defended, except when required by our obligations to the more strenuous
requirements of duty. Usually, however, departures from conventional
propriety evince simply an ill-regulated character. The Laws of
Convention, like all wise laws, are instituted to promote "the greatest
good of the greatest number." They constitute a _Code of Politeness and
Propriety_, adapted to the promotion of social convenience, varying
somewhat with local circumstances, it may be, but everywhere
substantially the same. It is common to talk of the eccentricities of
genius, as though they are essential concomitants of genius itself.
Nothing can be more unfounded and pernicious than this impression. The
eccentricities that sometimes characterize the intellectually gifted,
are but so many humiliating proofs of the imperfection of human nature,
even when exhibiting its highest attributes. Hence the affectation of
such peculiarities simply subjects one to ridicule, and, in many
instances, to the contempt of sensible people.
Some years since, when Byron was the "bright, particular star"
worshipped by young Sophs, it was quite a habit among our juvenile
collegians to drink gin, wear their collars _a la mode de Byron_,
cultivate misanthropy upon system, and manifest the most concentrated
horror of seeing women eat! In too many instances, the sublimity of
genius was meagerly illustrated by these aspirants for notoriety. In
place of catching an inspiration, they only caught cold; their gloomy
indifference to the hopes, the enjoyments, and pursuits of ordinary
life, distressed no one, save, perhaps, their _ci-devant_ nurses, or the
"most tender of mothers;" their "killing" peculiarities of costume were
scarcely daguerreotyped even upon the impressible hearts of the
school-girls whose smiling observance they might chance passingly to
arrest; women of sense and education pertinaciously adhered to a liking
for roast beef, with variations, and manifested an equally decided
partiality for the society and attention of men who were not indebted
for the activity of their intellects to the agency of the juniper berry!
Falling into such absurdities as these, a man cannot hope to escape the
obnoxious imputation of being _very young_!
But while care is taken to avoid the display of undue attention to the
adornment of the outer man, everything approaching to indifference or
neglect, in that regard, should be considered equally reprehensible. No
one entertains a more profound respect for the prodigious learning of
Dr. Johnson, from knowing that he often refused to dine out rather than
change his linen; nor are we more impressed by the gallant tribute to
kindred genius that induced his attending Mrs. Siddons to her carriage,
when she visited him in the third-floor rooms he continued to occupy
even in his old age, because his trunk-hose were dangling about his
heels, as he descended the stairs with his fair guest. One does not envy
Porson, the greatest of modern Greek scholars, his habitually dirty and
shabby dress, because it is forever associated with his learned
celebrity! Neither is Greeley a better, or more influential editor, that
he is believed to be invisible to mortal eyes except when encased in a
long drab-colored overcoat. He, however, seems to have adopted an axiom
laid down in a now almost-forgotten novel much admired in my
youth--"Thaddeus of Warsaw," I think--"Acquire the character of an
oddity, and you seat yourself in an easy-chair for life." The
supposition of monomania most charitably explains the indulgence in
habits so disgusting as those well-known to have characterized the
distinguished _savant_ ----, who died recently at Paris. Had he slept in
a clean bed, and observed the decencies of life, generally, the race
would have been equally benefited by his additions to scientific lore,
and his country the more honored that he left a name in no degree in
_bad odor_ with the world!
But to return:--No better uninspired model for young Americans exists
than that afforded, in the most minute details, of the life and
character of Washington; and even upon a point comparatively so
insignificant as that we are at present discussing, he has left us his
recorded opinion: "Always," he writes to his nephew, "have your clothes
made of the best materials, by the most accomplished persons in their
business, whose services you can command, and in the prevailing
fashion."
With such illustrious authority for the advice, then, I unhesitatingly
counsel you to dress _in the fashion_.
To descend to particulars designed to include all the minutiae of a
gentleman's wardrobe, were as futile as useless; but a few hints upon
this point, may, nevertheless, not be wholly out of place in epistles so
frank, practical and familiar as these are intended to be.
The universal partiality of our countrymen for _black_, as the color of
dress clothes, at least, is frequently remarked upon by foreigners.
