Excerpt from “Examination of a Young Pretender to Fashion,” London Magazine, 1825
Q. What is the most wonderful invention of modern times?
A. The starched neckcloth.
Q. Who invented the starched neckcloth?
A. Brummell.
Q. Give the particulars of this invention.
A. When Brummell fell into disgrace, he devised the starched neckcloth with the design of putting the Prince’s neck out of fashion, and of bringing his Royal Highness’ muslin, his bow, and wadding into contempt. When he first appeared in this stiffened cravat, tradition says that the sensation in St. James’s Street was prodigious; dandies were struck dumb with envy, and washerwomen miscarried. No one could conceive how the effect was produced—tin, card, a thousand contrivances were attempted, and innumerable men cut their throats in vain experiments; the secret, in fact, puzzled and baffled everyone, and the poor dandy L … d died raving mad of it; his mother, his sister, and all his relations waited on Brummell, and on their knees implored him to save their kinsman’s life by the explanation of the mystery; but the beau was obdurate, and L. miserably perished. When B. fled from England, he left his secret a legacy to his country; he wrote on a sheet of paper, on his dressing table, the emphatic words, “Starch is the man.”
