Tailcoat

“ In a very thorny country, a leather coat is almost essential. A blouse, cut short so as to clear the saddle, is neat, cool, and easy, whether as a riding or walking costume. Generally speaking, the traveller will chiefly spend his life in his shirt-sleeves, and will only use his coat when he wants extra warmth.
To carry a Coat.--There are two ways. The first is to fold it small and strap it to the belt. If the coat be a light one it can be carried very neatly and comfortably in this way, lying in the small of the back. ”

“ The coat of which an illustration is given is excellent for the purpose, but it is more elaborate. It has, however, the leather waistcoat or undercoat attached to it, and is extremely comfortable. It can be made in any cloth or material. It has heavy fur which, while it looks smart, is a sure means of catching and retaining dust, and the great object to be aimed at in motor travelling is to find something which will not collect dust, for if coats, rugs, &c. get dusty it is almost impossible to get rid of it. ”

“ Wool, being a non-conductor, is the best material for this mode of locomotion, and should always be adopted for the plains. The coat should be short and stout, the shirt of red or blue flannel, such as can be found in almost all the shops on the frontier: this, in warm weather, answers for an outside garment. The pants should be of thick and soft woolen material, and it is well to have them re- enforced on the inside, where they come in contact with the saddle, with soft buckskin, which makes them more durable and comfortable. ”

“ Tylor shows us that the dress-coat, the ugly and uncomfortable "swallow-tail" is a survival. It is really the old riding-coat. "The cutting away at the waist had once the reasonable purpose of preventing the coat-skirts from getting in the way in riding, while the pair of useless buttons behind the waist are also relics from the time when such buttons really served the purpose of fastening these skirts behind; the curiously cut collar keeps the now misplaced notches made to allow of its being worn turned up or down; the smart facings represent the old ordinary lining ”

“ As ill luck would have it, this tailor, being in a narrow walk, had (whether for fear of mud, or in the delight of his soul over his holiday) so elevated his coat-tails that the vertebral extremity, the os coccygis, or (shall we call it) insertion of the spinal cord, of his waistcoat, was clearly exhibited; in other words, the background of his waistcoat, which, as we know, is generally executed in colours more subdued than those used for the brighter and more prominent foreground on the chest of the wearer. “Hy! Mr.!” cried Lenette ”

“ Under our burglar's coat, with one end resting in his left-hand waistcoat pocket, was a twenty-inch steel "jimmy." It was a very attractive tool, not unlike a long and extremely slender stove lifter, with a tip-tilted end. I found it suggestive of tremendous leverage-power, tempting one to test its strength. It proved as inviting to the hand as a golfer's well-balanced "driver."
From the right-hand waistcoat pocket Benson produced a lady's gold watch, two finger rings, a gold barrette, and a foot or two of old-fashioned locket chain, of solid gold. ”

“ Now it so happened that a traveling tailor sat down to rest under that very bush where the thaler was deposited, found the money and put it in his pocket. When the poodle arrived he smelled the coin and fawned upon the tailor. The man, highly pleased at having found a thaler and such an amiable dog within an hour, took him to his stopping place in the town. The poodle watched the tailor’s clothes all night, [84] and when, early the next morning, the door of the room was opened, he stole out, carrying the tailor’s trousers with him and brought both them and the thaler to his master. ”

“ The tail-coat, with gold buttons, velvet cuffs, and light-blue silk lining, is quite a demi-official, small-and-early arrangement. It is compatible with a patronising and somewhat superb flirtation in the verandah; nay, even under the pine-trees beyond the Gurkha sentinel, whence many-twinkling Jakko may be admired; it is compatible with a certain shadow of human sympathy and weakness. An A.D.C. in tail-coat and gold buttons is no longer a star; he is only a fire-balloon; though he may twinkle in heaven, he can descend to earth. ”

