But the houses of the
poor were for the most part still wretched, of mud or plaster, and
badly thatched. The windows were small and few in number; the
furniture was scanty and mean; sanitary matters were scarcely attended
to at all. But the growing prosperity of the country was beginning to
show itself in the better equipment and furnishing of the household,
particularly among the yeomen and the rising town tradesmen. Advantage
was taken of the Great Fire to improve the streets and dwellings of
the capital.
12. DRESS
Among the gentry the influence of the magnificent court of Louis XIV
began to make itself felt in the matter of dress, and both gentlemen
and ladies affected gay attire. The hoop-petticoat came into fashion,
and the dress was looped up at intervals to show the richly-coloured
skirt below. The gentlemen wore knee-breeches and silk stockings, the
former ornamented with knots of ribbon; the scarf was very full and
rich, and often fell in folds over the front of the waistcoat; the
coat was usually gaily coloured. Swords were worn by the gallants, and
the periwig was seen everywhere in high society. The dress of the
lower ranks was of sober colour, and of stout but coarse texture. The
women wore homespun, and sometimes home-woven linsey-woolsies.
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