The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-03-10
The Fusion army is fatally demoralized.
Plain Girls.
London Globe,1

We never call them ugly; the word would
| be disgraceful-almost criminal Besides we
make bold to doubt whether such an epthet is
ever really and truly correct. A creature up
on whom the freshness of youth fingers can
hardly fail to be rescued thereby from a charge
of downright ugliness. No sign, perhaps, can
be more conclusive to show the truth of this
than the fact that scores of girls about whom
men rave the most are condemned by other
women unanimously and in perfect good faith
for they speak with good faith among them
selves-as ''perfect frights'. There is so much
to mans mind in expression. that it will Of
ten if not generally, override all perception of
mere prettiness of featude. Neither can these
feminine critics appreciate in one case out of
hundred the indescribable grace which we'll
bred and well nurtured girl will display in the
simplest movement of her head or the play of
features. We say nothing of the charm of fig
ure and action, for that has strictly nothing to
do with either plain or pretty face; but it is
seldom found that the health and gentleness
which impart charm to the step or the.touch
have not their reflex somewhere in the facial
muscles which make up half the character of
the countenance. Thus it is that many men,
even in this unromantic and perhaps unchival-
rous age, are skeptical as to the existence of
such monster as an ugly girl, and stoutly
maintain that though the opprobious adjective
may be applied to some women the worst that
can be said of girl is that she is plain" For
some reason or other large section of our fe-
male population have become imbued with the
somewhat Oriental notion that the great merit
of woman is to be found in her face Every
girl does not, of course, think so, and the more
sensible the girl is, the less she is likely to fall
into so egregious an error. STILL the proper
tion of the sex aged between sixteen and
twenty-one, which is misled in that way is
very large indeed, as any one will testify who
has had experience of the conversation and
thoughts Of school girls and debutantes. Nor
is this idea by any means confined to this class
OF gossips. Nothing is more common than to
hear expressions of wonder why Miss Laura is
so long in marrying-''a pretty girl like that"
who ought obviously, on account of her pretti-
ness, to have had offers innumerable, and one
at least which could not be refused. The as
constituent is almost natural and is even shared
by many men who ought by this time, if les
sons In love and matrimony were not forever
new, to have found out how the little god Hy-
men and the goddess Juno generally care for
mere outward show. So true is this, indeed
that II a list were made out on a sort of compe-
tltlon principle, and it were possible to observe
by the aid OF it the relative age at which plain
and pretty grit marry, it may be asserted al
most with certainty that the palm in the race
would be carried off by the former. The plain
girl, II she marries at all, marries a man who
really admires her, and is not merely ambitious
OF securing her as an ornament or feather in
his cap.
At the same time it would be preposterous
to deny that beauty has great advantage in
the competition. This advantage is most aptly
as well as most easily described by saying that
she has the "best start. In a ballroom or at
any place where the struggle is commenced,
she is the hrst to catch the eye of the man who
is disposed toward matrimony She attracts
attention more surely and quickly, Just as a
diamond does when compared with q pearl;
and If she can make the most of this first i'm
preston, she need not fear being caught and
o9tstripped In the end. The only question is
whether she can make the most of these favors
of fortune, or whether she will not rather even
use them to a disadvantage Beauties are often
vain, and-shall we say it?-often more inane
than their less brilliant sisters and few min
utes conversation or at least, few days con-
verse, will often exhibit the latter in the light
OF tyrannous and capricious bores. A plain
girl, on the other hand, has little-or at least,
less-vanty. She is also much more conscious
that she should have some ability to talk and
amount Of trouble to make herself agreeable
that can never be expected from belle; and
being less used to flattery and professions OF
love at first sight she is much more likely to
weigh fairly the real merits of any man who
tries to please her. For the same reason she is
more disposed to sympathize with the feelings
and aspirations of others besides herself and
thus to enchain the affections of men who
think good deal of themselves Men are as
often vain as women, and much more often
egotistical, and they not unfrequently consider
1t the, chief duty of wife to listen and agree.
Mr. Shandy was inclined to murmur because
Mrs. Shandy would never say NO." when he
said YES" but he would have been much
more, discontented and miserable if the lady
had disputed every point with him, or turned
deaf and apathetic ear to his moralizings.
Add to this.that the shaft of love, when it is
inspired by plain girl, comes with redoubled
force, because the wounded man is often quite
unsuspicious of his danger. In talking to an
acknowledged beauty he feels-conceited
wretch that he is-that he has his life in his
hand. whereas, in his interviews with the less
attractive damsel, he is generally off his guard.
1t is thus that in matrimony, as in other races,
the tortoise often beats the hare, and another
illustration is afforded of the trite maxim that
"all which glitters is not gold"