Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-11-05


to see the Grecian bend,' was the burden
of her talk. All at once, as she was look
ing about, she saw q young lady enter
with the bend, and overcome by joyful
surprise, she spoke up in squeaky voice,
loud enough to attract general attention,
oh there it isl and subsided. The
feelings of the lady of the bend at be-
ing noticed so pointedly, can be imag'
ined."
HOW TO DO IT.
There may possibly be some young la
dies, or old ones for that matter, perusing
this article, who are anxious to become
"Grecian bendistr," but desire some IN
formation as to how that contamination
is to be reached. Let us try and enlighten
them. One professor of the Grecian bend
has given us poetical directions as TO
how the thing is done. His lines run as
follows:
Hold your horses and I'll tell you.
Tell you simply, tell you truly,
How they did it, how they don;
And should you ask me how know it,
will tell you, have done it.
First make up a toilet hideous,
Put on a hoop of small dimensions.
Put on a dress of closest tension.
Eat a peck of sour green apples,
Apples plucked in early summer;
Put strap arouad your waist
Then two others down your haunches;
When the apples bend ou over.
Draw them tightly, draw them closely
Underneath the rear Of said hoop.
Just below the tapering waist,
Bind a coil of three-inch wire,
And let it stick out, boldly sick out;
Over this the pan nier hang,
And when it wobbles 10 and fro,
Glance behind 20 y and observe
What a splendid thing for fy-tme.
You have got behind your curves
Let your hands then danele idly.
And flop about loose as may be;
In your walk step Just three il ches;
Never mind your shoe that Pinches.
Our bard then directs attention to cat
with her back up" on the wall, and
gives it as his opinion when the female
and the cat are put together,
With their backs so nearly curving.
With their panniers gayly streaming.
To our mind this thought they bring,
The Grecian bend is no new thing.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE PAHNIER.
But the "Grecan bend" is not enough,
in order to be in the fashion. The pan
nier" must go with itA They are both in
fact, necessary to each other. AS fun
ny writer remarks;
"The Grecian Bend is not complete
without the panner, which is kind OF
finishing touch to top it off While the
Grecian Bend alone gives the female
form divine the semblance of that grace
full animal the kangaroo, the pannier,
superadded, presents combination OF
the kangaroo and dromedary."
The pannier is, of course, new thing,
1t is, we believe, "rump" invention,
gotten up expressly and for no other
purpose than to assist the ladies in get
ting their "back up" We had curiosity
enough to examine one of these Infer
nal machines" 1t is made If linen, and
stuffed with moss, cotton or hair, and
padded so as to rest easy like saddle
blanket on a sore backed horse 1t is
about sixteen inches long one way, and
about eight or ten inches the other, and
some are thicker than others, with two
tapes attached to tie them about the body,
as you would saddle on horse. One
of these panniers attached to a young
lady, together with the new style OF dress,
is what gives them the appeerace OF hav-
ing the "Greciau BEND" These pan
niers" make some young ladies look
rather forward" in fact, lean that way.
They appear as if they mad eaten an
overdose Of green apples or buttermilk,
and we're suffering from fearful attack
of collie, with slight touch of tooth
ache aud an inkling of dyspepsia Or
as if they had been to boarding school
for six months, and fed on nothing but
dried apples and hot water.
Ali young ladies, what nextf
They said you wore your dresses short
To show your pretty feet;
You wore no walls or bonnets large,
To hide your faces sweet;
And now because Dame Fashion cnose
A Pannier to you send
They say you stoop like your grandmas'
And call IL "Grecian bend"
EFFECTS OF THE "GREcIAS BEND.
1t is said that it affects the sexes differ
emily. Daring inhiction females assume
the tertuous form of the red mans bow,
and their countenances are serene as the
facial expression Of the coekroaeh.
They catch the distemper from each
other. Men, on the other hand, are
thrown into commissions and cramps,
their faces are most horribly dis
torted, and they catch the disease only
from seeing a woman who is afflicted
With it. Cory O'Lanus says;
"Only one fatal case has been re-
ported. Of an impeiuous young lady,
who tried to acquire the bend too sud
denly, snapped IN two, ard was carried
home from the dressmaker's in sections.
Like ell great discoveries, the dis
covery Of the Grecian bend was aeci-
dental.
"The reigning belle at Saraiogs, while
on A visit one morning TO Congress
Spriug. was suddeuly afflicted with a
colo. and not having any escort With
her. she went home on her own book,
and being noticed walking down Bread
uay on her personal curve, the original
ity and grace Of her figure struck every
beholder, and the next day al the young
ladies' in Saratoga we're practicing me
bend.
"Tbe LADY vas a Greek-fron Tip
pernr -so, in Der honor, they called u
the Grecisn bend
GRrCIax BtxD F5KTET.
Since the Grecian Bend came into