Among the best dressed men on the continent, as well as in England,
black, though not confined to the clergy, is in much less general use
than here. They adopt the darker shades of blue, brown and green, and
for undress almost as great diversity of colors as of fabrics. An
English gentleman, for instance, is never seen in the morning (which
means abroad all that portion of the twenty-four hours devoted to
business, out-door amusements and pursuits, &c.;--it is always _morning_
until the late dinner hour has passed) in the half-worn coat of fine
black cloth, that so inevitably gives a man a sort of shabby-genteel
look; but in some strong-looking, rough, knock-about "fixin,"
frequently of nondescript form and fashion, but admirably adapted both
in shape and material for use--for work. Of this, by the way, every man,
worthy of the name, has a daily portion to perform, in some shape or
other--from the Duke of Devonshire, with a fortune that would purchase
half-a-dozen consort-king-growing German principalities, and leave a
princely inheritance for his successors, to the youngest son of a
youngest son, who, though proud of the "gentle blood" in his veins,
earns, as an _employe_ in the service of the government,--in some one of
its ten thousand forms of patronage and power--the limited salary that
barely suffices, when eked out by the most ingenious economy, to supply
the hereditary necessities of a gentleman. But this is a digression. As
I was saying in the morning, during work-hours, whatever be a man's
employment, and wherever, his outside garb should be suited to ease and
convenience, its only distinctive marks being the most scrupulous
cleanliness, and the invariable accompaniment of fresh linen.
Coming to the discussion of matters appertaining to a toilette elaborate
enough for occasions of ceremony, I think of no better general rule than
that laid down by Dr. Johnson (in his character of a shrewd observer of
men and manners, rather than as himself affording an illustration of the
axiom, perhaps)--"_the best dressed persons are those in whose attire
nothing in particular attracts attention_."
There is an indescribable air of refinement, a _je ne sais quoi_, as
the French have it, at an equal remove from the over-washed look of your
thorough Englishman (their close-cropped hair always reminds me of the
incipient stage of preparation for assuming a strait-jacket!) and the
walking tailor's advertisement that perambulates Fifth Avenue,
Chestnut-street, the Boston Mall, and other fashionable promenades in
our cis-Atlantic cities, in attendance upon the locomotive milliner's
show-cases, yclept "belles"--God save the mark!
The essentials of a gentleman's dress, for occasions of ceremony are--a
stylish, well-fitting cloth coat, of some dark color, and of
unexceptionable quality; nether garments to correspond, or in warm
weather, or under other suitable circumstances, white pants of a
fashionable material and make; the finest and purest linen, embroidered
in white, if at all; a cravat and vest, of some dark or neutral tint,
according to the physiognomical peculiarities of the wearer, and the
_prevailing mode_; a fresh-looking, fashionable black hat and
carefully-fitted, modish boots, light-colored gloves, and a soft, thin,
white handkerchief.
Perhaps, the most arbitrary of earthly divinities permits her subjects
more license in regard to the arrangement of the hair and beard, than
with respect to any other matter of the outer man. A real artist, and
such every man should be, who meddles with the "human face divine" or
its adjuncts, will discern at a glance the capabilities of each head
submitted to his manipulation. Defects will thus be lessened, or wholly
concealed, and good points brought out.
If you wear your beard, wear it in moderation--extremes are always
vulgar! Avoid all fantastic arrangements of the hair--turning it under
in a huge roll, smooth as the cylinder of a steam-engine, and as little
suggestive of good taste and comfort as would be the coil of a boa
constrictor similarly located, parting it in Miss Nancy style, and
twisting it into love [soap?] locks with a curling-tongs, or allowing it
to straggle in long and often, seemingly, "uncombed and unkempt" masses
over the coat-collar. This last outrage of good-taste is so gross a
violation of what is technically called "keeping," as to excite in me
extreme disgust. Ill, indeed, does it accord with the trim, compact,
easily-portable costume of our day, and a miserable imitation, it is of
the flowing hair that, in days of yore, fell naturally and gracefully
upon the broad lace collar turned down over the velvet or satin
short-cloak of the cavaliers and appropriately adorning shoulders upon
which, with equal fitness, drooped a long, waving plume, from the
wide-brimmed, steeple-crowned, picturesque hat that completed the
costume.