“ There were roses and pansies upon the facings of the coat; and the waistcoat was worked with poppies and corn-flowers.
Everything was finished except just one single cherry-coloured buttonhole, and where that buttonhole was wanting there was pinned a scrap of paper with these words—in little teeny weeny writing—
NO MORE TWIST.
And from then began the luck of the Tailor of Gloucester; he grew quite stout, and he grew quite rich.
He made the most wonderful waistcoats for all the rich merchants of Gloucester, and for all the fine gentlemen of the country round. ”

“ It requires great will-power on the part of the owner and constant watchfulness as well to keep a fat man’s dress waistcoat from behaving like a railroad folder. His dinner coat or his tail coat, if he wears a tail coat, is invariably too tight in the sleeves ”

“ Under the coat a waistcoat should always be worn, of some striped material, a small strip showing inside the collar. A plain white Ascot tie and standing collar should be worn, but no cuffs, and the coat sleeves should be very long, coming well down to the hand. The breeches must be white—of buckskin or breeches cloth. Stiff-legged top boots should be worn, with tops of tan or buff, or of some color which matches or goes well with the color of the coat. The boots must always be of calf and never of patent or varnished leather. ”

“ The coat is usually swallow-tail in cut, and is ornamented with brass or silver buttons on the tails, on the cuffs and down the front. Lately this vogue of the brass and silver button is disappearing.
The color worn by the second man should be the predominating color worn by all the other liveried servants in the household. It is certainly not good form to have the chauffeur wear one color of livery, and the footman next to him wear livery of an entirely different color and cut. ”

“ For the lining of the coat there was fine yellow taffeta, and for the buttonholes of the waistcoat there was cherry-coloured twist. And everything was ready to sew together in the morning, all measured and sufficient—except that there was wanting just one single skein of cherry-coloured twisted silk.
The tailor came out of his shop at dark, for he did not sleep there at nights; he fastened the window and locked the door, and took away the key. No one lived there at nights but little brown mice, and they ran in and out without any keys! ”

“ There are several kinds of casts to be used, for the ordinary casts will be of little avail under some circumstances. To make the ordinary cast, begin with a short line, and by the action of the wrist and forearm propel it out in front of you, so that when it is extended to the full length, the fly will be two or three feet above the surface, on which it should fall by its own weight. In repeating the cast raise the point of the rod slowly, and bring it back over your right shoulder, so that the line shall describe the shape of a horse-shoe behind you ”

“ And the trousers,—well, not to mention one knee torn out and the other sewed up in a bunch, the part most intimately acquainted with the saddle would make a very good crazy-quilt pattern. A piece of black silk taken from an old skull cap, a portion of a pair of overalls, and a part of a pair of merino stockings were all sewed into the inside of the trousers to strengthen them, and as the different pieces wore through it left a garment of many colors, and I felt constrained to face every one. ”

“ There are no stays to the pockets, no reinforcing to the seat, no leather on the inside of the bottoms of the trowsers, and the linings of the coat and vest, or waistcoat, as these semi-barbarians call it, are of the cheapest and flimsiest material that a devilish ingenuity can weave. ”

“ The idea that a natural tail causes carriage accidents is an exploded myth. The plea that a docked tail saves trouble in cleaning is readily met, if need be, by shortening the hair of the tail as far as the end of the “dock” or bone of the tail, without touching the bone itself. The tail will then be as short as even a stable hand can reasonably desire, the horse not mutilated, and the hair ready to grow again. ”

“ The skin is so loose there is no getting one's great-coat, which has to serve both as saddle and blanket, to stick on; and then the long horns in front, with which he can give one a punch in the abdomen if he likes, make us sit as bolt upright as dragoons. ”

“ The sleeves should be plain and finished at the cuffs like a man’s, or the cuffs may be turned back from two to three inches, according to the length of arm, but should never be of velvet or any material other than that of the coat itself.
Waistcoats are very smart, but not absolutely necessary. For use in the hunting field and in cold weather they are advisable, and should then be made of a rather heavy material, and, in particular, the back should be of flannel so as to protect the rider against a chill. ”

