Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1882-11-10

Dfcssihg bOfshchUns
Al the British Sanitary Congress, held
at Newcastle, paper by Dr., Alfred Car
penter was read ON the SANITARY Aspect
of Dress" He held that the work which
rightly belonged TO the Sanitary Institute
included everything which had reference
to the house and its surroundings. Sur
veying the social points associated with
health questions, he insisted that the
subject of clothing should have full con-
sideration. There was field of sanitary
work in which the law Ind little influence,
and that was in the way of clothing of
the people. If he said, Parliament were
to rule Imprisonment should follow the
wearing of the 'chimney-pot" hat the
prisons in the country would be insufii-
cient to contain those who would suffer
martyrdom sooner than give up its use.
Fortunately the days were gone when the
liberty of the subject i'll such matters was
interfcrcd with by the law; but there
was power which was greater than the
law, and so long as ''society" tolerated
the tall hat that institution would tionr-
ish. But the day would come when the
"chimncy-pot' hat would disappear, even
from the preparatory school, where it
was still looked upon as indicating 'the
march of intellect, and separating par
ticular schools from those OF an inferior
rank. 1t was IN such schools considered
"snobbish" not to wear the tall hat, and
in the same way the Eton jacket and the
Stock Exchange dress were prescribed by
Il custom from which none dare depart.
The "custom" and "fashion" might be
unhealthy, but the votaries did not know
/ aud ti,nrn u.ug gphnn1 10 t,unh
and fashion ignored the teachings of COM
mon sense. Hence IT was necessary the
congress and the institute should deal
with this subject aud influence public
opinion respecting barbarous customs in
regard to clothing which continued to
flourish and bear evil fruit in II thousand
different ways, which produced an im
mcuse amount of disease and misery
among those who We've scarcely aware of
the mischief winch they had brought up
on themselves OF caused other people to
suffer.
He first directed attention 10 the foot,
and said that not one-half of the popula-
ton had really natural feet The cause
was not far to seek, for parents We're for
getful of the fact that children's feet had
Il tendency to grow larger MS the children
grew. 1t would be far better for children
to be brought up without wearing any
kind of boot nj all than to have the mus
clcs wasted, the bones distorted and the
joints perverted i'll their action i'll the way
in which it was the custom now to do
among high and low, rich and poor. Re
ferring to high heels and pointed toes, he
said it certainly argued Il low taste and n
very weak intellect when such things rs
these were Worn by the lady who aspired
to be considered as queen of society,
and who wished to make n sensation
among her fellows. High heels and
pointed toes must interfere with exercise,
must make the wearers suffer from want
of muscular exertion, and therefore must
lay the foundation for all those diseases
which spring from dyspepsia and its al
lies 1t was this tendency to place
ligatures on the other parts of the body
as well us the foot which so often render
cd human nature ridiculous, and pro-
duced suffering of the most serious kind.
The good sense of the English nation was
stays from the list of articles
winch young girls wore, but they We're
sadly too much used even now. Health
was sacrificed to figure, the viscera of the
body were displaced i'll the most cxtraor-
dinary manner from the position which
they should occupy, because it was
thought by some that slim waist was
thing of beauty. The way in which
infants were clothed and ligaturcd,
often to their fatal injury, and the ma
terlals in which they were onvcloped,
too thin in cold weather and too thick,
heavy and hot in Summer, formed very
important subject which he dealt with i'll
detail, and he also spoke of the use by
manufacturers Of arsenic antimony and
lead as coloring materials for the purpose
of rendering the article heavy in the
weighing scales,
He also touched upon the manner in
which linens and woollens were dressed
and disguised for the market by the in
PRODUCTION Of foreign earthly matters. In
concluding, he said that the neglect of
the laws of morality, of tine lines of
beauty, and of correct sanitary principles
in matters of dress was sufficient to Justify
his short paper, and to give him reason
tur calling the attention of the congress
to some of the causes of continued i'll
health among the community. That
which Parliament dared not do, and which
the queen and court were unable to effect,
would not be produced by the Sanitary
Institute but as Parliament had ceased
to enact sumptuary laws because real
knowledge AMI good sense were opposed
to such enactments, SO the Sanitary In
stitutc, by promulgating sound informa-
ton upon the matters i'll question might
influence public opinion and assist i'll
bringing good sense into power even
among the votaries of fashion and the
followers Of custom. This might i'll time
produce the desired effect, even more GER
tainly than could be done by the qaeen,
the Lords and the Commons combined,
or by compulsion in any form.