While on this subject of _collars_, etc., let us stop to discuss for a
moment the nice matter of their size and shape. Just now, like the
"life" of a "poor old man," they have "dwindled to the shortest span,"
under the pruning shears of the operatives of the mode. Whether this is
the result of a necessity growing with the lengthening beards that
threaten wholly to ignore their existence, you must determine for
yourselves, but I must enter my protest against the total extinction of
this relieving line of white, so long, at least, as the broad wristband,
now so appropriately accompanying the wide coat-sleeve, shall remain in
vogue.
The mention of this last tasteful appendage naturally brings to mind the
highly ornate style of sleeve-buttons now so generally adopted. Eschew,
I pray you, all _flash stones_ for these or any other personal ornament.
Nothing is more unexceptionable for sleeve-buttons and the fastenings of
the front of a shirt, than _fine gold_, fashioned in some simple form,
sufficiently massive to indicate use and durability, and skillfully and
handsomely wrought, if ornamented at all. Few young men can consistently
wear diamonds, and they are, if not positively exceptionable, in no
degree requisite to the completion of the most elaborate toilette. But
those who do sport them, should confine themselves to genuine stones of
unmistakable water, and never let their number induce in the minds of
beholders the recollection that a travelling Jew--whether from
hereditary distrust of the stability of circumstances, or from some
other consideration of personal convenience, usually carries his entire
fortune about his person! Better the simplest fastenings of
mother-of-pearl than such staring vulgarity of display. And so of a
watch and its appendages. A _gentleman_ carries a watch for convenience,
and secures it safely upon his person, wearing with it no useless
ornament, paraded to the eye. It is, like his pencil and purse, good of
its kind, and if he can afford it, handsome, but it is never _flashy_!
The fashion of sporting _signet-rings_ is not so general, perhaps, as it
was a little while since, but it still retains a place among the minutiae
of our present theme. Here, again, the same general rules of good taste
apply as to other ornaments. When worn at all, everything of this sort
should be most unexceptionably and unmistakably tasteful and genuine.
Any deviation from good _ton_, in this regard, will as inevitably give a
man the air of a loafer as an ill-fitting boot will, or the slightest
declension from the perpendicular in his hat!
In connection with my earnest advice in regard to all flash ornaments,
to whatever purpose applied, I must not omit to record my protest
against staring patterns in pants, cravats, vests, etc. Carefully avoid
all the large, many-colored plaids and stripes, of which (as _Punch_ has
demonstrated) it takes more than one ordinary-sized man to show the
pattern; and all glaring colors as well. I have no partiality, as I
believe I have intimated, for the eternal dead black which, abroad at
least, belongs, by usage, primarily to the clergy; but this is a better
extreme than that which has for its original type the sign-board
getting-up of a horse-jockey.
A fashion has of late years obtained extensively, which has always,
within my remembrance, had its admirers--that of a _white suit
throughout_, for very warm weather. This has the great merit of comfort,
and some occupations permit its adoption without inconvenience. But
even the use of thin summer cravats (which should always be of some
unconspicuous color) wonderfully mitigates the sufferings incident to
the dog-days, and these are admissible for dress occasions, when
corresponding with the general effect of the vest and nether
investments.
To recur once more to the important item of body linen;--never wear a
_colored_[1] shirt--have no such article in your wardrobe. Figures and
stripes do not conceal impurity, nor should this be a desideratum with
any decent man. The now almost obsolete German author, Kotzebue--whose
plays were very much admired when I was young, and whom your modern
students of German should read in the original--I remember, makes one of
his female characters, a sensible, observing woman, say that she
detected a _gentleman_ in the disguise of a menial by observing the
_fineness of his linen_! If your occupation be such as to require
strong, rough-and-tumble garments, wear them, unhesitatingly, when you
are at work, but have them good of their kind, and keep them clean.
