MISCELLANEOUS.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXV, Issue 3752, 28 July 1869, Page 7

MISCELLANEOUS.

Spring Bonnets — The Parisian modistes seem to bo thoroughly at tlieir wifc3' oad to invent novelties with a rapidity comineusuratu with the exigencies of their clients, who assail Worth and Paugat and other arbiters 01 fashion over here with the pertinacity of the leaoh's daughters, crying, Give, give ; new 0113tumes for the promenade, new toilettes de visite, de diner, de soir6e, de reoeptiou, and new robes da bal. But with their robes princease and a qutme, their jubea Camargo and ceinture9 (joharpeß, their fichus Made Antoinette aud raauteaux abb 6 galaur, our modistes evidently played their trump cardf, and, rendered reckless by Bucoes3, ventured upon bolder fights. Under pretext of reviving caitain modeß of I the last century they introduced the robe bonffante, raising the Bkirts of the upper jupe to within a few inches of the waist,Bo as to form the required "gouflemeat." It met, bo we ver, with but doubtful success, considering its ecoentricity ; enjoyed, it is true, a Bort of triumph during the past winter inthe salon, but the " mode hottentote" has all along certainly been chary of the promenade. Crape or silk tulle isthe material of the fashionable chapoau, and white is ( erhaps most generally in favour, though light bright shades of colour are very prevalent. One chapeau in white Bilk tulle has its front formed of a tall pointed diadem of white flowers, with rose«colour hearts and flexible titema that £eep them in a constaut tremor, while a little bird poised betiide an aigrette of brilliants Upvers as it were over the flowers. Another formed of a rouleau of white eatiu, and a laigo puff of white Bilk tulle, has a diadem of primroses rarroundod by a border of rich Jaoa, whion slightly overhangs the forehead. The strings are composed of tulle plisse 5 edged on one side with white eatin ribbon, and fastening tightly under the ohm with a lace bow. Chapeaux in white Batin are trimmed with a tiny rose and large green dragon fly, with diamond eyes posed at the side, and with a mantilla in white silk tulle which fastens on the breast. A bonnet in white imperial tcp has the edge bouillcnno, with tulle illusion in whioh a little bivd of blue and golden plumage is ueatling ; the tulle strings, with a traverse of white fiatin plisse, are eeoured at the breast with a small tuft of feathers matching the pluuuge of the bird. Other chapeaur, of white blonde or tulip, are trimm-d with scarlet flowers and buda peeping out of green spiked leaven, posed apparently at random, and which, more minute in sizo, are repeated at intervals upon the wide blonde string* that fasten under the chin with a full-blowo scarlet flower. Duplicate strings of blonde are tied behind with a bow at the very centre of the chignon, »ud have their wide ends falling dowa like a veil. Many white tulle bonnets have frontons of chrysanthemums and rosebuds peeping oat of beds of mois.or formed of clusters of white dMsies,

