are, nevertheless, among the queens of the day. I would
they may see belong to the beau monde, while they are
not have them fancy that all the showy dames whom
neither more nor less than adventuresses, the divinities
of the public balls at Asnieres, Mabille's, the Chateau des
Fleurs, and Musard's. The real lady is too conscious of
her beauty, her elegance, her birth and her fortune, ever
to compromise herself to parading extravagant fashions.
She will dress for Autumn like a daisy. What can be
of English alpaca and plain silk, with quilled flounces.
more pleasing? The prettiest Autumn dresses are made
The skirt has seven flounces, merely hemmed and quilled.
The Queen Daisy of the gardens has nothing smarter than
has quilled lappets round the waist.
this skirt all quilled like a collar. The body is plain, and
The sleeves are
gathered at top and have three quilled flounces. This
dress is far best when made of a quite plain tissue. It is
lars and sleeves are also made with quilled trimmings,
the very personification of a lady of good taste. The ccl-
and are some fishus to which the name of the unfortunate
Marie Antoinette has been given. Then there is another
novelty called the Fanchionnette. Of course you want to
know what that is. Why, a mere nothing made out of
lace, a kind of low bertha with long rounded ends, which
may be worn on either a high or a low body. This fan-
chonnette gives the body a very rich appearance. Indeed,
we have seen some very stylish ladies throw this fanchon-
nette over their straw bonnet and tie it under the chin.
over their ribbons. It imparts at once a resemblance of
the costumes of the reign of Louis XV. It is really very
becoming; it is certainly not of the classical school, but
of the romantic.

dresses in actual wear still speak of Summer and sunny skies, but over these thin toilets of grenadine, silk, muslin, or barege, our fashionable ladies are pleased to wear silk or black moire antique redingotes, to which the name of Incroyables has been given. These are the chief eccentricities of the day, and are the subjects of conversation in every circle interested in toilet. Women who have an aversion for everything singular or remarkable, cry out against this innovation, but most of the fair daughters of Eve who possess the attraction of a fine figure, have already made up their minds to bestow their warmest patronage on this moire antique redingote (the French name for a gentleman's frock coat.) It has, indeed, some right to be so called, as the skirt is gathered in flutes and forms a second skirt over the dress. The body is tight and closed down the front with frogs or loops. As for the sleeves they are very wide and flowing, and opened up so as to show to advantage the rich lace sleeves worn underneath, as well as the sleeves of the dress. Such is the general aspect of these Incroyables. They have no trimming whatever, and it is, perhaps, this very plainness which gives them so much the appearance of gentlemen's frock coats. Should the silk and moire Incroyables meet with as much favor as many persons anticipate, it may be easily foreseen that the same cut will be in equal vogue Bonnets for Autumn differ very little, if at all, from when the approach of Winter renders the adoption of vel- trimmet with velvet and flowers of the season. those worn in Summer. Belgian and Panama straws are Those vet or cloth indispensable. Indeed we are more than half ladies who must absolutely have something new in the inclined to think, that before the time for the use of cloth shape of a bonnet, have them made of crape and velvet, crape and silk, with ornaments of feathers of two shades. arrives, these Incroyables will have obtained the almost Curtains are still made of enormous dimensions, and it is undisputed possession of the field. But for a lady to ap-hardly to be supposed that they will be less in the Winter. pear to advantage in one of them, she must have a nymph-Nothing will be really done in point of Winter fashions till after the long holidays, which terminate early in Oclike slender figure, without which the redingote will be as tober. Till then the only change will be in the ornaments vulgar as anything else-in short, she will have the ap- and trimmings of dresses and bonnets. The appearance pearance of a perambulating beer barrel. We think few of the Incroyables, already described, is quite an excep tional case at the present season. Dresses are still made unmarried ladies will venture alone into the streets of of Louis XV. lappets, that is to say, reaching down to Paris in these redingotes for some time yet, at least, as about the middle of the skirt. The lappets, body and they attract too much notice, and seem to say, "Look at sleeves are generally rather profusely trimmed with ball or tassel fringes. Fringe is an ornament that enjoys exme!" The Boulevards belong to the general public. It traordinary favor. We have also seen some very pretty is very different in a drawing-room, where the company velvet tresses so employed, but for this trimming the lady should be of a very slender figure, else it will give an ap all know, or are supposed to know, each other. The rich pearance of stoutness, which may not be desired. Before and noble foreigner can indulge freely in all the caprices I leave the subject of dresses, I will lay before my readers of fashion, because the manners and customs of Paris are the description of some pretty toilets which attracted no not held to govern those of other countries. But in Paris, We will begin with the dress worn by the Empress, which little attention at a ball given by the Emperor at St. Cloud a lady who appears on the Boulevards must be extremely was made of Azof-green crape, trimmed with English reserved in her toilet, carriage, and gesture, especially point lace, and a profusion of green wheat ears, matching the tint of the dress; the three crape skirts were almost when alone, with no other protector than herself. If she covered with them. Madame T. de la 1 walks along staring at everything she passes, and holding up her dress like a Spanish dancer ready to fly off into cachucha, she is sure to compromise herself, though she may be the most respectable woman in the world all the time. This manner of raising the dress, which some ladies who think themselves fashionable have adopted, is really most unbecoming. I am well aware that crinoline makes

it impracticable to raise the dress at the side, and so, in order not to derange the harmony of this wondrous pile of petticoats, ladies adopt the expedient of raising their dresses in front. But why persist in wearing crinoline when it imparts neither grace nor elegance? Crinoline is like the frog in the fable that tried to rival the ox in bulk. A woman invested with such unmeasured volume of crinoline, may fairly be compared to a diving-bell. Some ladies, especially remarkable for the excess of crinoline, have lately been seen indulging in another eccentricity, carrying an eye-glass stuck in the corner of the left eye, with all the easy impudence of a made dandy. These ladies have received the name of Crinolinettes. They have a peculiar style of their own, like the corresponding class of the other sex. If I thus attack the weak side of fashion, it is solely for the benefit of my fair readers, whom I wish to caution against the bad taste of certain persons, who

