be exceeded by the "hethnical pamphlets" which he reviles. His work appears to have been a great favourite with those of his own persuasion, and went through several editions between 1583 and 1595. Its extreme scarcity, and the exorbitant prices obtained for copies of it, have induced us to devote an article of some length to the examination of this once-popular book.* The Anatomie of Abuses is dedicated to Philip Earl of Arundel, and is ushered into the world by four copies of commendatory verses, and by a metrical dialague between the Author and his" seely Booke," in which the former coquets it very prettily with his diminutive, but ambitious, offspring. The two concluding verses will suffice for a specimen of " the keen encoun ter of their wits." "Author.-Well, sith thou wouldst so faine be gone, Adieu, therefore; God be thy speede, And blesse thee an hundred folde. The Booke. And you also, good maister mine, God blesse you with his grace Preserve you still,and graunt to you The work is written in the form of a dialogue between Philopoņus, who, doubtless, is intended for-honest Philip himself, and Spudeus, a very useful personage, who, like a confidant in a French play, duly rails, weeps, and goes mad along with his hero. Philoponus relates to his companion his visit to "a certaine famouse island, once named Âinabla, after Anatirb; but now presently called Ailgna.” "Philoponus.-A pleasant and famous island, immured about with the sea, as it were with a wall, wherein the air is temperate, the * We are not aware of the existence of any authentic particulars of the life of Philip Stubbes. Wood states that he was of genteel parentage, and received an university education. He is of opinion that he was either the son or brother of John Stubbes, who had his right hand cut off for writing a satirical work on the Queen's intended marriage with the Duke of Anjou. Nash, in his Almond for a Parrot, or Cuthbert Curry-knave's Almes, thus alludes to our author:- "I can tell you Phil. Stu. is a tall man also for that purpose; and that his Anatomie of Abuses, for all that, will serve very fitly for an antispast before one of Egerton's Sermons. I would see the best of your Traverses write such a treatise as he hath done against short-heeled pantofles. But one thing, it is a great pity for him, that, being such a good fellow as he is, he should speake against dice as he doth." ground fertile, the earth aboundyng with all things either necessarie to man or needful for beast, [inhabited by] * * * * a strong kinde of people, audacious, bolde, puissant, and heroicall, of great magnanimitie, valiance, and prowess, of an incomparable feature, of an excellent complexion, and in all humanitie inferior to none under the sunne.' The first count in the indictment preferred against the people of Ailgna is for their pride and ostentation of dress, in which they are said to excel all other countries: this, indeed, is the "head and front of their offending," in the estimation of Stubbes. No less than eighty-eight pages are devoted to a vituperative description of the fashions and abuses of apparel-a greater space than is allotted for the whole of the seven deadly sins. As this is amongst the most amusing parts of the book, we shall not quarrel with our moral anatomist for his malicious partiality. "But now there is such a confuse mingle-mangle of apparell in Ailgna, and suche a preposterous excesse thereof, as every one is permitted to flaunt it out in what apparel he lusteth hymself, or can get by any kinde of means; so that it is very hard to know who is noble, who is worshipfull, who is a gentleman, who is not: for you shall have those, which are neither of the nobilitie, gentilitie, or yeomanrie, no, nor yet any officer or magistrate in the commonwealth, go daiely in silkes, velvetts, satens, damaskes, taffeties, and suche like; notwithstanding that they be both base by birthe, meane by estate, and servile by callyng: and this I coumpt a great confusion, and a general disorder. God be mercifull unto us!" Then follows a detail of all the extravagant minutiæ of dress, from the feather in the cap to the spangle on the pantofle. "Sometymes they use them [the hats] sharpe on the croune, pearking up like the spire or shaft of a steeple, standyng up a quarter of a yarde above the croune of their heades, some more, some lesse, as please the phantasies of their inconstante mindes. Other some be flat, and broad in the croune, like the battlementes of a house. Another sorte have round crounes, sometymes with one kind of bande, sometymes with another; now blacke, now white, now russet, now red, now grene, now yellow; now this, now that; never content with one colour or fashion two daies to an ende. And thus in vanitie they spend the Lorde his treasure, consumyng their golden yeres and silver daies in wickednesse and sinne. And as the fashions be rare and straunge, so is the stuffe whereof their hattes be made divers