From hat to shoes，men’s clothes are useful. Only one piece of clothing is worn just for decoration. It is the necktie，or cravat①. The necktie was left over from the time when men wore ruffles②， ribbons③， and tassels④.
Beau Brummel was an Englishman in the early 1800’s. He was famous for his fancy clothes. The story is told that he used to invite guests just to watch him knot⑤ his white cravat.
Now， perhaps， even the necktie is going out of style. It has been getting smaller and smaller for hundreds of years. It started out as a piece of lace and turned into a silk bow. Then it became a triangle⑥ that was tied around the neck. Now many neckties are no wider than a piece of string.
① cravatn. (旧式)领结；领巾
② rufflev. 弄皱；弄毛糙[(+up)]
③ ribbonv. 用缎带装饰
④ tasselv.用流苏装饰
⑤ knotv. 把……打结；捆扎
⑥ trianglen. 三角形之物
领带的沧桑
人的衣物，从帽子到鞋，都有实用价值。惟有一样完全是为了装饰，那就是领带，或者叫“克拉瓦特”。领带是人们从佩戴饰边、缎带和帽穗的时代遗留下来的。
博·布伦美是19世纪初叶的一位英国人，因穿着的花哨而出名。传说他常邀请客人专程去观看他给自己白色的领带打结。
现在，也许连领带也快不时髦了。几百年来，领带变得越来越小。当初，它只不过是一段带子，后来变成丝制的蝴蝶结，以后又演变为缠在脖子上的三角形饰物。现在许多领带的宽度只不过相当于一根绳子的粗细罢了。