FASHIONS A-LA -JOURNALISTE.
IN country towns, one is frequently struck by the strange appar:tions which stalk up and down with the pretensions of dandies, but which bear no outward resemblance to any of the known specimens of that class. It would seem perfectly inexplicable how these provincial exquisites could succeed in making such preposterously ottliV figures of themselves, were it not for the appearance of certain monthly articles on Fashions in the periodicals and newspapers, which, with whatever intention they may be written, cannot but have the effect of practical hoaxes on the too confiding good folks in the country. Of the ladies' thus prescribed fashions we cannot pretend to form a judgment, because the report is written in a scientific language utterly unintelligible to us ; but having eye-sight, and the ordinary faculties for observation, we will venture to affirm that the gentleman who dressed himself according to these " monthly mirrors," would equip himself admirably for a fop's part in a pantomime. We shall quote from the least preposterous report, which appears in the Standard; omitting the most outrageously monstrous, which has been put forth by the Gentleman's Magazine. Everybody who has read Pelham, has, we suppose, extracted the valuable information, that a blue coat with gilt buttons is atrociously vulgar, and gives a stamp at once to a man's drawingroom character; nevertheless, the wag who hoaxes the country bucks holds forth thus . Moicensm Dasss.—A superfine light blue fashionable coat, made longwaisted ; broad skirts, with pockets under the flaps. The collar is rather large, and has a long cut in front ; the lappels are long and wide, having six holes in them, and the sonic number of _tine gilt buttons on the breast ; the sleeves are en g-izot, the bottom of the cuff just covering the top of the hand. wiih one button on it, and three on the sleeve. (Oh soul of George l3rummell! Four buttons on a cuff and sleeve ! !!!) A beautiful fancy-spotted silk waistcoat, made with a stand-up collar, a small step in front; it is very much open at the breast, and has only four buttons, which may be either crystal or gold, agreeably to the fancy of the wearer. The trowsers of mole-skin, made rather tight as low down as the knee, where they fit quite close ; from thence increasing in size till they renh the bottom, which are allowed to close the striped silk stockings.
A pretty figure this would certainly make for the window of a toy-shop ; but, dandies, imagine such an article walking about with the goodly escort of dirty boys at its silk-stockened heels, who would surely pelt it copiously with stones !
EVENING DRESS.—A superfine light Saxony blue cloth dress coat, with a rich (very wide) black velvet collar, which ,3,,ires a fine contrast to the delicate hue of the blue; it buttons close to the neck, only showing the white cravat : there are ten of the finest gilt buttons on the breast, which set off the coat to great advantage ; it is long in the waist and very narrow skirts ; sleeves tight to the arm, with a deep cuff, and buttons. A black velvet waistcoat, descending below the coat. Pantaloons of the finest black single-milled kerseymere, made fast to the knees, and then tight to the ancle, with fold buttons and buckle.
Ten gilt buttons ! Such an excess was proper to the man in the Spectator who entertained his company with ten legs of mutton.
THE LA:■IETONIA.N HUNTING DRESS.—A very beautiful superfine scarlet cloth hunting coat, lined all through with Welsh flannel, which is faced with crimson 'silk ; it is made similar to the generality of coats,' the collar is particularly short, and lappets very pliable, to admit the coat being closed to the throat with perfect ease, as the wind and rain, so often experienced in the noble exertion of hunting, requires such a precaution : there are six gilt buttons the size of crown pieces up the breast ; the sleeves arc made tight to keep the arms warm (against every principle of philosophy) ; the skirts are very broad, with flaps and deep pockets under them. A black velvet waistcoat, made very large, with ten fancy gold buttons as high as the top of the lappet; collar not too long. A pair of the finest lavender corderoy breeches, made large to the top of the knee, and therilitting beautVully with Aar pearl buttons, and confined below the knee with a small garter two inches and a half in length, and a gold buckle. The top boots do not wrinkle, but are quite straight, coming as high up as an inch from the bottom of the breeches, to show the pink silk hose.
This is the consummation of villany. Top-boots of a hunter low, to show the pink silk hose? The very hounds would take measures to manifest their contempt of such an anomaly. The whipper-in would infallibly scourge such a man-milliner fop from the field.
Lady GRESLEY has of late years filled a large space in the police-reports. Her Ladyship is one of the many unlucky persons born out of the times in which they were fitted to figure. Her case, it will be seen from the annexed statement, has been pretty nearly that of Penelope wasted by her dinner company, or a suite of sponges ; but Lady GRESLEY'S woes are recorded by the rude hand of a police reporter, instead of sung to the lyre of a HOMER.
"Lady Gresley's household represent, that nothing could exceed the hospitality of her ladyship, until, not exercising that narrow discernment which less hospitable persons generally observe in the invitation of their guests, a strange set of people found their way almost daily to her ladyship's dinner, table, where they clearly demonstrated a long abstinence from food of any kind ; demolishing as they did with an unequalled rapidity everything consumable on the table, and evincing a voraciousness that nothing but a week's accumulated hunger at least could have produced. A few shocks of this kind checked her ladyship's lavish hospitality, and she very properly reduced her establishment to a peace estimate."
Her Ladyship the other day resisted her cook's demand for wages, on the ground that "there was a stain on the cook's character." We mention this circumstance merely as an instance of the high-pressure morality of the age. The reputations even of our cooks ai:e not suffered to show grease.
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