Autumn leaves float down the Seine and crunch under the tyres of my bike. I whip by a pair of women in gorgeous hobble skirts. My knees rise and fall, unrestricted. Trousers sheath my legs, as only they do while riding. An exception to the law, but not to fashion: not my trousers.
Afterword
The mission was to write a story of exactly 53 words about ‘pants’.
Did you know that pants were banned for women for over 200 years in Paris – other than while riding a bike or horse?
In 1799 or 1800, the police chief of Paris decreed that any woman wishing to wear pants must seek special permission from the police.
(So, it’s a decree in Paris from the police – not a national law.)
It was subsequently amended to allow pants to be worn while holding the handlebars of a bicycle or the reins of a horse.
Time passed and it was forgotten about and then overturned in 2013 (which the media loved).
As per the title to my piece, I set it in Paris in 1910. Hope you enjoyed it.
Photo attribution: thanks to Hannah Domsic on Unsplash.