54 AUTOBIOGRAPHY 



" Shadbelly." The vest was long and ample; 

 the breeches were loose (held up by knit sus- 

 penders, even the buttonholes being knit in) and 

 cut in a fashion far more modest than modern 

 trousers. His high shirt collar was lightly starched 

 and fell naturally over a stiff, high stock, held in 

 place by a buckle. 



When riding out of daors in winter every man 

 was provided with a soft knit muffler a foot wide 

 and nearly two yards long. Muffs were common 

 while the foot-stove was a necessary comfort for 

 any long drive. Most men, however, did not wear 

 the stiff silk hat but caps made of cloth, or coon or 

 squirrel skin. While these were worn by boys also 

 I cannot remember ever to have had one; for in 

 my time we could purchase " cap-peaks " which 

 were stitched in between the lining and the body of 

 the home-made cap of cloth, perhaps the well-pre- 

 served part of an old coat. In winter we boys all 

 wore knit caps with a flowing tassel at the top. 

 For dress-up on Sunday in summer men wore 

 white linen pants as late as 1850. Our underwear 

 was tow, linen or wool according to season, but by 

 1850 cotton had come to be generally used. 



It is certainly marvellous how in one generation, 

 the New York pioneers changed from homespun 



