The matter of dress for bicycling is quite important from the hygienic standpoint.

Clothing should be most carefully selected, with the view to an equal distribution of weight and an even thickness of material; it should have no constricting, no tight bands anywhere, but should permit of absolute freedom of movement, and be warm enough to prevent chilling through too great radiation of heat, yet porous enough to allow of free evaporation.

All seasons of the year permit of cycling; the bicyclist therefore has opportunity for much variety in dress. The essentials are knickerbockers, shirt-waist, stockings, shoes, gaiters, sweater, coat, no skirt, or skirt with length decided by individual preference, hat and gloves.

The knickerbockers should be very carefully cut; smooth and tight just over the top of the hips, and fitting easily below; not fulled or gathered; full at the knees, and boxed or finished with a band and button and button-hole; nothing elastic on any account. The stockings should be worn folded on the boxed part of the knickerbockers, below the knees, and rolled down and held by the band of the knickerbockers, being fastened below. This arrangement does away with garters, which compress surface circulation, or pull if attached at the waist, causing pressure where they pull, and are most objectionable for many reasons. The knickerbockers should be made of cloth or woollen material.

The shirt-waist should have wristbands or sleeves finished to open a little way, and button; the neck finished with a band, with a detachable collar of the same material. The body of the waist should be shaped to the figure at the sides and back, gathered slightly in the front, and finished at the waist-line without a band, and may be of the same material as the rest of the suit. The knickerbockers should button to this waist, the places for the buttons being reinforced. The stockings should preferably be of wool, and of a seasonable weight.

The combination of knickerbockers, shirt-waist, and stockings forms the essential part of a cycling costume. A union under-garment may be worn and the knickerbocker suit; over this a coat and a skirt if desired, with a sweater for an extra wrap.

Bicycling is warm work, and the clothing should always be rather light in weight. For touring it must all be carried on the wheel, and yet be heavy enough for comfort when not exercising, and not too heavy for work, and should, moreover, allow of adjustment for changes in temperature or for any required change in distribution. To this end, all the clothing should be of one color or of colors that look well together. The knickerbockers, waist, and skirt should match; then if the coat is removed, the costume looks complete. An outfit might consist of two suits complete, of different weights; sweaters of different weights; wool stockings, heavy and light, that will roll below the knee without being either bulky or tight.

The knickerbockers are better fastened with a button, the button being in just the right place, than with a strap and buckle, which is liable to be pulled too tight at times.

The shoes should be low, made of thin leather, laced well down toward the toe, with light uppers, and soles stiff yet flexible, and made with grooves to take the pedals and prevent slipping. Blocks or cleats on the soles to fit the pedals are sometimes preferred, but are hardly so good for general work.

The gaiters may be made of almost any suitable material, leather, canvas, or woollen, to match or contrast with the rest of the costume. They should fit easily around the ankle and over the instep, and should never, on any account, extend more than half way to the knee. The muscles of the calf of the leg must have room to work; and gaiters badly cut, or too tight or too long, would impede circulation and restrict muscular action.

The sweater should come well up around the neck, and pull down easily below the saddle; it is better too long than not long enough to cover the large muscular masses that have been at work, and may be turned up if in the way. It should slip on easily, and be soft and woolly, and not so cumbersome that the coat cannot slip on over it and be buttoned up to the throat.

The coat should be cut long-waisted, and easy across the shoulders, single-breasted, and made to button close to the throat; the collar to roll and remain open, but so cut that it may be easily turned up to the ears. The sleeves should be finished with two buttons and button-holes, so that they may be turned up a little if desired.

There are occasions when a covert coat made of close cloth may be useful, when out in very cold weather or standing in the wind without shelter; but it cannot be generally recommended.

Pockets in any part of the dress should be made of woollen material. Cotton retains moisture, and a cotton pocket or a pocket lined with cotton may become damp and clammy and cold, acting almost like a damp compress. The fewer pockets, the better; but a number are often found convenient. Everything if possible should be carried on the wheel, not in the pockets. Metal condenses moisture and interrupts evaporation.

