Page:A short history of social life in England.djvu/243

Rh was at a discount; humanity, noble sentiments, manly courage and high achievement no longer represented Englishmen on the stage. For the moment these things had passed away!

Trivial enough, too, were the indoor amusements of grown-up folk. "I love my love with an A," was a favourite game. It was played after dinner by "all the great ladies sitting upon a carpet," with much wit and personal indelicacy. "Drawing characters," too, opens up a terrible vista of possibilities. "Crambo," "Hunt the Slipper," "Blind Man's Buff," and "Hot Cockles," were all favourite amusements of the day.

An enormous amount of time and thought was lavished upon dress by men as well as by women. Pepys never wearies of describing to us his fine clothes; he tells us of new suits of silk and cloth trimmed with scarlet ribbons, of velvet coats and cloaks shining with silver buttons, of high-crowned beaver hats adorned with plumes of feathers and worn indoors as well as out, of lace ruffles and rich falling collars of lace, high-heeled shoes, and the introduction into England of the famous wig. This was in the year 1664, when the large periwig or peruke found its way, like all other fashions, from the Court of the French King. One by one