"Plain bays for Jenny's"?

[Seán Fitzpatrick]

"Bays" is probably a variant spelling for "baize", a "soft, usually green,
woolen or cotton fabric resembling felt" now "used chiefly for the tops of
billiard tables".
 [Origin: 1570–80; earlier bayes < F baies (n.), OF (estoffes fabrics)
baies, fem. pl. of bai
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/baize

Mule is a sterile lead. First, a jenny is a female donkey, not mule.
Second, the parallel garment given up for the plain baize "Jenny" is a
petticoat, not foot wear.  I speculated that "jenny's" might be a quaint 18C
rendering of "chemise" with a heavy French accent, but baize seems an
uncomfortable material to wear next to the skin.  Our resident costume
historian noted that men often get terms wrong when writing about woman's
clothing, and stiff petticoats were sometimes used to spread skirts instead
of hoops, but she doesn't know whether baize was ever used that way.

At their extreme, panniers might have been two yards wide and hence about
four yards round, but four yards of cloth would hardly suffice for any hoop
skirt.

Seán Fitzpatrick
Help the ontologically challenged realize their potential
http://www.logomachon.blogspot.com/
-----Original Message-----
From: Landau, James [mailto:James.Landau at NGC.COM]
Sent: Friday, 06 April, 2007 08:47
Subject: Re: "Plain bays for Jenny's"?

Joel Berson quoted:

"Several fine Ladies who used to wear French Silks, French Hoops of four
Yards Wide, Tete de Mouton Heads (or Bob Wigs) and with Sattin Smock
Petticoats &c are turned Methodists, and Followers of Mr.
Whitefield, whose Doctrine of the New Birth has so prevail'd over them,
that they now wear plain Stuff Gowns, no Hoops, common Night-Mobs and
plain Bays for Jenny's."

Note the parallel structure in the lists:
French Silks <---> plain Stuff
French Hoops <---> no Hoops
Tete de Mouton Heads (Bob Wigs) <---> common Night-Mobs
Sattin Smock Petticoats <---> plain Bays for Jenny's

It would seem therefore that a Jenny is a garment worn under the skirt
of a woman's gown.  Sagehen's suggestion of a pinafore or apron fits.

Just to be annoying:  a "jenny" is a female mule, and a "mule" is a type
of slipper (according to MWCD10, "mule" for "slipper" antedates
"jenny").  Also there are bay mules.

It should be noted that the writer seems to be exaggerating when
referring to "Hoops of four Yards Wide".  Even by Ninteenth Century
standards that is preposterous---how many houses have hallways twelve
feet wide?

"Tete de Mouton Heads" is redundant---it translates as "head of sheep
heads".

    - Jim Landau

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