EXTRAVAGANCE IN DRESS.
[To THE EDFTOR OF THE " SPECTATOR.")
was much impressed by your splendid appeal " To Our Fellow-Countrywomen " in your issue of February 9th. Sir Auckland Geddes made a similar appeal in an article in the Telegraph of November 16th, 1917. May I take the liberty of sug- gesting a point of view (the woman's) which you did not touch on ? A great number of women are still spending lavishly to please themselves, but a number feel compelled to do so to please their menfolk. I refer now to the extremely fashionable woman, not to the merely " well-turned-out " one. No one is more critical of women's dress than men, and though I do not desire to excuse women, men are very largely responsible for the present extrava- gance. I know of very many cases personally in which men have requested their wives and fiancées to buy furs, fur coats, &c., to wear when they come home from abroad, and girls who can ill afford it are going to very great expense so that the men may not be disappointed. It is becoming more and more apparent that it is almost a crime for an officer to be seen in public with a woman who does not compare very favourably with the smart fashionable women around her. If men could be prevailed upon to show dis- approval of unreasonable extravagance instead of encouraging it by their attentions, and refuse to be seen out with a woman who is unpatriotic in her dress, there would perhaps be less competition among women, less demand for luxurious clothing, and less demand for labour to supply it. If you are really desirous of effecting a change, I should be very glad if you could find room for this letter, or make an appeal to men to assist by not making it more difficult for women in this matter.—I am, Sir, &c., H. H.
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