Ladies' Express.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume III, Issue 428, 15 November 1876, Page 2

Ladies' Express.

[The Editor will be glad to give insertion to any local contributions from his Italy friends that may be considered interesting in any family circle, or to the sex generally]

THE MOTHER TO THE BRIDE. lam yielding thee, my darling, to a strong

and stalwart arm, That shall thy buckler be from ill, thy shield

from every harm ; I yield thee to a manly heart, where thou art shrined alone, Ah, birdie mine, make ever thou thine husband's heart thy throne 1 Yet oil 1 forget thou not, uiy dear, the mother

who hath stilled Thy baby cries upon her breast, and thy young

heart hath filled With early thoughts of Him, without whose blessing ah is nought, And walk thou ever in the ways, His holy Word hath taught Then shall thine husband praise thee, thy children's voices bl as The name of her who reared them in paths of holiness ; And thou shall see thy daughters take life's most solemn vow Before God’s sacred altar, as I have seen thee now. Farewell, my best and dearest, loved daughter of my heart, Thine husband waits for thee within, and thou and I niust part; Yet oh! although another on thy love hath now first claim, I charge thee ever hold thou dear, thy loving mother's name. Mine eyes with tears are filling, yet ’ tis not, child, with grief, But that mine o’erchargod mother-heart would fain find some relief; The tried friends of thy childhood, that thou must leave to day, Thou knowest well—but, ah, the future who of us can say ? Take, take thy mother’s blessing! for since for thee she bore The pangs that our first parent brought on women evermore, No sorrow hast thou caused her, no bitter heart-wrung tear, But dutiful and good hast grown in promise year by year. God shield thee, God protect thee, God bless thee, darling mine 1 The holy flame that fills a mother’s heart shall soon be thine; I yield thee to another, yet I know 'tis for the best, The nestling when its wings are grown must leave the parent nest. God speed thee, O my dear one! and may thy bridal flowers Be emblems of the blossoms that wait thy wedded hours; And may the golden sun-ray that gilds thy soft brown hair Be token that is heard on high thy loving mother’s prayer! Astley 11. Baldwin.

PARIS FASHIONS.

(From the Young Ladies' Journal.)

At some seasons of the year it is somewhat difficult to find novelties ; therefore, the modistes invent eccentricities. We had already seen cuirasse bodices of fine kid, but we were hardly prepared to see ladies clothed in flesh-coloured silk netting, fitting as closely as the maillot of an opera dancer. We have, however, nothing to do with such eccentricities. We know that our lady readers will not care to hear anything about them, but will expect some practical hints about the costumes in best taste for the country. First, we must notice that few of the changes predicted for the summer and autumn of this year have really eome to pass. After giving up the polonaise for the tunic and tablier, the polonaise has come into favour again ; on 6nc condition, however —that is, its being long enough almost to touch the bottom of the under-skirt in front, and draped slightly low down at the back. The bodice invariably remains cuirasseshape. The tablier has been transformed into a drapery or searf, which is often disposed over either a plain skirt with cuirassebodice, or over a Princess-dress ; the tab-

Her, properly so-called, is now quite gone out of fashion.

The fashion of having one’s cypher and crest marked or embroidered upon every one of one’s belongings, small or great, has now become more general than ever. To speak only of those forming part of the toilette, the fan, the gloves, aud even the shoes are ornamented with family crests and mottoes.

The fashion of fans thus marked with the initials of their owners, began last winter. It wasintroduced by someamong the elite of nobility, but now everyone has some sort ofcrest, fancy or real, represented upon fan, gloves, bouquet-holder, Ac. A sheaf of flowers is embroidered upon the fan, and the initials and crest are placed in one corner. One may no longer be deceived as to the identity of such or such a fair lady, or such or such a fashionable beau, for our elegantes wear of au evening a velvet necklet with their initials in gold or in diamonds, and for the day time, clasps for the waistband, or brooches for the mantle, with their cyphers iu enamel, in gold, platiua, or old silver finely-chiselled The same devices are repeated upon lockets, studs, and buttons for the corsage. Nor do fashionables of the sterner sex de<pi<e wearing their initials in silver upon onyx as buttons for their morning jackets, or having them cut out in oxidised silver or platina to fasten the bow of ribbon upon their hats. For evening parures it is the height of fashion just now to wear natural greenhouse flowers instead of artificial. The flowers should harmouisewitb the colours of the toilette. They are disposed in wreaths, half garlands, cachepeignes and bouquets. This fashion of wearing natural flowers conies to us straight from Nice, where it is always la mode to wear fresh-blown roses, pomegranite flowers, lemon and orange blossoms. Some fair ones play tricks in this matter, and wear exquisitely-copied artificial roses, mixed with natural myrtle leaves.