forget-me-note, or budding lilies of the valley, or bunches of rnignonetle, violets, and grape 3 and berries of every shade, from the richest purple to thetendereifc silvery green. A trimming of vrlute blonde lace will generally rise above thin fronton, and a plain not yeil, unattached to the bonnob, and which falls only ! levol with the chin, will be tied tightly at the b*ok of the head upon the roundot portion of the chignon, haying at tiineß long ends fluttering in the wind. Green chapeftux, styled Yort-Yert, alter Off6nJ»scn/s opera conaique, are very much in vogue just notr, even among those whose complexions Buffer sadly from the sever » test to which they ore subjected, They are mostly in orape or tulle bouillonne, and are trimmed with feathers of the same shade and bunchaa j of white lilao or acaoia blossoms, or with purple berries and white buda. Some are varied with narrow bands of velvet or cogues of satin ribbon, and have white convolvuli trailing orer them, or olustera of pink hyacinths posed *t the side ; the utrinijs are of satin or tulle indifferently, or ara formed by & combination of the two. Ohapeaux in rose oolour crape bouillonne will be trimmed at the top witk a large latin bow and a (small pink ostrioh feather, which ourls gracefully over a tuft of primroses ; others with coronals of glittering emerald grven booties' wings have a large rose posed at the side, with a sprig of leaves trailing over the chignon, and w« noticed ene pink bonnet which had a brilliant bird of paradise poßed right in front among«t its puffa of crape and blonde, ami had its wide blonde strings fastened with a pink satin bow. Blue orape bonnets are trimmed with cogues of satin ribbon and bunches of eowalipa or lilies of the valley, or diadems of pink rosebuds, or full-blosvn maiden-blush rocos arranged in clusters. The strings] of blue crape plisie, edged with satin, fasten with a satin bow. Bonnets of mauve tulle plig^e are trimmed with rows of «mall white rosw along the front, and hayo the wide tulle string* that frame the face, fastening beneath the chin with a narrow velvet bow and narrow velvet «tring<» tied behind upon the chignon ; others have perfect plumes of small ostrich feather* posed at the top of the head and a chapeau of mauve satin trimmed with tiob. black blonde and a diadem formed of small bell-»]»»ped pinpie flowers, with bright green stalks and leaves. Eonnots of maize colour tulle, trimmed with ears of grain, with perhaps a few simple field flowers in addition, occasionally have rouleaux of satin ribbon twisted in "among tfce bearded barley;" -whilst »therß, formed of narrow bands of plaited straw bordered with gold-colour silk fringe, are trimmed with Jarge tea roses or clusters of red and white variegated pinks, and haTB bands of straw, bordered on the outside with fringe, Siting closely to the face, and fastening like strings under the chin, with a »mall rosabud or a nairow velvet bow. A little fanohon in grey silk tulle has a fronton of budding heath, with a large ' rose posed at the side. The strings which fram* tko face in accordance with the latest mode ara edged on the one side with plaited rose oolour satin ribbon. Hats are of straw, trimmed with velvet, and with wreaths or clustor« of wild flowers, berries, w«od violets, jand forget-me-iMots, and little pyramids of feathers posed behind, and ourling over the crown ; other* form»d entirely of ostrioh feathers of delicate shades— pale mauve or blue— have a maiden blush rose in front or at the side; others, again, trimmed with feathers, |or bright velvet or satin bows, have the edgesjturned up and lined with taffeta of the same shade.

