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Edward Le Quesne (1882-1957) was elected a Deputy for St Helier No 2 district in 1925 and held the seat until he stood successfully for the new office of Senator in 1948. This is an extract from a journal he wrote entitled “50 Years of Memories”, written sometime around 1949
Funerals and Bustles
When I see men of 40 or so to-day I think back on the appearance of men of a similar age when I was a boy. At that time most men had a beard or at least what were then termed “ mutton-chop whiskers ” and even young men in the twenties did not consider themselves in the fashion did they not display a moustache and sideboards.
Of a Sunday most men, especially if attending church or chapel, wore a frock-coat and top hat or alternatively a bowler hat, but to be really well dressed the top-hat was considered necessary. When attending funerals the top hat was the only headgear possible, and the undertaker always provided crepe bands to place around the hat, with a sufficiency of the material to allow two fairly long ends to overlap the brim.
Some top hats were handed down from generation to generation, and often was to be seen a top-hat whose age could be told by the fact that, once black, it had developed into a dark green. The undertaker also provided black gloves, which at the termination of the funeral ceremony, he collected for further use on another occasion. A funeral in those days was a much more important function than it is to-day. Relatives down to the third and fourth cousins were warned to attend the ceremony, and woe to him who, having been warned, failed to attend, except for a substantial reason.
At the termination of the funeral a substantial meal was provided for all attending, and in many cases mourners could be seen proceeding homewards with top-hats more so at an angle than in the normal perpendicular position. Ladies of course never made an appearance, for their part was to remain at home consoling one another.
The dresses of ladies and young girls were somewhat different from those now seen. Long skirts reaching to the ground were “ de rigueur ”, and it was considered indecent to even allow the ankle to be exposed. Bustles were also worn, for a reason I have never understood, and even enquiries from my mother failed to elicit a reason, except that it was “ the fashion ”. Several petticoats were worn under these skirts, and unlike to-day, the more of the female form that could be hidden the more respectable was it considered. Married women wore bonnets with long ribbons attached, in order to secure them by tying them under the chin.
Funerals and Bustles
When I see men of 40 or so to-day I think back on the appearance of men of a similar age when I was a boy. At that time most men had a beard or at least what were then termed “ mutton-chop whiskers ” and even young men in the twenties did not consider themselves in the fashion did they not display a moustache and sideboards.
Of a Sunday most men, especially if attending church or chapel, wore a frock-coat and top hat or alternatively a bowler hat, but to be really well dressed the top-hat was considered necessary. When attending funerals the top hat was the only headgear possible, and the undertaker always provided crepe bands to place around the hat, with a sufficiency of the material to allow two fairly long ends to overlap the brim.
Some top hats were handed down from generation to generation, and often was to be seen a top-hat whose age could be told by the fact that, once black, it had developed into a dark green. The undertaker also provided black gloves, which at the termination of the funeral ceremony, he collected for further use on another occasion. A funeral in those days was a much more important function than it is to-day. Relatives down to the third and fourth cousins were warned to attend the ceremony, and woe to him who, having been warned, failed to attend, except for a substantial reason.
At the termination of the funeral a substantial meal was provided for all attending, and in many cases mourners could be seen proceeding homewards with top-hats more so at an angle than in the normal perpendicular position. Ladies of course never made an appearance, for their part was to remain at home consoling one another.
The dresses of ladies and young girls were somewhat different from those now seen. Long skirts reaching to the ground were “ de rigueur ”, and it was considered indecent to even allow the ankle to be exposed. Bustles were also worn, for a reason I have never understood, and even enquiries from my mother failed to elicit a reason, except that it was “ the fashion ”. Several petticoats were worn under these skirts, and unlike to-day, the more of the female form that could be hidden the more respectable was it considered. Married women wore bonnets with long ribbons attached, in order to secure them by tying them under the chin.
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