Dress; ca. 1870; British; silk; By 1866 fashion had decreed that the fullness of the skirt hsould be gathered up somewhat at the back; and that an overskirt should be added to the full skirt. In 1868 the great expanse of the skirt narrowed considerably at the side; giving a much straighter silhouette in front; the fullness now moved to center back; where the primary shaping was provided by the bustle