Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1882-07-13
Female Feet.

One of the oldest orthopedic surgeons
in New York recently told a reporter
that the number of cases of splayed feet
in this city was large and rapidly increas-
ing.
What in the world are 'splayed feet?'
asked the reporter.
"Why, splayed foot is a flat foot, or
one in which the arch of the instep has
been broken down.
Pray, why should people living in
the city of New York break down the
arches of their insteps?"
They do it BY wearing high-healed
shoes. Of course am speaking of your
girls and misses. and not your grown
up persons of either sex. Now, the
misses and young ladies of France wear
heels that are even higher than we are
accustomed to see in this country. But
the heel of the French shoe is placed
well forward, almost under the middle
of the foot, so that the arch or instep is
supported just as the span of bridge is
sustained by power or abutment I'm.
der the middle of the span. Our shoe.
makers place the heel further back
This lengthens the span and increases
the strain"
DO you often come across these cases
of broken-down instepsp'
''They are by no means uncommon.
They are almost exclusively confined to
females, and the weaker the general
constitution the more likely is the fool
to suffer.
"What is the difference in the appear
ance of a pair of feet that are splayed
and pair that are not splayed?"
"All the difference in the world. The
natural foot is beautifully arched at the
centre, especially in females. A person
who has high instep has as good g
right to be proud of it as any person
with classific features has to be proud
of the image that he sees reflected wher
he looks at the mirror. Splayed foot is
most common among the peasants OF
the European countries where the people
are obliged to do hard work. such as
carrying heavy burdens at very early
age. In such cases, especially if the
child is poorly fed or naturally weak,
the ligaments sustaining the arch of the
foot are very apt to give way by de-
grees. and then we have pair of feet
as flat as the paws of grizzly bear
And yet | should hardly make such a
comparison, for broken-down foot is
worse than flat; it curves the other way
so that the toes are always pointing up
ward
"And the cause of this deformity is
entirely contributable to the defective
construction of high-heeled shoes?"
mo, not entirely. think 1t is some.
times produced by children beginning
to dance almost as soon as they are able
to walk, such as we see In some German
communities. In dancing the little
youngster sometimes sustainS the whole
weight of the body on the tips of the
toes a quarter of an hour at stretch
The bones at that age are little less
than cartilage, and can very easily be
deformed. As proof of this you have
only to reflect the Chinese practice o.
shaping the feet. Young girls of tender
constitution are also sometimes injured
in jumping the rope, especially in sucl
trials ofendurance where they put them
selves to see who can jump the Creates
number of times without stopping.
''How about roller-skating, which has
lately become so popularP"
''There can be no doubt that n littl,
exercise each day at roller-skating would
strengthen and nvigorate the muscles
of the legs. But the trouble is, the cir
we see playing at roller-skating on thu
sidewalks and in the parks are allowed
to overdo the business. The result il
that instead of well-rounded, plumb
muscular limbs, we see, after few
weeks practice, q pair of attenuateC
'broomsticks,' accompanied by wal
expression of the countenance, and al
unnatural nervousness of the whole or
ganization. Oh, if the people of thi!
world would only make use of the com
mon sense with which kind Nature ha.
endowed themr'