While your dress handkerchief should not look, either for size or
quality, as if you had, for the nonce, perverted the proper use of
bed-linen--in the woods, for pioneer travelling, rough riding, etc., a
bandanna is more sensible, as is a cut-away coat, or something of that
sort, with ample pockets, loose, strong, and warm, and a "soft"
broad-brimmed, durable hat, or cap, as the case may be--not an old, fine
black cloth dress-coat, surmounted by a narrow-rimmed "segment of a
stove-pipe," with a satin cravat, though it be half-worn! In short, my
dear boys, study fitness and propriety in all things. This is the
legitimate result of a well regulated mind, the characteristic of a true
Gentleman--which every American should aim to be--not a thing made up of
dress, perfumery, and "boos," as Sir Archy McSycophant styled them; but
a right-minded, self-respecting man, with Excelsior for his motto, and
our broad, free, glorious land "all before him, where to choose" the
theatre of a useful, honorable life. Matters like those I have dwelt on
in this letter, are trifles, comparatively; but trifles, in the
aggregate, make life, and, thus viewed, are not unworthy the subordinate
attention of a man of sense. They are collateral, I admit, but they go
to make up the perfect whole--to assist in the attainment of the true
standard which every young man should keep steadily in view. And,
insignificant as the effect of attention to such matters may appear to
you, depend upon it, that habits of propriety and refinement in regard
to such personal details, have more than a negative influence upon
character in general. The man who preserves inviolable his self-respect,
in regard to all personal habits and surroundings, is, _ceteris
paribus_, far less likely to acquire a relish for low company and
profligate indulgences, and to cultivate correspondent mental and moral
attributes. It occurs to me that, going into detail, as I have, your
attention should, in the proper connection, have been called to a little
matter of dress etiquette, of which you moderns are strangely
neglectful, as it appears to an old stickler for propriety like me. To
have offered an ungloved hand to a lady, in the dance, would, in days
when I courted the graces, have been esteemed a peccadillo, and
over-punctilious as you may think me, it seems very unhandsome to me. A
dress costume is no more complete without gloves than without boots, and
to touch the pure glove of a lady with uncovered fingers
is--impertinent!
[1] It will be understood, of course, that the necessities and the
regulations of military life are here excepted.
Here, again, let me condemn all fancy display. A fresh white, or, what
amounts at night to the same thing, pale yellow glove, is the only
admissible thing for balls, other large evening parties, ceremonious
dinners, and wedding receptions; but for making ordinary morning visits,
or for the street, some dark, unnoticeable color is in quite as good
taste and _ton_. Bright-colored gloves bring the hands into too much
conspicuousness for good effect, and, to my mind, give the whole man a
plebeian air. I remember once being, for a long time, unable to divine
what a finely-dressed young fellow, in whom I thought I recognised the
son of an old college chum, could be carrying in each hand, as he walked
towards me across the Albany Park; of similar size and color, he seemed,
John Gilpin like, to have
----"hung a bottle on each side
To keep the balance sure!"
When I could, in sailor phrase, "make him out," behold a pair of great
fat hands, incased in tight-fitting gloves, closely resembling in hue
the brightest orange-colored wrapping-paper!
You will expect me not entirely to overlook the important topic of
_over-garments_.
As in all similar matters, it is the best taste not to deviate so much
from the prevailing modes as to make one's self remarkable. Fortunately,
however, for the infinite diversity presented by the human form, a
sufficient variety in this respect is offered by fashion to gratify the
greatest fastidiousness. And no point of dress, perhaps, more
imperatively demands discrimination, with regard to its selection. Thus,
a tall, slender figure, with narrow shoulders and ill-developed arms, is
displayed to little advantage in the close-fitting, long-skirted
overcoat that would give desirable compactness to the rotund person of
our short, portly friend, Alderman D., while the defects of the same
form would be almost wholly concealed by one of the graceful and
convenient Talmas that so successfully combine beauty and comfort, and
afford, to an artistically-cultivated eye, the nearest approach to an
abstract standard of taste, presented by masculine attire, since the
flowing short cloak of the so-called Spanish costume was in vogue.
Here, again, one is reminded of the propriety of regarding _fitness_ in
the selection of garments especially designed to promote comfort.
