INTRODUCTORY NOTE
"It is merely a question of head" said Percy Anderson to me one day whilst we were discussing some easy method of solving a problem in fancy dress.
And he continued:
"Indeed, I would say that, broadly speaking, of all costume. The fashion of any period is distinguished primarily by the way its wearer dresses her hair."
"And chooses her sleeves," I suggested, and received his approval.
We agreed then that we were both most keenly interested in dress, regarding it as one of the fine and essential arts; and we decided that we would try to preach its best doctrines and traditions to the world at large, while we did not ignore the fact that many more worthy had previously enriched literature with the same object. Realising this most acutely, it came to pass that I found myself searching libraries for information which could serve to point my moral, while Mr. Anderson consented to adorn my tale and help me in my endeavour to present concisely, and with as little ceremony and as much simplicity as possible, the main facts of the fashions which have obtained through the centuries.
A few practical details and suggestions are included in the hope that they may obviate some difficulties of those who fret their hour on the stage or at the fancy-dress ball, while, for the benefit of the next generation, I have devoted a small space to personal reminiscences of theatrical heroes and heroines, and to some facts of theatrical dress, as it has been expressed in classic and popular dramas produced by the leading actors and actresses of our time.
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