The Amehican Woman. — A corespondent of Our Paper thus describes American women r — "At au early age it would be difficult to find a more beautiful creature than the American girl, The external woman is marked by graceful symmetry, with unsurpassed tatte in attire. The complexion is fair to transparency, the teeth white as ivory, the eyes beaming with expression. The frame ia hth° fragile, sylph-like, and some girla look as if the corporeal had given place to the spiritual in their nature, being conhtituted with, such an exquisite delicacy. Womanhood comes on at an early age, and girla are married after sixteen, or seventeen Bummeis— too soon, I opine, to be placed at the head of a family circle. But here a female at that age is a full-grown woman — ispeiftCtlyself-pjsgessed in manner — and moves about with ease and dignity. Her reading is composed mostly of novels, vapid literature in the shape of worthless romnnce, but also of a supeiior literature of genuine merit. In some instances I have met women who brought a blush to my cheeks in acknowledging my own want of acquaintance with some eminent and popular authors. But thesa are few ; the large number partake of impure fountains of knowledge, and their ideas ore made up of a strange admixture of the practical and Bentimeut.il. That tenderness of feeling begot of the kinuly influence of maternal solicitude is too often absent, and the girl comes to think of herself end for lierodf bo soon that the mind ia prone largely to personal adornments, to the exclusion or noylecr of those intellectual acquirements which are indispensable to a refined woman. Here the bouds of matrimony are entered into at an early ago — girls become mothers too soon ; — but it must not be forgotttn that the pure, fresh blush and tint is going after twenty-five, and the American woman is marked an old maid at twecty-seven or thirty, .Defective in stamina, frail in physique, she presents a striking contrast to the Englishwoman or Irishwoman of the s.<me age; and afc thirty- three or thirty. five her oheeka asburne angular lines, and a deop hue encircle her eyes ; the colour evaporates from the oountenance. She is faded, woin — perchance cadaverous, We have often seen a woman at this ageLke a walking Bpeobie, so ileahlcos and skinny, with a countenance soured by deep wnnldee. Yet this woman is industrious, patient, tenacious of her rights and privileges, enduring, and has got her religious or political hobbies, tor which she is ready to suffer martyrdom. It is possible that she is assiduous in the outward rites or foims of some church ; but religion in the true sense of the word &lie knows uothiag of, and, if the points of her belief were reduced to analysis, it would be difficult to detine what they were. You find a dabh of the heroiae about hor, emphatic and outspoken in enforcing or demanding her opiuions, in cliampioning the rights of her sex, in demanding feina'o suffrage, aod suggesting innumerable philanthropies schemes of innovations in the laws of the land. The physical powers, however, a>e impaired afc an early age, and she lacks streDgthtoßuatain au ordinary severe or protracted illness. Our American woman is weak and a'ddy, prematurely deciys, and becomes petulant and irritable from constitutional infirmities. Under different climates she acquires different habit*. The Southern lady will live fast, is proud and domineering, will smotis her cigarette or chow or snuff ; and yet she has some good qualities, not lost even amougst the unutterable degradation of New Orleans. The Is'ew England orWestern woman ia frugal, clote, stingy, She patronises buok wheat oakea and molasses, cucumbers, hot cakea, tea, and candles Aha latter, in village life, may be regkrded a fair specimen of the Yankee woman. Neither sho, nor her sister, aa a rule, inherits longevity, The vital force is soon exhausted, and the foreigner outlives h6r. Afc an age when the Irish or English housewife, on her native soil, would bo robicund, jovial, whole-hearted, the American woman may be splenetic, discontented, worn out, and some of the results which accompany age are not pleasing to contemplate. The affections, never very ardent, are chilled ; the fueling of selfishneei resolves itself into keen stinginess, and ihe becomes a perpetual babbler over real or imaginary grievances, Of oouise many of the features notad are owing to olimntio influences, social usages, innutri* tious and unwholesome diet. The heats of summer, and oeaseleßS flow of perßpiration ; the crisp biting frost succeeding rapidly, and requiring a large amount of carbon in the system to resist its influenoe on the lungs and vital organpj the absence of that element known to physiologists as ozone in cities, with offensive dust, smoke, impure air, and all their evils combined, help to promote aud develop latent disease, especially pulmonary affections. The passion or propensity for the use of drugs, powders, cosmetics, is almost universal. One ia amazed at the irameuee number of drug stores in this city. The uae and abuse of these dtugs must largely contribute to ihe degeaeraoy of thousands in oue populous towos, an-1 make th» American woman the moat delicately constituted in the world,"

James, a Girl's Name.— A few days ago a young married lady, residing in a thriving town in the north of England, presented her loving lord with a fine promising babe, which, although a girl, was mistaken for a boy. This being hia n'rsb child, the husband's joy was great, and he exhausted the dictionary to discover epithets of endearment to apply to his treasure. The fact of its being a eon, and consequently an "heir," added, as may be sup* posed, much to his gratification, After serious deliberation, the father and mother of the "little straDger " determined to bestow upon it the eupho* uius name o£ "James." The proper steps wtre forthwith taken, the birth of tbe child was registered, and the name "James" was iv duo form given. Shortly after, a friendly ueighbour discovered that the infant was not a boy, but " only " a girl. / It is said that Rothschild turned his own death to good account iv tbe way of making money. Knowing that bis demise would occasion a groat fall in the shares of the Lombard Company — he being the President and chief Bupporfcer— he speculated largely for the fall, much to the i advantage of his heirs.