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Mundus Foppensis:
Or, The
Fop Display'd.

eing
The Ladies VINDICATION,
In Answer to a late Pamphlet, Entituled, m
Mundus Muliebris: Or, The Ladies
Dressing-Room Unlock'd, &c.

In Burlesque.

Together with a short SUPPLEMENT
to the Fop-Dictionary: Compos'd for the
use of the Town-Beaus.



Prisca juvent alios; Ego me nunc denique natum, 
Gratulor hæc ætas moribus apta meis. 
Non quia nunc terra lentum subducitur aurum 
Lectaque diverso littore Concha venit. 
Sed quia cultus adest; nec nostres mansuit in Annos, 
Rusticitas Priscis illa superstes avis. 
             Ovid de Arte Amandi. Lib. 3.



London, Printed for John Harris at the Harrow
in the Poultry, 1691.









The 
PREFACE.


Ladies,

IN the Tacker together of Mundus Mulie­
bris, As it was a very great Piece of ill Man­
ners, to unlock your Dressing-Rooms without your 
Leave, so was it no less indecent in him to expose 
your Wardrobes to the World, especially in such a 
Rhapsody of Rhime Doggeril as looks much more like 
an Inventory than a Poem; however, he has on­
ly pilfer'd away the Names of your Varieties with­
out doing ye any other Mischief; for there is no­
thing to be found in all his Index, nor his Dictiona­
ry neither, but what becomes a Person of Quality 
to give, and a Person of Quality to receive; and 
indeed, considering how frail the mortal Estates of 
mortal Gentlemen are, it argues but a common Pru­
dence in Ladies to take Advantage of the Kindness 
of their Admirers; to make Hay while the Sun 
shines; well knowing how often they are inveigl'd 
out of their Jointures upon all Occasions: Besides, it is a 



general Desire in Men, that their Ladies should 
keep Home, and therefore it is but reasonable they 
should make their Homes as delightfull as it is 
possible; and therefore this Bubble of an Inventory 
is not to be thought the Effect of general Repentance, 
among your Servants and Adorers, but the capri­
cious Malice of some Person envious of the little 
Remunerations of your Kindnesses for being disband­
ded from your Conversation; little indeed, consi­
dering the Rewards due to your Merits, otherwise 
it would be the greatest Injustice upon Earth for 
the Men to think of reforming the Women before they 
reform themselves, who are ten times worse in all 
respects, as you will have sufficient to retort upon them 
when you come by and by to the Matter.

But to shew that it is no new thing for Ladies 
to go gay and gaudy, we find in Ovid, that the Wo­
men made use of great variety of Colours for the 
Silks of which they made their Garments, of which 
the chiefest in request among them were Azure, 
Sea-green, Saffron colour, Violet, Ash colour, Rose 
colour, Chesnut, Almond Colour, with several o­
thers, as their Fancy thought fit to make choice; 
nor were they deny'd the Purple in Grain, over­
laid with Pearl, or embroider'd with Gold: Nor 



was it a strange thing for the Roman Woman to die 
their Hair Yellow, as an augmentation to their Beau­
ty; nor did the severity of the times at all oppose 
it, but rather allow'd it. Now, says Ovid, The 
Manner of dressing is not of one sort, and there­
fore let every Lady choose what best becomes her; 
first consulting her Looking-glass. And soon after, 
he confesses that there not more Leaves upon 
a large Oak, not so many Bees in Hybla, nor so 
many wild Beasts ranging the Alps as he could 
number differences of dressing Ladies. He tells 
ye how Laodamia drest to set off a long Face. 
How Diana drest when she went a Hunting: And 
how Iole was carelessly drest when she took Alci­
des Captive in the Dangles of her Tresses: So that it 
is no such new thing for the Women of this Age to de­
sire rich and splendid Ornaments. And why their 
Grandmothers, and Great Grandmothers confin'd 
themselves to their Nuptial Kirtles, their Gowns 
and Petticoats that lasted so many Anniversaries; 
their Virginals for Musick, and their Spanish Pa­
vans, and Sellingers Rounds for Recreation, after 
their long poring upon Tent-stitch, 'tis not a far­
thing Matter for our Ladies to enquire: 'Twas their 
Misfortune they knew no better; but because they 



knew no better, 'tis no Argument that our Ladies 
should be ty'd to their obsolete Examples: For the 
Alterations of Times and Customs alter the Hu­
mors and Fashions of an Age, and change the whole 
Frame of Conversation. Juno is by the Poets 
trick'd up in Vestments embroidered with all the Co­
lours of the Peacocks; and no question the Poets 
spoke with Relation to the Gallantry of the Women 
of those times. And who so gaudy as Madam Iris 
in the Skie, and therefore said to be chief Maid of 
Honour to Jupiter's Wife. I could give ye an Ac­
count of the Habits of Venus, and the Graces, 
which the Poets adapting to the Modes of those 
Times, plainly demonstrates, that the Ladies were 
no less curious in those days than now.

