BLOOMEBISM, a new and fanciful fashion of ladies' dress, partly resembling male attire, which arose out of what is termed the " woman's rights' movement," that began to be agitated in the United States about the year 1848. The first woman's rights' con vention was held at Worcester, N. Y., in 1850, under the presidency of Mrs. Lucretia Mott. Its object was to advocate for women a morn liberal education, training in trades and professions, and generally the social and political privileges possessed by the (Alma. sex. At the same date, and in close connection with this movement, arose an agitation for the reform of female attire. Its advocates said, justly enough, that if women were to take their place in the world as fellow-workers with men, they ought not to labor under the disadvantage of having a dress, that deprived them of the use of their hands, and required nearly their whole muscular power for its support. In 1849, Mrs. Alm Bloomer adopted the costume to which she has given her name, and lectured in New York and elsewhere on its advantages. The 13Ioomer dress consisted of a jacket with close sleeves, a skirt falling a little below the knee, and a pair of Turkish trowsers. Though a few ladies followed the •example of Mrs. Bloomer, the dress was extremely unpopular, and exposed its adherents to a degree of social martyrdom which the mow prudent, timid, or amiable declined to brave. A very elegant modification of the Bloomer dress was achieved by a New York huly—a Polish jacket, trimmed with fur, and a skirt reaching to within a few Inches of the ground, avoiding- a display of panta loon, and showing off merely the trim furred boot, but still sufficiently short to avoid contact with the street; the filthy habit of spitting, which prevails in America, rendering such avoidance peculiarly necessary. The agitation for dress-reform has not died out on
the other side the Atlantic. There appeared in New York a monthly publication, called the Silly/, devoted to its advocacy, and whose editor, a married lady, as well as several of her contributors, personally illustrated their principles. A wood-cut at the head of the periodical represented the reform dress, as it was called. It looked by no means tempting in point of elegance—ft fault fatal to its general adoption. The skirt was immoderately short, and the jacket cut the figure awkwardly in two. The intro duction of B. into England, soon after it had sprung up in America, was under such unfavorable auspices, that it failed to gain entrance into respectable society, and speedily disappeared. Still here, as in America, nothing is more frequently talked of, or desired with more apparent fervency, than a dress reform. For instance, the heavy hooped skirts prevalent some years ago, injurious to health, fatal to comfort, and liable to be equally dirty and ridiculous, were uniVerstillv complained of; but the prejudice with which any innovation is sure to be met, long discouraged every attempt to introduce a reform.