er profusion of ornaments, her flounces and
fly-about gewgaws, is a very poor representation of good sense,
refinement, and cultured, classic taste. If our artists should carve and
paint their master-pieces in such taste, we should pronounce it
barbarism at once.

I would gladly pursue this theme, and trace the office of Dress in all
its operations as a reforming and refining agent, and show how to
improve our tastes, correct our judgments, and utilize and at the same
time beautify our dresses. But time will not permit. I will only say in
addition, that the love of Dress, when properly used, is noble; when
abused, is evil; when wisely directed, it combines utility and beauty;
when abused, it possesses neither.

But the idea which I am most anxious to impress upon the minds of young
women, is the symbolic use of Dress, is the fact that they have _minds_
to dress as well as bodies. Our outward Dress should be symbolic of an
inward Dress. While we toil to robe in beauty these perishing bodies, we
should labor more industriously to adorn those immortal qualities which
shall wear their adornments when a new heaven and a new earth shall
succeed to those that now are. This is the point at which young women
err more than elsewhere. They labor to dress the body, and sadly neglect
the soul. O what a fearful dearth of soul-dress, of mental adornment, of
interior beauty there is among young women! Scarcely can one in ten of
them speak their mother-tongue correctly, converse intelligibly ten
minutes upon any subject of common interest, write a simple business or
friendly letter correctly, or comprehend the simplest natural sciences.
What do they know of mechanics, science, literature, government,
theology, history, reform--the great questions that stir the world of
mind? How little, how little! There are some noble exceptions to this
remark, I know. But we must not disguise the fact, that there is a
fearful want of mental culture among young woman. They give forty
thoughts to dressing their bodies to one for their minds; they spend
forty dollars for bonnets, shoes, and clothes to one for books,
instruction, and improvement; they give forty hours to toilet to one to
solid study and serious reflection; they put forty adornments upon their
persons to one upon their minds. How sad the thought! Compare a
well-dressed body with a well-dressed mind. Compare a taste for dress
with a taste for knowledge, culture, virtue, and piety. Dress up