Mary Lincoln Extra Credit Questions

[Eva Elisabeth]

I wonder why Mary would have carried a fan in April??? Even in our well-heated theaters and times, in mid-April I would rather wear all-I-can, so rather take and wear a scarf and jacket, and evidently Mr. Lincoln froze, too.

I have another related question to the fashion experts out there.

Kathy writes that Helen Truman noticed that "the First Lady was not wearing an evening gown to match her husband's formal attire. Instead she wore a grey and black spring dress in silk with a bonnet to match."

Now what is the difference between an evening gown and a spring dress, and why can't a spring dress serve as an evening gown? And - silky or not - how/why can a grey and black dress be considered a spring dress? (Grey and black to me represent all the opposite of spring - death, decay, depression, mourning, tristesse, ...)

Thanks for any further fashionable education!