also; for some are of silke, some of velvet, some of taffetie, some of sarcenet, some of wooll, and, which is more curious, some of a certaine kind of fine haire. These they call bever hattes, of twentye, thirtye, or fortye shillinges price, fetched from beyonde the seas, from whence a great sorte of other vanities doe come besides: and so common a thing it is, that every servyng-man, countrieman, and other, even all indifferently, dooe weare of these hattes; for he is of no account, or estimation amongst men, if he have not a velvet or taffatie hatte; and that must be pincked, and cunnyngly carved of the beste fashion. And good profitable hattes be these; for, the longer you weare them, the fewer holes they have." And some are not content with these extravagant hats, without " a greate bunche of feathers, of divers and sundrie colours, peakyng on top of their heades." But the zeal of the author is kindled to tenfold rage as he comes in contact with the manifold abominations of THE RUFF, and its diabolical auxiliary, STARCH. They have great and monstrous ruffes, made either of cambricke, holland, lawne, or els of some other the finest cloth that can be got for money, whereof some be a quarter of a yarde deepe; yea, some more, very few lesse; so that they stande a full quarter of a yarde (and more) from their neckes, hanging over their shoulder-points, insteade of a vaile. But if Æolus with his blasts, or Neptune with his storms, chaunce to hit upon the crasie barke of their brused ruffes, then they goeth flipflap in the winde, like ragges that flew abroad, lying upon their shoulders like the dishcloute of a slut. But, wot you what? The devil, as he, in the fullnesse of his malice, first invented these great ruffes, so hath he now found out also two great pillers to beare up and maintaine this his kyngdome of greate ruffes (for the devil is kyng and prince over all the children of pride). The one arche or piller, whereby his kyngdome of great ruffes is underpropped, is a certain kinde of liquid matter, which they call starch, wherein the devil hath willed them to wash and dive their ruffes well; which, beyng drie, will then stand stiff and inflexible about their neckes. The other piller is a certaine device made of wiers, crested for the purpose, whipped over either with gold, thred, silver, or silke; and this he calleth a supportasse, or underpropper. This is to bee applied round about their neckes, under the ruffe, upon the outside of the bande, to beare up the whole frame and bodie of the ruffe from fallyng and hangyng doune. "Their shirtes, whiche all in a maner doe weare (for, if the nobilitie or gentrie onely did weare them, it were some deale more tollerable), are either of cambricke, holland, lawne, or els of the finest cloth that maie be got: and of these kindes of shirtes every one nowe doeth weare alike; so as it maie be thought our forefathers have made them bandes and ruffes (if they had any at all) of grosser clothe and baser stuffes than the worst of our shirtes are made of now-a-daies. And these shirtes (sometimes it happeneth) are wrought throughout with needleworke of silke, and such like, and curiously stitched with open seame, and many other knackes besides, more than I can describe: insomuch I have heard of shirtes that have cost some ten shillynges, some twentie, some fortie, some five pound, some twentie no bles, and (whiche is horrible to heare) some ten pounde a peice: yea, the meanest shirt that commonly is worne of any doeth cost a crowne, or a noble at the least; and yet this is scarsly thought fine enough for the simplest person that is. * "Their dublets are no lesse monstrous than the reste, for now the fashion is to have them hang downe to the middle of their thighes, being so hard quilted, stuffed, bombasted, and sewed, as they can neither woorke, nor yet plaie, in them, through the excessive heate thereof; and therefore are forced to wear them loose about them, for the most part; otherwise they could very hardly either stoupe or decline to the grounde, so stiff and sturdie they stand about them. Certaine I am, there was never any kinde of apparell ever invented that could more disproportion the body of man than these dublettes with great bellies hangyng downe, and stuffed with four, five, or sixe pound of bombast at the least. I saye nothyng of what their dublettes bee made some of saten, taffetie, silke, grograine, chamlet, gold, silver, and what not; slashed, jagged, cut, carved, pinked, and laced with all kinde of costly lace, of divers and sundrie colours; for, if I should stande upon these particularities, rather tyme than matter would be wantyng. "Then have they hozen, which, as they bee of divers fashions, so are they of sundrie names. Some be called French hosé, some Gallic, and some Venetians. The French hose are of two divers makynges, for the common French hose (as they list to call them) containeth length, breadth, and widenesse sufficient, and