The Heritage of Dress: Being Notes on the History and Evolution of Clothes

by Wilfred Mark Webb

SURVIVALS IN CHILDREN’S DRESS—SPECIAL SCHOOL COSTUMES—THE BLUE-COAT BOY—PUBLIC SCHOOL BOYS—ADOPTION OF A SPECIAL DRESS AT GIRLS’ SCHOOLS

Children’s costume, though characteristic, is in some instances connected with ceremonies, and in others with particular institutions; it may therefore with advantage be considered at this point.

We find that for very many centuries in this country, children, except when small babies and in their early years, were dressed practically in the same way as their parents, and looked like men and women in miniature.

The ludicrous effect that was sometimes produced is well seen in Hogarth’s engravings, which date from the time when infants were powdered and patched as well as dressed in a way that made them truly grotesque.

A relic of this custom is still to be seen in certain costumes which it is now fashionable for children to wear. Possibly the sailor’s suit takes the most prominent place, and the Highland dress is also a favourite. It is perhaps not very strange that we do not see little boys going about in the uniform of policemen, and until the South African war occupied the attention of this country, boys were seldom if ever seriously dressed as soldiers, but during the struggle to which allusion has been made, it was not an uncommon sight to see small boys in the khaki uniform and slouch hats which were adopted by the troops in Africa. Now, of course, the knickerbockers of the small boy, and the short skirts of his little sisters, though not absolutely characteristic of extreme youth, are recognized features of children’s costume.

As regards small infants, it is still customary for some time after they are born to wrap more or less of a bandage round them in order to protect their tender bodies from injury. The modern “binder” is, of course, a relic of swaddling clothes, or those which consisted of a profusion of bandages. These still survive in the Holy Land. It may here be said that we meet in the word “pupa,” which is the scientific term that we apply to a chrysalis, with the old Greek name for a baby in swaddling clothes. It is used now because the wings and legs of the future flying insect are hidden in something the same way as are the legs and arms of the much trussed-up baby. From the same word we get the name “puppet” and the French word “poupée,” meaning a doll.

In Roman Catholic churches at the time of baptism it is still the custom to place on the head of the baby a white cloth. It is now too small to cover the body, and it is called the chrysome, or chrism cloth, and with it once the newly-baptized infant was swathed. This was worn for a month by the child, and if the latter died within that time the cloth was used as a shroud. The chrysome is really the remains of a series of vestments which in the sixth or seventh century were worn by the newly baptized. The most important part of the costume was the albe, which was probably similar to that worn by the clergy, and a chaplet of flowers was also used to crown the child after baptism.

There are in this country still a few monumental brasses called chrysom brasses showing babies in their baptismal robes. A case where the child is swathed up even more rigidly than was customary in the old world is to be seen in the case of the North American Indian papoose, which is fastened down to a cradle of board or basket work, and at first is so fixed by the swaddling process that only its head is movable. In some instances several months elapse before even the arms are allowed to be free, and these are fastened up again at night.

It is probably owing to deformities that were at first accidentally caused by this bandaging process, that the fashions arose which demand that the shape of the skull in certain races shall be intentionally and artificially altered. To this subject, however, we shall refer again when dealing with the question of the effects of clothes upon the body.

As might well be imagined, the petticoats of small boys are a survival, and one which is to be commended in every way. The putting of infants at an early age into jersey knickerbocker suits cannot but be bad for them physically, and it makes them look for all the world like little woollen monkeys. Mr. Druitt[22] has described as many as seven brasses of various dates between the years 1585 and 1642, which show boys dressed in petticoats.