Of children's dress in olden times we have singularly few details, and, as a rule, it may be concluded that their raiment was fashioned on similar lines to that worn by the men and women of the country in which they lived, and was more or less ornamented, according to their station in life. [Illustration: CHILDREN OF CHARLES I. (_After a painting by Vandyck._)] One or two biblical references enlighten us as to Eastern customs. On the authority of St. Luke, our Saviour in infancy was wrapped in swaddling clothes. "Samuel," we are told, "being a child, was girded with a linen ephod," which appears to have been a close robe or vest reaching from the shoulders to the loins, and confined by a girdle. Considering the climate and the habits of the people, it was probably the only garment used in summer, but in cold weather was supplemented, we presume, by the little coat his mother bought him from year to year, when she and her husband came to offer the annual sacrifice, at Shiloh, where Eli, the High Priest, lived. A coat of many colours was also presented to Joseph in his youth as a mark of Jacob's affection for the child of his old age. Greek and Roman children of the gentler sex are usually represented in the chiton, or loose classical gown, combined with a shawl or himation weighted at the four corners, so as to assist the wearer in adjusting it. How to put on this garment was carefully taught as part of a girl's education. The long end was first thrown over the left shoulder. The front part was arranged in folds across the body, passed under the right arm and over the left shoulder or forearm. The girdle sometimes consisted of a cord, at others of metal bands, and by drawing the chiton over it, a double thickness of the fabric covered the vital organs of the body. Boys wore the tunic and toga, and the latter is supposed to have been oblong, with the corners rounded off, so as to give a semicircular effect. Hats were not commonly worn, except by the poor or when on a journey, a fold of the toga or mantle serving for a head covering, and sandals protected the feet. The Egyptian labouring classes allowed their children to be nude, and infants were unfamiliar with swaddling clothes. The working man and boy had simply a loin cloth and girdle, and the girl a loose tunic fastened with strings at the neck and reaching to her feet. On the other hand, children of the upper classes in Egypt were repetitions of their elders on a small scale. Girls wore a linen skirt embroidered in colours and fastened with a bright sash, or suspended from the shoulders, and over this a loose transparent robe with long sleeves. The male costume consisted of a loin cloth, and a full robe with short sleeves, or a tunic, and both sexes had elaborately curled or plaited wigs, as the natural hair was only allowed to grow in times of mourning.