Page:Fifty years hence, or, What may be in 1943 - a prophecy supposed to be based on scientific deductions by an improved graphical method (IA fiftyyearshenceo00grim).pdf/61

 preventing possibility of accident—have a force which throws into the shade all the dynamite and other explosives of the preceding century.

The clothing worn by men is very little changed from that of the century previous, except in texture and materials. Numberless plants of Mexican and African origin have been brought into use as bearing textile fibres; and improvements in spinning and weaving have enabled the production of fabrics of most suprising fineness and strength. The silk hat, which was the pest of civilized men in the previous century, has given place to a modification of what was once known as the Alpine, save that the new head-covering is lighter and more graceful, and those employed in winter are warmer than the others. In summer, straw has been superseded by paper. The women have decided upon a dress in external appearance not dissimilar to that which for so many centuries made Japanese women so picturesque. Corsets have been abolished, and pictures bearing date of the preceding century, in which the bustle is a prominent feature, have been tabooed as suggestive if not indecent.

The manufacture of paper has so greatly been