Let thy attyre bee comely, but not costly.
_Euphues, 1579_. J. LYLY.
The soul of this man is his clothes.
_All's Well that Ends Well, Act ii. Sc. 5_.. SHAKESPEARE.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not expressed in fancy; rich, not gaudy:
For the apparel oft proclaims the man.
_Hamlet, Act i. Sc. 3_. SHAKESPEARE.
We'll have a swashing and a martial outside.
_As You Like It, Act i. Sc. 3_. SHAKESPEARE.
O fair undress, best dress! it checks no vein,
But every flowing limb in pleasure drowns,
And heightens ease with grace.
_Castle of Indolence, Canto I_. J. THOMSON.
What a fine man
Hath your tailor made you!
_City Madam, Act i. Sc. 2_. P. MASSINGER.
Thy gown? why, ay;--come, tailor, let us see't.
O mercy, God! what masquing stuff is here?
What's this? a sleeve? 'tis like a demi-cannon:
What, up and down, carved like an apple-tart?
Here's snip and nip and cut and slish and slash,
Like to a censer in a barber's shop:
Why, what i' devil's name, tailor, callest thou this!
_Taming of the Shrew, Act iv. Sc. 3_. SHAKESPEARE.
With silken coats, and caps, and golden rings,
With ruffs, and cuffs, and farthingales and things;
With scarfs, and fans, and double change of bravery,
With amber bracelets, beads, and all this knavery.
_Taming of the Shrew, Act iv. Sc. 3_. SHAKESPEARE.
Dress drains our cellar dry,
And keeps our larder lean; puts out our fires.
And introduces hunger, frost, and woe,
Where peace and hospitality might reign.
_The Task, Bk. II_. W. COWPER.
Dwellers in huts and in marble halls--
From Shepherdess up to Queen--
Cared little for bonnets, and less for shawls,
And nothing for crinoline.
But now simplicity 's _not_ the rage,
And it's funny to think how cold
The dress they wore in the Golden Age
Would seem in the Age of Gold.
_The Two Ages_. H.S. LEIGH.