvements of late years, we women may thank the industry and talent of M. Chevreul. I put in a long quotation from him some months ago, and it may interest some of my readers to hear that M. Chevreul has attained his hundredth year as a total abstainer, but drank his own health in a glass of champagne, tasted for the first time!
A LADY'S PYJAMA.
From a recently-published book I gather the following ideas, and as they coincide with what I am always impressing on my readers with reference to tight dresses and stays, I quote them gladly, as showing that there are other sensible women in the world, a class which I hope will every day increase:—"If you lace tightly, nothing can save you from acquiring high shoulders, abnormally large hips, varicose veins in your legs, and a red nose. Surely such penalties, to say nothing of heart disease, spinal curvature, and worse, are sufficiently dreadful to deter either maids or matrons from unduly compressing their waists? No adult woman's waist ought to measure less in circumference than twenty-four inches at the smallest, and even this is permissible to slender figures only. The rule of beauty is that the waist should be twice the size of the throat. Therefore, if the throat measure twelve and a half inches, round the waist should measure twenty-five. The celebrated statue know as the 'Venus de Medici,' the acknowledged type of beauty and grace, has a waist of twenty-seven inches, the height of the figure being only five feet two inches."
And, while on this subject, I must mention that some new stays, made of elastic material, have recently been advertised, which I should imagine were comfortable. Dr. Jaeger also has an elastic knitted bodice on his list, which is in reality a description of stays, and would afford sufficient support to a slight figure.
The illustrations to our dress instructions of this month show the prevailing characteristics of the gowns of the month, and also demonstrate how little change there is in them. As the majority of the community is still moving about at this season, most of the dress thought about and worn is suitable for travelling, as well as autumn. Now that we no longer think it needful to put on all our old clothes and to make our appearance grotesque, as was formerly the case, we very frequently follow the French and American plan, and have a special dress made for the tour we are about to undertake, which will do for day wear, as well as for journeying while we are away; then, furnished with a second nice black silk or satin for very best occasions, we are sufficiently well clad for every purpose. A dust cloak, travelling cloak, and short jacket are added, and some wise people take their fur capes; in fact, for short expeditions of a month or six weeks we do not like large trunks nor encumbrances, so we curtail all our wants, and are so much the happier, having less anxiety and worry. In addition to all this, we save our shillings in fees, and charges for over-weight, very considerably, and, when we are rid of the heavy trunks, last, not least, we break no backs.
While I am on this topic, I must mention that the late Exhibition (the Healtheries) was of great assistance to travellers in showing how much can be done to decrease weight and bulk in every way, and setting wits to work to improve in all directions. Thus we have wonderfully improved waterproofed cloaks, hygienic boots and shoes; and the improvement in trunks and bags is immense, in addition to their moderation in price.
The greatest unanimity prevails with regard to the small jackets, which seem patronised by young girls, as well as married women of every age. They are generally loose-fronted, but tight-fitting at the back, the fronts being lined with coloured silk. Many of them are braided, some gold braid being used, and many have a flat braided plastron in the front to button over and give a double-breasted effect. Serge in all hues seems very much liked, but the most popular are dark navy-blue and cream-white. Short cloaks, with sling-sleeves and hoods, are very much worn, also short mantelettes, like our paper-pattern for last month. These may be made in the material of the dress.
This autumn I must again mention the numbers of slightly full bodices of the "Garibaldi" and "Norfolk jacket" class that this season has brought out, to be worn with skirts of different materials. The different ladies' tailors of renown have taken up this idea, and it is probable that we shall see them greatly worn during the winter season. Some of these have a yoke, and some have a straight band on the shoulders, into which they are fulled. They are made in flannel, linen, and twilled silk, in all colours, striped, spotted, and plain, and with them the becoming fashion of the full basque has come in. Yoked bodices will be a decided winter style.
With these bodices there is generally a turned-down collar and long cuffs of velvet, and the belt should be also of velvet. In other cases the belt matches the full bodice, and is of moiré or Petersham ribbon.
The fancy for stripes as well as plaids is shown by the dresses in the illustration of the autumn fashions. The figure standing in the centre of our boating picture at the English lakes, shows a blue flannel or serge, made up with a striped material. The vest and revers show the stripe as well as the underskirt. The back of this dress is shown by one of the distant figures. The other wears one of the new blouse bodices, which will be the style of the winter. In the larger of our illustrations is shown the general tendency of the day. The cloaks and ulsters are of plaid, and there is but little change in the shapes. The girl in the sailor's hat shows one of the full white under-vests, the jacket being almost of a Breton style. The edge is braided, and so is one panel at the side of the skirt. The two bonnets, one in each picture, show one with strings and one without. They are not quite so high, and both have the horseshoe crown, which, as the last summer novelty, bids fair to be adopted for the autumn and winter.
The pattern for this month will, I hope, be a surprise, as well as a great comfort, to those of my readers who select it, and who wish to attain to the greatest amount of comfort and hygienic advantages in their underclothing. The pattern in question is a combination nightgown, or lady's "pyjama," and is a novelty which will be found of much value and comfort. It consists of five pieces—front, back, lower back, and two sleeve pieces. The method of putting together is carefully indicated by marks in the pattern, and no difficulty will be experienced in the making-up. The amount of material required will be from 4½ to 5 yards, and calico, flannel, or swansdown, or the new cotton flannel, may, any of them, be used to make it. For the winter season it will be found to supply a great increase in warmth, and, to the invalid, a great comfort, as it fits closely, will not form creases, nor "ruck up," as the ordinary nightgown always does, to the discomfort of the wearer.
Each of the patterns may be had of "The Lady Dressmaker," care of Mr. H. G. Davis, 73, Ludgate-hill, E.C., price 1s. each. It is requested that the addresses be clearly given, and that postal notes, crossed so as to be eligible only to go through a bank, may be sent, as so many losses have occurred through the sending of postage stamps. The patterns already issued can always be obtained, as "The Lady Dressmaker" shows constantly in her articles how they can be made use of.
The following is a list of those already issued:—April, braided loose-fronted jacket; May, velvet bodice; June, Swiss belt and full bodice, with plain sleeves; July, mantle; August, Norfolk or pleated jacket; September, housemaid's or plain skirt; October, combination garment (underlinen); November, double-breasted out-of-door jacket; December, zouave jacket and bodice; January, princess under-dress (under-linen, under-bodice, and skirt combined); February, polonaise with waterfall back; March, new spring bodice; April, divided skirt and Bernhardt mantle with sling sleeves; May, Early English bodice and yoke bodice for summer dress; June, dressing jacket, princess frock, and Normandy peasant's cap, for a child of four years; July, Princess of Wales' jacket-bodice and waistcoat for tailor-made gown; August, bodice with guimpe; September, mantle with stole ends and hood. October, "pyjama" or nightdress combination with full back.