There is much virtue in the veil, and its length and condition were varied to suit the individual and her circumstance. On state occasions it would be overspread by another veil, and above it by the women of quality would be placed a crown of gold; or it would assert its influence over the hair, which was parted on the forehead, curled or plaited behind the ears, and confined in a gold net known as a crispine; women of highest degree choosing this crispine of gold thread set with jewels and encircling it by a gold band also jewelled, which would form the frame for the veil. This crispine in various forms was the common fashion for a long time, and when discarded the hair was bound tightly to the head with a silken fillet and garlands of flowers. Alike in the decoration of the head and in the fabrics which were chosen to glorify the simple gowns, it appears to have been quite possible to evade the spirit, while obeying the letter, of the law of simplicity which the rulers demanded at the hands of fashion. Fashion granted it with a difference, and while rigidly austere in cut, clothes were so generally magnificent in their material and so generous in their width, that ruin might wait swiftly upon the prodigal with a pretty fancy in frocks. And to think that the security of a Married Women's Property Act was outside the ken and comfort of the weak and confiding lord, who loved his lady too well to deny her caprice! CHAPTER IV IN THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY Sumptuous and ever more sumptuous grew dress in the fourteenth century, when the outfit brought by Isabella of France, upon the occasion of her marriage with Edward II., was a conspicuous example of the possibilities of extravagance. Historians have it that her robes were of gold and silver and of shot taffeta and velvet, that there were many beautiful furs, and that six dozen coifs and 419 yards of linen, and six dresses of green cloth, six dresses splendidly marbled, and six dresses of rose scarlet were included in her possessions. Sovereigns in those times took unto themselves some pride in leading the fashions, and we have Anne, wife of Richard II., effecting the introduction of the _côte hardie_, a garment not unlike a waistcoat, fitting closely on the hips and trimmed round with a border of fur and buttoned down the front. This was cut square below the neck and boasted long tight-fitting sleeves, and was made of either plain or embroidered material, or it displayed, as did so many of the garments of that day, an embroidered border. Embroidery flourished in the reign of Richard II., when dress, petticoat, and mantle would be emblazoned with the arms of the wearer's family, and the device of a bird and tree adorned with stately grace many a mantle of Richard's Queen, who must be credited with a most admirable inclination towards beautiful frocks. In the picture given she is shown wearing a train of peacock-blue velvet bordered with gold and embroidered with