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their stomachs) how she was abused in the
setting of her ruffs, which hearing, he
promised to please her mind, and thereto took in
hand the setting of her rufts, which he formed
to her great contentation and liking, insomuch
as she, looking at herself in the glass
(as the devil bade her), became greatly
enamoured of him. This done, the young man
kissed her, and in doing whereof, he " writhe
her neck in sonder:" so she died miserably,
her body being metamorphosed into blue
and black colours, (this black and blue
metamorphosis has a suspiciously walking-stick
appearance, and in these days would have
simply rendered the young man amenable to
six months' hard labour under the aggravated
assaults act.) The gentlewoman's face, too,
became " ogglesome to behold." This being
known, preparations were made for her
burial; a rich coffin was prepared, and her
fearful body laid therein, covered up very
sumptuously. Four strong men immediately
essayed to lift up the corpse, but could not
move it. Then five attempted the like, but
could not once stir it from the place where it
stood. Whereat, the standers-by marvelling,
caused the coffin to be opened, to see the
cause thereof. " Where they found the body
to be taken away, and a black cat, very lean
.and deformed, sitting in the coffin, a-setting
of great ruffs, and frizzling of hair to the
great fear and wonder of all the beholders."
An ogglesome and fearful sight!

The next article of apparel to which Mr.
Stubbes takes exception is the doublet. Oh!
he cries; the monstrous doublets in Ailgna!
It appears that it is the fashion to have them
hang down to the middle of the thighs, and
so hard-quilled, stuffed, bombasted, and
sewed, that the wearers can neither work
aior play in them. Likewise are there " big-
bellied doublets," which betoken "gormandice,
gluttony, riot, and excess." And he has
heard of one gallant who had his doublet
stuffed with four, five, or six pounds of
Bombast. That kind of stuffing has not
quite gone out among our gallants yet. He
says nothing of what their doublets may be
made,—velvet, satin, gold, silver, chamlet, or
what not, but he lifts up his voice plaintively
against the pinking, slashing, carving,
jagging, cutting, and snipping of these garments.
We almost fancy that we are listening to
Petruchio rating the tailor in the Taming of
the Shrew.

There is a "great excess in hosen," Stubbes
is sorry to remark in Ailgna. Some are
called French hosen, some Venetian, and
some Gally hosen. They are paned, cut, and
draped out with costly ornaments, with
cannions annexed, reaching down below the
knees. And they cost enormous sums; Oh,
shameless Ailgna! "In times past," says
Mr. Stubbes, rising almost to sublimity in
his indignation; "Kings (as old historiographers
in their .books yet extant do record)
would not disdain to wear a pair of hosen of
a noble, fen shillings or a mark- piece; but
now it is a small matter to bestow twenty
nobles, ten pounds, twenty, forty, fifty, nay a
hundred pounds on one pair of breeches (Lord
be merciful to us!) and yet this is thought no
abuse neither." Add to these costly hosen the
diversity of netherstocks in Ailgna; " corked
shoes, pantoffles, and pinsnets;"  the variety
of vain cloaks, and jerkins; the " Turkish
Impietie of costly clokes;" bugled cloaks,
ruffling swords, and daggers, gilt and
damasked, and you wilL have some idea of the
shocking state of things in Ailgna in the year
fifteen hundred and eighty-five, or, as Philip
pathetically expressed it, the "miserie of
these daies."

Presently comes this sumptuary censor to
a particular description of woman's apparel
in Ailgna. I have not space to follow him
step by step through the labyrinthine region
of female costume, and, indeed, he is often so
very particular that it would often be as
inconvenient as difficult to follow him.
Cursorily I may remark, that Philip is dreadfully
severe upon the colouring of ladies' faces
with oils, unguents, liquors, and waters; that
he quotes St. Cyprian against face-painting;
and Hieronymus, Chrysostom, Calvin, and
Peter Martyr, against musks, civets, scents,
and such-like " slibbersauces." Trimmings
of ladies' heads are the devil's nets. Nought
but perdition can come to a people who
make holes in their ears to hang rings and
wells by, and who cut their skins to set
precious stones in themselves. And is it not a
glaring shame that some women in Ailgna
wear doublets and jerkins, as men have,
buttoned up the breast, and made with wings,
welts, and pinions on the shoulders, as man's
apparel is. Do you remember the ladies'
paletots, the ladies' waistcoats of two years
since?  How little times do alter, to be sure!
As for costly gowns, impudent rich petticoats
and kirtles; stockings of silk, Tearnsey,
Crewell, and fine cloth, curiously indented at
every point with quirks, clockees, and open
seams, cawked shoes, slippers powdered with
gold, devil's spectacles in the shape of
looking-glasses; sweeted gloves; nosegays and
posies; curious smells, that anuubilate the
spirits, and darken the senses; masks and
visors to ride abroad in; fans, which are the
devil's bellows, and similar enormities of
female attire,— the number of them is infinite,
and their abomination utter.

I need scarcely say that the apparel of the
people of Ailgna forms but one section of the
abuses anatomised by old Stubbes. If my
reader should have any curiosity to know
aught concerning the vices and corruptions of
hand-baskets, gardens, and covetousuess;
how meats bring destruction; the discommodities
of drunkenness; what makes things
dear; the manner of church ales; the
tyranny of usurers; how a man ought to
swear; the condemnation of stage plays; the
observance of the sabbath, and the keeping