Nothing can well be more ungainly than the appearance of a man in one of
the large woollen shawls that have of late obtained such general favor,
at least as they are frequently worn, slouching loosely from the
shoulders, and almost necessarily accompanied by a stoop, the more
readily to retain them in place. They are well adapted to night travel,
to exposed riding and driving (when properly secured about the chest),
and are useful as wrappers when a man is dressed for the opera or a
ball. But that any sensible person should encumber himself with such an
appendage in _walking_--for daily street wear--is matter for surprise.
They have by no means the merit for this purpose of the South American
_poncho_, which is simply a large square shawl of thick woollen cloth,
with an opening in the centre for passing it over the head, thus
securing it in place, and giving the wearer the free use of his arms and
hands, a desideratum quite overlooked in the usual arrangement, or
rather _non_-arrangement of these dangling "M'cGregors." But the way, I
well remember, that one of the young T----s of Albany, not very many
years ago, was literally mobbed in the streets of that ancient asylum of
Dutch predilections, upon his appearance there in a _poncho_ brought
with him on his return from Brazil! So much for the mutations of fashion
and opinion!
To sum up all, let me slightly paraphrase the laconic and invariable
advice of the immortal Nelson to the young middies under his command.
"Always obey your superior officer," said the English hero, "and hate a
Frenchman as you would the devil!" Now then, for my "new reading:"--In
DRESS, _always obey the dictates of Fashion, regulated by good sense,
and hate shabby gentility as you would the devil_!
Well, you young dogs, here ends the substance of my first old-fashioned
letter of advice to you. I will confess that upon being convinced, as I
was at the very outset, how much easier it is to think and talk than to
write, I was more than half inclined to recall my promise to you all.
The pen of your veteran uncle, my boys, has little of "fuss and
feathers," though it may be "rough and ready." The "Mill-Boy of the
Slashes" used often to say, when we were both young men, and constantly
associated in business matters as well as in friendship, "Let Lunettes
do that, he holds the readier pen;" but times are changed since then,
and you must not expect fine rhetorical flourishes, or the elegances of
modern phraseology in these straight-forward effusions. I learned my
English when "Johnson's Dictionary" was the only standard of our
language, and the "Spectator" regarded as affording an unexceptionable
model of style. With this proviso, I dare say, we shall get on bravely,
now that we are once fairly afloat; and, perhaps, some day we'll get an
enterprising publisher in our Quaker City to shape these effusions into
a "_prent book_" for _private circulation_--a capital idea! at least for
redeeming my crabbed hieroglyphics from being "damned with faint praise"
by my "numerous readers," a thought by no means palatable to the
sensitive mind of your old relative.
I believe it was "nominated in the bond," that the subjects treated of
in each of my promised letters shall be illustrated by stories, or
anecdotes, drawn from what you were pleased to style "the ample stores
furnished by a life of large observation and varied experience." It
occurs to me, however, that as this, my first awkward essay to gratify
your united wishes, has already grown to an inconceivable length, it
were well to reserve for another occasion the fulfillment of the latter
clause of your request, as more ample space and a less lagging pen may
then second the efforts of
Your affectionate
UNCLE HAL.
P. S.--In my next, I will include some practical directions respecting
the details of costume suitable for various ceremonious occasions--the
opera, dinners, weddings, etc., etc.
"Whew!" methinks I hear you all exclaim, "our old uncle setting himself
up as
"'The glass of fashion and the mould of form!'
He may indeed be able to
----"'hold the mirror up to Nature;'
but to attempt to reflect the changeful hues of mere
fashion"----
Not too fast, my young friends! Do not suppose me capable of such folly.
But, for the benefit of such of you as are so far removed from the
centre of _ton_ as to require such assistance, I have invoked the aid
of a good-humored friend, thoroughly _au fait_ in such matters, the
"observed of all observers" in our American Belgravia, a luminary in
whose rays men do gladly sun themselves.
H. L.
LETTER II.
SKETCHES AND ANECDOTES.
MY DEAR NEPHEWS:
In accordance with the promise with which I concluded my last letter, I
will give you, in this, narrated in my homely way, some anecdotes,
illustrative of the opinions I have expressed upon the subject of DRESS.
* * * * *