[Perh. the same word as prec.: in the earlier examples it seems to denote rather the projecting portion of the dress itself than the means employed to produce the projection; cf. quot. 1826 in BUSTLING ppl. a.]
A stuffed pad or cushion, or small wire framework, worn beneath the skirt of a woman’s dress, for the purpose of expanding and supporting it behind; a ‘dress-improver.’
1788. T. Monro, in Olla Podrida, No. 40. Such locks the nymphs now wear (in silks who rustle,) In rich luxuriance reaching to the bustle.
1830. Miss Mitford, Village, Ser. IV. (1863), 177. A waist like a wasp, a magnificent bustle, and petticoats … puffed out round the bottom.
1838. New Month. Mag., LIV. 207. It caught the bustle—the projecting mass of muslin, silk, or cotton, as might be.
1865. Daily Tel., 12 April, 7. Originally the ‘bustle’ was merely a species of pillow, which was tied round the waist.
