"Practically speaking," V noted, "Large dresses and corsets being the fashion of the day, would have been awfully cumbersome if you were working on a ship. Trousers are a far more practical choice, simply due to the freedom they give to movement. It does make a fair bit more sense to dress as men than simple costuming or pretending to be men would be. Though still, even doing that was considered horribly improper, now wasn't it. As a self-described gentleman, even I know that propriety can hinder one's freedom." He shook his head. "I suppose that dressing as a man simply became misconstrued as attempting to pass for one. History has a way of becoming misinterpreted. Some times, for the better, and some times, for the more bizarre."
He used that to his advantage on more than one occasion, most notably in his speech to London, where he spoke of Guy Fawkes. He knew that the man was a madly religious man who wasn't the only person behind the Gunpowder Treason, hardly a hero, and hardly trying to make history in the way that he did, but he was a fine example of what shouldn't be forgotten. What Guy Fawkes wanted was something possibly similar to the regime of Norsefire, frankly, but V felt that what he did was FAR more important than his underlying motives.
He tilted his head and folded his hands. "I believe I know where your friend has hidden the catalog."