276

HISTORY OF LACE.

“ The most curious wives,” says Stowe, “ now made themselvesruffs of cambric, and sent them to Madame Dinghen to be starched)who charged high prices. After a time they made themselves ruffsof lawn, and thereupon arose a general scoff’, or by-word, thatshortly they would make their ruffs of spiders’ webs.” Mrs.Dinghen at last took their daughters as her pupils. Her usualterms were from four to five pounds for teaching them to starch,and one pound for the art of seething starch. 67 The nobilitypatronised her, but the commonalty looked on her as the evil one,and called her famous liquid “ devil’s broth.”

To keep the ruff erect, bewired 68 and starched though it be,was a troublesome affair—its falling a cause of agony to the wearer.

“ Not so close, tliy breath will draw my ruff,”

exclaims the fop. The tools used in starching and fluting ruffswere called setting-sticks, struts, and poking-sticks: the two firstwere made of wood or bone, the poking-stick of iron, and heatedin the fire. By this heated tool the fold acquired that accurateand seemly order which constituted the beauty of this verypreposterous attire. It was about the year 1576, according toStowe, the making of poking-sticks began. They figure in theexpenses of Elizabeth, who, in 1592, pays to her blacksmith, oneThomas Larkin, “ pro 2 de lez setting-stickes ad 2s. 6 d.,” thesum of 5s. 69

We have frequent allusion to the article in the plays of theday : 70 —

“ Your ruff must stand in print, and for that purpose, get poking-sticks with fairlong handles, lest they scorch your hands.” 71

87 Endless nre the entries in the Gt. W.Acc. for washing, starching, and mending.The court laundress can have had nosinecure. We find “le Jup de lawneoperut’ cum stellis et aristis tritici Anglicowheateares” (Eliz. 42 & 43', sent to bewashed, starched, &c. A network vail“ sciss’ totum desuper cum ragged staves ”(Leicester’s device, ibid. 29 & 30). A“ diploid” (doublet) of outwork flourished“ cum auro et spangles” (ibid.), and,more wonderful still, in the last year ofher reign, she has washed and starched atoga “ cum traine de la lawne opernt’in auro et argento in forma cai. larumpavorum,” the identical dress in which

she is portrayed in one of her por-traits.

88 “ Eidem pro un ruff bon pynned sup’le wier Franc’ cu rliet’ aur’ spangled,70s.”—Eliz. 42 & 43.

88 Gt. W. Acc. Eliz. 33 & 34.

70 “ B. Where’s my ruff and poker ?

“ R. There’s your ruff, shall I poke it ?

“ B. So poke my ruff now.”— Old Play,by P. Dekher, 1602.

Autolyeus, among his wares, has“ poking-sticks of steel.”

“ Poked her rebatoes and surveyed hersteel.”— Law Tricks, 1608.

71 Middleton’s comedy of “ Blurt,Master Constable.”