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94 essary addition to the history of English costume, in its detailed examination of eighteenth-century plebian dress. ‘‘No eighteenth-century commodity,’’ Mr. Styles notes, ‘‘revealed differences in living standards between rich and poor more visibly than clothing.’’ In order to discern ‘‘the part clothing played in the activities and experiences’’ of the common folk, Mr. Styles employs ‘‘a patchwork of sources, all of them to some degree obdurate, flawed and incomplete .’’ These include those previously unused in histories of dress, specifically ‘‘records of criminal trials and advertisements for fugitives,’’ as well as the more traditional ones of personal account books, parish poor records, travel narratives, and prints. Although criminal proceedings of thefts of plebian garments have their limitations as source material (for instance, the tendency for thieves to steal the ‘‘more desirable, expensive and easily disposed items’’), as do newspaper advertisements describing clothing worn by (predominantly male) fugitives, Mr. Styles cautiously employs and analyzes these sources. The book is organized into four sections . Part I, entitled ‘‘Patterns of Clothing ,’’ has separate chapters on travelers’ impressions of English plebian dress; articles of dress associated with the common people, such as smock frocks, coarse linen shifts, or bedgowns; clothing marking different aspects of the individual ’s life; cleanliness and repair of clothing; replacement of clothing; watches as fashionable plebian accessory ; and the influence of cotton on plebian feminine attire. The most interesting chapters trace travelers’ impressions of English common dress and the increasing importance of cotton for women ’s clothing. Part II, ‘‘Getting and Spending,’’ examines the fabrics and garments of plebian consumers; Part III, ‘‘Understanding Clothes,’’ views plebian attire from the perspective of the upper and lower stations and explores plebian household and clothing expenditures. The fourth and final section examines the changing clothing needs of plebian families. It is shocking to discover that those receiving parish relief were frequently required to wear a large badge ‘‘upon the shoulder of the right sleeve of the uppermost garment of every such person, in an open and visible manner . . . a large Roman P, together with the first letter of the name of the parish where the poor lived.’’ Mr. Styles’s research confirms many well-established notions concerning plebian dress. For instance, the majority of Robert Heaton’s servants actually spent more than they earned, with the greatest proportion of their expenditures on dress and accessories. Dress of the People dispels older notions concerning plebian dress, such as the idea that the lower orders sought to emulate the attire of their so-called betters. Indeed, fashion of the beau monde often found its inspiration in plebian dress (for instance, aprons, round hats, and wiglessness). Lavishly illustrated, Dress of the People has 128 full-color photographs, such as the reproduction of Penny’s A Scene from Jonathan Swift’s Description of a City Shower. Also most welcome is the rich photographic array of textile samples from the London Foundling Hospital (from the London Metropolitan Archives ), scattered throughout the chapters . Kathleen M. Oliver University of Central Florida The Diary of Edmund Harrold, Wigmaker of Manchester 1712–15, ed. 95 Craig Horner. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008. Pp. xxxiv ⫹ 178. $99.95. Mr. Horner notes the unique character of Edmund Harrold’s diary: the daily, plebian Manchester life, which predates any local newspapers, and coincides with the absence of Court Leet records. Harrold’s quotidian account, thus, provides a picture of a world that has almost disappeared from history. We know how often he was drunk (very often ), when he made love to his wife, the books he bought, sold, and read, the church services he attended and the sermons he heard, and his ongoing internal struggle against drink and toward a more ‘‘godly, righteous, and sober life,’’ in the words of the Book of Common Prayer, which he often quotes. A regular churchgoer, especially in the earlier years, Harrold generally went to what he calls ‘‘the old church,’’ the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St. Mary, St. Denys and St. George, later Manchester Cathedral, for the morning services and the ‘‘new’’ church, St. Ann’s, in the afternoon; he also attended the consecration of St. Ann’s Church, founded as a reaction to the High Church...

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