The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1869-07-13
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The Nude Woman Question .

When the Black Crook first presented
its Nude Woman to the gaze of crow
ded auditory, she was met with gasp of
a.tonishment at the effiontery which dared
81 much. Men actually grow pale at the
boIdness of the thing; death like silence
fell over the house, broken only by the
clapping Of band of claqueus around the
outer aises hut it passed and, in view
of the fact TINT these women were French
ballet dancers after all. they were ,olcra>
ted.
BY slow and nlms-t imperceptible de-
gree this shame has grown until TO. duy
the indecency of that exhibition is far sur
passed. Those women were bsllet'jancers
from France and Italy, and they repre-
sented in their nudity imps and demons
In silence they whirled about the stage ;
in silence trooped off Some faint
odor Of ideali'y and poetry rested over
them.
The Nude Woman Of to-day represents
nothing but herself She runs upon the
stage giggline trots down to the foot.
lights, winks at the audience, rattles of
from her tongue some stupid attempts at
wit, some iwaddling illusions to Sorosis,
or General Grant,or other subjects prom
inent in the public eye, and is always pes
cullarly and emphsticnlly herself--the
woman that is. whose name is on the
bills in large letters, and who considers
herself an object Of admiration TO the
spectators
The sort of ballet-dancer who figured
in the Black Crook ia psralleled on the
stage Of every theatre in this city, except
one, at this time.
She no longer excites attention.
To create proper and profitable senss-
ton ia the breast Of men. she no longer
sufices. Something bolder must be de.
understanding that shall utterly eclipse
and outstrip her.
Hence, the Nude Woman Of to. day
who outstrips her In the broadrst sense
And, as ifit were not enough that she
should be allowed to 90 unhisssd and un-
rotten-egged, she must be baptised with
the honors Of profession for which Shak-
speare wrote.
Managers recognize her as an actress,
and pay her sums ranging from fifty to a
thousand dollars week, according to her
value in their eyes. Actresses, who love
virtue better than money, are driven into
the street by her, and it becomes grave
and solemn question with hundreds Of
honorable women what they shall do to
earn livelihood.
say il is nothing lesa than an insult
to the members Of the dramatic profession
that these nude women should be classed
among actresses, and hold possession Of
the majority Of our theatres. Their
place IL in the concert saloons or the circus
tents. Theatres are for artists.
| A friend said to me the other day that
it was Inconsistent in me to find indecen-
cy in womsn exposing their persons, when
men constantly do the same-that, as an
honest exponent Of Woman's Rights, !
ought TO see no more immodesty 10 q
woman dancing q jig in aesh-colorsd leg
gings than In man performing q circu,
feat in the Same costume.
reply that ! think such shows are in.
decent in both sexss. Yet, nevertheless,
in woman q thousand times more in
decent than in man, for the simple reAsyr
that the costume Of the ssxss in every,
day life 10 different.
To ignore this fact Is to Just wilfully
shut ones eyes TO . reasonable argu,
ment. son
! Women in society conceal all the low,
sr part of their bodies with drspsy--ant