As the skirt should always open at the side, and fasten with several buttons, a convenient pocket may be placed in the placket-hole; a watch-pocket in the skirt is a good thing, but the watch is better carried on the wheel; and a pocket should be set aside for matches, where they may always be found quickly.

Collars and cuffs of linen or of celluloid, of silk or of the same material as the suit, may be used for touring; but soft neckwear should be worn if possible.

If a neck-muffler is worn, it should be of cashmere, not of silk.

Neatness is most important. Each article of dress should be carefully adjusted and fastened. Never use pins or put things carelessly together, hoping they will stay, but be sure that every article of dress fits and is securely fastened, and it will never need a thought after it is in place.

In warm weather gloves with one button are most comfortable; for cooler weather, four buttons, fastened about the wrists, keep the hands warm.

The adjustment of the covering of wrists and ankles makes the greatest difference in comfort in wheeling. In cold weather, hands and feet should be kept warm; in hot weather, it is comfortable to work with the cuffs turned back and wearing low shoes without gaiters. Indeed, in hot weather it is important not to encase the ankles in heavy boots or leggings, as these would ensure overheating.

The outfit may be completed with a number of hats—a light straw for summer, a soft felt for touring, and a small and becoming hat for the park. The hat should be chosen to stay on easily, and not pinned, but fastened under the hair with elastic, and the hair dressed to stand any amount of blowing about.

The skirt should not reach more than half way below the knee, and the hem and all seams should be finished on the outside; then there will be nothing to catch or pull. The width around the bottom may be a matter of choice, but the skirt need not fall behind the pedal when furthest back, and should be cut full enough in the front to permit the knees to work easily. The top of the skirt should take the place of a waistband, following the curves of the figure, made to flare at the top of the waist, and fitted snugly over the hips and hanging from them. It may be worn with or without a belt.

The coat should be long enough to touch the saddle or hang an inch or two below it, to protect all the vital organs and as much of the working masses of muscle as possible.

The sweater may be worn for coolness or warmth. As an outside garment, it allows the air to pass through its mesh easily; worn under another garment, it is very warm, retaining the heat.

The color of a bicycle suit may be chosen for the kind of work to be done; its texture may be decided suitable if, a piece being held over the mouth, it is possible to inhale and exhale through it easily. The cloth should be firm enough to stand wear and rough usage; smooth enough to shed dust easily; and of a quality that will stand being wet without shrinking, and will turn the rain if caught in a shower. It should be firm, elastic, soft; have what is known as substance; be very light in weight and yet not clinging; and possessing all these qualities, the ideal cloth for bicycling should not be so expensive that it cannot be renewed easily.

Simplicity in detail for any garment made to work in is always commendable, and a bicycle dress must be simple to be suitable.

A corset, if one is worn, should not extend below the waist-line, and should have elastic side-lacing.

To choose what to wear when the weather is changeable is rather difficult; and the bicyclist starting early in the morning for an all-day outing must expect changes of temperature during the day. Starting, the coat may be folded on the handles, and the sweater worn; later, as the sun grows warmer, the sweater may be removed; at the noonday halt, the coat may be donned while lunching, as it usually seems chilly coming under cover; later in the afternoon the sweater is again of use; and before the evening is advanced, the coat worn over the sweater often proves acceptable.

For touring, only an extra change of underwear, with a change of neckwear, is needed to carry on the wheel.

To look well at all times when bicycling, it is necessary to remember the possible conditions that may be encountered, and to wear no garment that may prove incongruous.

When touring, of course, fresh toilettes may be indulged in at the expense of extra luggage. The chief pleasure of bicycling is independence and the joy of being free; yet a long trip without access to the conveniences and even the luxuries of civilization, should not be attempted. A trunk may be sent home as soon as it has been proved unnecessary, or sent ahead and met at intervals; but its non-arrival should never be allowed to disconcert the traveller.

It is an accepted fact that bicycling cannot be properly enjoyed unless the clothing is suitable. Of course, one can take a drop-frame bicycle, mount, and wheel slowly for a short distance, barring inconveniences, in ordinary dress; so can one swim a little if unexpectedly placed in the water. Bicycling requires the same freedom of movement that swimming does, and the dress must not hamper or hinder.