is made verie sounde. The other containeth neither length, breadth, nor widenesse; being not past a quarter of a yard wide, whereof some be paned, cut and drawn out with costly ornamentes, with canions annexed, reachyng doune beneath their knees. The Gally-hozen are made very large and wide, reachynge doune to their knees onely, with three or foure guardes a peece laid doune along either hose. And the Venetian hozen, they reckon beneath the knee to the garterynge place of the legge beneathe the knee, where they are tied finely with silke pointes, or some such like, and laied on also with rowes of lace or gardes, as the other before. And yet, notwithstandyng all this is not sufficient except they be made of silke, velvet, satin, damaste, and other like precious thinges beside: yea, every one, servying-man, and other inferior to them in every condition, will not stick to flaunt it out in these kinde of hozen, with all other their apparell sutable thereunto. In times past, kynges (as olde historiographers in their bookes, yet extant, do recorde) would not disdain to wear a pair of hozen of a noble, tenne shillynges, or a marke price, with all the rest of their apparel after the same rate: but now it is a small matter to bestow seventie nobles, tenne pounde, twentie pounde, fortie pounde, yea, a hundred pounde of one paire of breeches; (God be mercifull unto us,) and yet is this thought no abuse neither. "Then have they nether-stockes to these gai hozen, not of cloth, (though never so fine,) for that is thought too base, but of jamsey, worsted, crewell, silke, thred, and such like; or else at the least of the finest yearne that can be got, and so curiously knitte with open seame downe the legge, with quirks and clocks about the ancles, and sometyme (haply) interlaced with golde or silver threds, as is wonderful to beholde. "To these their nether-stockes, they have corked shooes, pinsnets, and fine pantoffles, which bear them up a finger or two from the ground; whereof some be of white leather, some of blacke, and some of red; some of blacke velvette, some of white, some of red, some of greene, laced, carved, cut, and stitched all over with silke, and laid on with golde, silver, and suche like; yet, notwithstanding, to what good uses serve these pantoffles, except it be to weare in a private house, or in a man's chamber to keepe him warme: (for this is the only use whereto they best serve in my judgment) but to goe abroade in them as they are now used altogether, is rather a let or hinderance to a man than otherwise, for shall he not be fain to knocke and spurne at every wall, stone or poste to keepe them on his feete: wherefore to disclose even the bowelles of my judgement unto you; I think they be rather worne abroad for niceness, than either for any ease which they bring (for the contrary is most true,) or any hansomnesse which is in them. For how should they be easie, when a man cannot go stedfastly in them, without slipping and sliding at every pace ready to fall doune : Againe, how should they be easie when as the heele hangeth an inche or two over the slipper from the grounde. Insomuche as I have knoune divers menne's legges swell with the same. And handsome should they be, when as with their flipping and flapping up and doune in the dirte, they exaggerate a mountaine of mire, and gather a heape of claie and baggage together, loding the wearer with importable burthen. "Their coates and jerkins as they be divers in colours, so be they divers in fashions, for some be made with collars, some without; some close to the bodie, some loose, covering the whole bodie doune to the thigh, like bagges or sackes that were drawne over them, hidyng the dimensions and lineaments of the bodie: some are buttened doune the breast, some under the arme, and some doune the backe; some with flappes over the breast, some without; some with great sleves, some with small, and some with none at all; some pleated and crested behinde, and curiously gathered, some not; and how manie daies, (I might saie hours in the yeare,) so manie sortes of apparell, some one man will have, and thinketh it goode provision in faire weather, to laie up against a storm. 66 They have clokes there also in nothing discrepant from the rest, of divers and sundrie colours, white, red, tawnie, blacke, greene, yellowe, russet, purple, violet, and infinite other colours: some of clothe, silk, velvet, taffetie, and such like, whereof some be of the Spanish, French, and Dutch fashions; some shorte, scarcely reachyng to the girdlesteade, or waste, some to the knee, and other some trailing upon the grounde, (almost liker gownes than clokes.) Then are they garded with velvette gardes, or els laced with costly lace, either of golde, silver, or at the leaste of silke three or fouer fingers broade doune the back, about the skirtes and every where els. And nowe of late they use to garde their clokes rounde about the skirtes with (bables,) I |