wore a

toilet composed of seven skirts of grenadine gauze, shaded
of all the blues from torquoise to China blue. The trim-
ming of this toilet was blue-bells of all the tints contained
in each skirt. The bertha was also of blue-bells, and
wreaths of them meandered all over the skirts. The
Duchess d'A-
had a toilet covered all over with
quilled illusion tulle and grass fringe, studded with bunches
of black and red currants. The Countess of M
wore
a white crape toilet, ornamented with long branches of
Nothing could be more original
apple bloom and fruit.
than all those little green apples swaying about on their
flexible stems like so many little balls. So much for ball-

dresses.

Now a few words on walking dress. We have three new bodies to describe the Montespan, the Moresque and the Catalonian. The first has very much the appearance of a man's coat, as it has a little skirt behind formed by three large plaits, while the front terminates at the waist in a little point either sharp or rounded. This is a very pretty little body. The moresque body has a plain lappet very much curved, on which fall a quantity of basquines, forming a double lappet. All these basquines are ruched with ribbons and bordered with fringe or lace. The Catalonian body presents a kind of second body formed of a chequer-work of velvet and ribbon, something in the Swiss style. This chequer-work begins below the bosom. It is an admirable means of setting off the waist to advantage. Next month we shall have plenty to say on Autumn novelties, especially bonnets and mantelets.

VISCOMPTESSE DE RENNEVILLE.

Athens." The general outline of the Patent Of center and eastern and southern fronts, conveyfice will require considerable filling up before ing an accurate idea of the whole structure as the resemblance would strike an observer with seen on approaching it from the avenue. Asmuch force. As to the portico, the claim for cending the steps, and passing the portico, the that alone, not its position, is better founded. visitor enters the Vestibule, of which we also "The idea of the plan," Mr. Mills says, "was present a capital view. This room is 70 feet presented by Town and Elliot, and is that upon deep by 50 in width; the ceiling is divided into which the center portion of the building was arches, which are supported by four large stone erected." Now the fact is, the plan was drawn | columns of the Doric order. Here formerly by Messrs. Town and Elliot, and submitted and were gathered a large number of models, but approved by the President; Mr. Mills was ap- the greater part have been removed to the uppointed architect, and superintended the erec- per story, and the cases now contain mostly tion of the building, making some alterations models of rejected applications. From the externally and internally. The simple truth is, east side there is an entrance to the Examiners' though Doric simplicity prevails, yet the style and Commissioners' rooms, and to the main of architecture is nothing more than another passage-way of the east wing, in which are specimen of American composite, a sort of the apartments of the Secretary of the Inteconglomerated specimen of native growth. rior, the library of the Department and the clerks' rooms. The corresponding entrance leads to the Patent Office Library and to the west wing, now occupied by the General Land Office. The second story is reached from the vestibule by a double flight of circular stone steps, and though without pretension, this stairway is graceful, with an easy angle of ascension; to save room a circular extension out of the line of the building was erected to contain the stairs, which also extend down to the basement. The grand hall is entered by a large but plain doorway, and is, with its contents, an object of great curiosity to visitors at the metropolis; as many as 10,000 persons have visited it in a month-the only tax being to inscribe the name on a register, and accept of an official catalogue, printed and circulated by order of the Commissioner. This hall is now and has been used since 1842 by a learned society, the National Institute, which was of much consideration by scientific men and of ficers of the Army and Navy until a few years since; now it attracts comparatively little attention, why we are at a loss to explain. The Government also occupy portions of the hall.

The building is 405 feet front, including the wings, which are 275 feet long--both the front and wings having a depth of, the former 70, the latter 69 feet; the center building faces Eighth street, and is 270 feet wide; it connects on either side directly with the wings, and but for the difference of material the whole looks, as it is in fact, like one building. The material of the first structure is sandstone, painted white, with granite basement in the rear; it has a rusticated basement, and rises two stories in hight above. The wings are of marble, the cast similar in its construction to the center; whereas, owing to the declination of the ground, the west wing has a sub-basement of granite, to bring it on a line with the rest; the rear of each wing is constructed of granite.

The portico, which is very elevated, being reached by numerous granite steps, supported by cheekblocks, is of the same proportion as the Parthenon. The entablature and pediment are supported by a double row of massive Doric columns, resting on a stone pavement; pilasters ornament the entire front of the building. The ceiling, however, was, as was more customary twenty years ago than it is now, or than we hope it will ever be again made, merely lath and plaster, in imitation of stone panels, and it is now in a broken condition. We cannot but suggest that the Secretary of the Interior should direct the intelligent architect who is now in charge of the work on the new part to have this cheap looking and unsightly stuff removed, to be replaced by marble panels or some other solid material.

The view which our artist has most accurately and gracefully sketched, presents this portico, as well as the one on the east wing, to which we will allude again, and the entire

The official catalogue, prepared by a Committee, divides the collection into five classes, as follows:

First: Articles belonging to the South Sea Exploring Expedition, under the command of Commander Charles Wilkes, U. S. N.

Second: Articles belonging to the General Government, including the specimens from Japan, brought home by Capt. Perry, U. S. N.

Third: Collections belonging to the National Institute Society for the Promotion of Science.

Fourth: Numerous contributions from individuals, Salt Lake and other expeditions.

Fifth Collections from the Washington Mu- skill, and their is a life-like appearance in the