“ The performers rallying Cooke one morning, in the green room, on the awkward cut of a new coat, he apologized, by saying, "It was his tailor's fault."—"Yes, poor man," said Munden, "and his misfortune too!"
MCDXLV.—TAKE WARNING!
A barrister who had retired from practice, said: "If any man was to claim the coat upon my back, and threaten my refusal with a lawsuit, he should certainly have it; lest, in defending my coat, I should, too late, find that I was deprived of my waistcoat also." ”

“ Bob found long coat-tails even more of a nuisance than he had supposed he should. He discovered presently that the Japanese tailor had deliberately neglected to put pockets in the trousers.
"What the deuce does he expect a fellow to do with his hands?" ”

“ So he hastened to cut out a belt, and he stitched it, and put on it in large capitals "Seven at one blow!"
"——The town, did I say!" said the little tailor; "the whole world shall know it!" And his heart quivered with joy, like a lamb's tail.
The tailor fastened the belt round him, and began to think of going out into the world, for his workshop seemed too small for his worship. So he looked about in all the house for something that it would be useful to take with him, but he found nothing but an old cheese, which he put in his pocket. ”

“ Here is another coat, which ensures you a soft and dry seat wherever you may sit down (Fig. 10) —a peculiarly appropriate coat for a third-class smoking carriage: "In the back part of the coat there is placed, between the lining and the cloth, a bag or cushion, which, when inflated, forms a seat. A small tube of india rubber extends from the bag to the side pocket." Fancy travelling by train, not knowing such a thing as this coat existed, and seeing your fellow passengers gradually rising higher and higher in the world on the seat opposite to you—how uncanny it would be! ”

“ The horse-tails by ponds are generally short, about a foot or eighteen inches high, more or less, but in ditches occasionally there are specimens of the giant horse-tail as high as the waistcoat, with a stem as thick as a walking-stick. ”

“ For carriage and saddle horses, each shoe should have a clip at the middle of the toe, except in special cases, when a clip at each side of the toe of the hind shoe may be necessary. Horses used for hunting should wear a clip on each side of their hindfeet shoes, the sharp edges being carefully removed from the toes and the inner branches, to prevent wounds from over-reaching, cutting, or treading. ”

“ The tail is never entirely composed of the hair of the wearer. Sometimes it is almost wholly artificial, a completely new tail being fixed to a worn-out stump, and, as a general rule, the last eighteen inches are almost entirely made of black silk. Besides being a mark of fashion, the tail is often utilized. A sailor, for example, will tie his hat to his head with his tail when the wind rises, and a schoolmaster sometimes uses his tail in lieu of a cane. ”

“ When you carry your master's riding-coat in a journey, wrap your own in it, and buckle them up close with a strap, but turn your master's inside out, to preserve the outside from wet and dirt; thus, when it begins to rain, your master's coat will be first ready to be given him; and if it get more hurt than yours, he can afford it better, for your livery must always serve its year's apprenticeship. ”

“ The cheerful tap-tap of a hammer, and a keen, pungent scent as of something burning, warn us that we are in the vicinity of the Royal smithy. A handsome grey carriage-horse is being shod, one hoof doubled up between the farrier’s legs, as that worthy, with quick taps, drives in a long nail, and makes the shoe fast. ”

“ A long tail is objectionable. MOVEMENT—Should be free, straight, and easy all round. In front, the leg should be freely extended forward by the shoulder. The hind movement should be free, strong, and close. The hocks should be freely flexed and drawn close in under the body, so that, when moving off the foot, the body is thrown or pushed forward with some force. Stiff, stilty movement behind is very objectionable.
FAULTS: COAT—Any silkiness, wave, or tendency to curl is a serious blemish, as is also an open coat. Black or grey hairs disqualify for competition. ”

“ If I bought a fur-lined coat I know that I should want to buy a motor-car to keep it company. It is possible, of course, to wear a fur coat in a motor-bus, but if you do you will assuredly have a sense that you are a little over-dressed, a trifle conspicuous, that the fellow-passengers are mentally remarking that such a coat ought to have a carriage of its own. ”