of doors, protection principally from wet, next from cold, and lastly
from heat. Her head-dress, to be really useful, ought to comprise
qualities that will effect these three objects. The substance,
therefore, of the covering cannot consist of cotton, linen, or silk, at
_all_ times of the year; these substances will do for the more
temperate or the hotter seasons, but not in winter--that is to say, they
will not be serviceable during five months out of the twelve. In this
inclement season nothing but woollen cloth or fur ought to be the
principal article of female head-dress; only these two substances will
effectually keep off wet and cold. They may be lined with silk or any
other soft substance, but the foundation, we repeat, ought to be fur or
woollen cloth; both of them articles of English manufacture or
preparation--one varying through all degrees of price; the other within
the reach of most persons, even in the middling classes of society. In
the summer, silk, linen, cotton, or any other light fabric, will effect
the purpose proposed--protection from the rays of the sun, and from the
casual wet that may occur--though from the last, less than from the
first inconvenience. So much for the common _substance_ of an
Englishwoman's out-of-door head-dress--for the _material_, that is to
say: its use should always be modified by the rank and occupation of the
wearer. The _form_ must be ascertained from a reference to the
principles laid down above, as to the combining a proper degree of
concealment, with the due exhibiting of the beautiful features of the
female face; the covering should afford ample concealment when wanted,
but should also admit of the head being completely exposed when
required. Now, the veil gives abundant concealment, but does not admit
of total removal, and is rather inconvenient to the wearer; it is apt to
get in the way, and is in danger of causing a slovenly, or even a dirty,
appearance; it is more suited for in-door, than for out-of-door
use--more for a warm than a cold climate. The _hood_ is the best thing
we know of, for combining the two requisites of complete concealment and
complete exposure. It unites by its shape all the purposes of form, to
the applicability of any kind of soft material; and it is suitable to
the climate of this country at any period of the year. But, "how ugly!"
the ladies will exclaim--"who could bear to tie her head up in a
pudding-bag?--Does not the very form of the hoo