So then, Ladies, for your comfort be it spoken, 
here's only a Great Cry and little Wool; while 
the Unlocker of your Dressing-Rooms brings us a 
long Bedroll of hard Names to prove that you make 
use of a great deal of Variety to set forth and grace 
your Beauty, and render your Charms more unre­
sistable, and that you love to have your Closets splen­
didly and richly furnish'd: Heavens be prais'd, 
he lays nothing Criminal to your Charge; but only 
puts ye in mind of a Chapter in Isaiah, of which 



you are not bound to take much notice, in regard 
his mistaking the 6. for the 3: may secure ye there 
is little heed to be given to his Divinity.

But on the other side it makes me mad to hear 
what the Devil of a Roman Satyr Juvenal speaks 
of his own Sex; for tho' he makes Women bad e­
nough, he makes it an easier thing to meet with 
Prodigies and Monsters, than Men of Sense and 
Vertue.


Should I behold in Rome, that Man, says he,
That were of spotless Fame, and Life unblam'd;
More than a Wonder it would be to me,
And I that Monster would compare to damn'd:
Two-headed Boy, with double Members born,
Or Fish, by Plow turn'd up, where lately Corn
In fertile Acres grew; or Fole by Mule
Brought forth, as Heaven would Nature over-rule:
No less amaz'd, than if a stoney Showre
Should from the Skie upon the Pavement pour;
Or that some Swarm of Bees, ascending higher
Than usually, should cluster on the Temple Spire;
Or that some rapid and impetuous Stream,
Should roll into the Sea, all Bloud, or cream.


Heavens! how many Wonders do's Juvenal 
make at the sight of an Honest Man in his time; 
and yet when he has spoken as bad as he could of 



the Women, we find no such severe Expressions of 
his upon the Female Sex. Now Ladies if good 
Men are so scarce, what need you care what Fools 
and bad Men say. 'Tis true it must be acknow­
ledg'd a hard Censure upon Men; but it was a Man 
that said it; and therefore it makes the better for 
the Feminine Gender. Well, Ladies, you may 
be pleas'd to make what use of it you think fit, as 
being that which will certainly defend ye against all 
the Picklocks of your Dressing-Rooms for the fu­
ture; besides the Liberty which Ovid, an Authen­
tick Author, gives ye, to make use of what Dresses, 
what Ornaments, what Embellishments you please, 
according to the Mode and Practice of those times, 
under one of the best Rulers of the Roman Empire, 
and far more antient than when your Grandmothers 
and Great Grandmothers spun Flax, and bespittl'd 
their Fingers.







A Short Supplement to the Fop-Dicti­
onary, so far as concerns the present Matter.



Adieu douce me Cheres. 
Farewell my dear Friends.

Arroy. 
A Suit of Cloaths.

To adjust a Man's self. 
That is, to dress himself.

Beau. 
A Masculine French Adjective, signifying fine; 
but now naturaliz'd into English to denote a spar­
kish dressing Fop.

Beaux Esprits. 
A Club of Wits, who call'd themselves so.

Bachique. 
A Drinking Song or Catch.

The Brilliant of Language. 
Sharpness and wittiness of Expression.

A Brandenburgh. 
A Morning Gown.

To Carine a Perriwig. 
That is, to order it.

"carine" (French) not found in the OED but explained below as meaning "correct."



Chedreux. 
A Perriwig.

Correct. 
The same as
Carine.

Deshabille 
Undrest, or rather in a careless Dress.

En Cavalier. 
Like a Gentleman.

Esclat. 
Of Beauty, or the Lustre of Beauty.



Eveillé. 
I observ'd her more Eveillé than other Women; 
that is, more sprightly and airey.

Equipt. 
That is, well furnish'd with Money and Cloaths.

Gaunte Bient Gaunte. 
Modish in his Gloves.

Grossier. 
The World is very Grossier; that is, very dull, and 
ill bred.

"grossier" not found in OED.



Levee and Couchee. 
Is to attend a Gentleman at his rising or going to
Bed.

Le Grass. 
The Furniture of a Suit.

Orangers. 
The Term for Gloves scented with Oranges.

"oranger" in OED means only "A ship used to transport oranges."



Picards. 
Shoes in downright English.

"Picards" not found in OED but the Picard term "chabot" 
(OED, "sabot," n.) means a wooden shoe.



Pulvillio. 
Sweet Powder for the Hair.

Rolls. 
A sort of Dress for the Knees, invented as some 
say by the Roman Catholicks, for the conveniency 
of Kneeling but others ascribe the lucky Fancy to 
Coll. S----.

"Roll" not found in OED in this sense.



A Revoir. 
Till I see you again.

Surtout. 
The great Coat which covers all.


For the rest you are referr'd to the Dilucidations of the Alsatian Squire.

FINIS.