Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1885-01-18
WOMAN AND HOME.
CLARA BELLE TAKES ISSUE WITH
THE MASCULINE CRITICS.
Mercensry Marriages and the Evils
Thersof-Bits Of Decoration-Ths Edu-
Gated Girl-Childrsn and Gold
Weather r. Paragraphs
fClAra Belief

] feel called upon to correct some Of the
nonsense uttered and written about the in
jury done to women by their costumes
High -heeled French shoes and tight lacipg
have hitherto borne the burden of blame for
for the sufferings Of women But now comes
the season for abusing Us for the weight OF our
clothes. We are told that the garb worn 10y
women Is too heavy, and, by perversity OF
fashion, they receive an enormous increase
ment of weight at this season In the shape OF
cloaks and mantles Of sealskin or plush with
quilted Innings The waist Is encircled as
with belt or hoop, to which a load heavier
than a felon's chains Is attached, and the
shoulders and chest are compressed by an
additional burden. Breathing is laboriously
performed, and the contents Of the trunk and
pelvis are thrust down with a force which, if
represented in pounds, would occasion con-
siderable surprise. That is the kind Of talk
ing which men do
Now what are women's hips for if not to
bear the weight Of skirtsi DR.. +. Hamilton
once said to me that weight hanging from
the hips could do little or no harm The
anatomical structure Of that portion Of the
body was well fitted for bearing weight, the
projection of the hip boL, supporting skirts
well He added: Il do not think that harm
could be done by weight hanging from the
hips The muscles Of the abdomen are
strong and well arranged for standing
strain Ono set runs diagonslly from left to
right, another in the opposite direction, and
q third straight up and down. Now, weight
supported at the waist comes on the hip
bones, and is borne chiefly by the legs. Of
course, heavy load carried there will tire a
woman in the course Of time; but / do not see
any special evil that can arise from it con-
slider the heavy weight Of cloaks and
sealskins hanging from the shoulders to be
much worse. There l see a decided danger.
The weight which hangs from the shoulders
bears down upon the spinal column, and
must. therefore, affect the whole body 1t
has a tendency to bend the body and push it
downward, and keeps the muscles from the
waist upward in a constant state Of tension
to resist the pressure do not think that As
much trouble is caused by this as by tight
lacing, however. The compression of the
lower part Of the ribs by lacing prevents the
lungs from being easily filled, and Is the
cause Of several dangerous diseasea On the
whole. think weight may be carried more
safely from the waist than from the
shouldera
So l am down on those alleged reformers
who would have us hang every thing from
our shoulders, instead Of letting the weight
rest harmlessly on our hips. In my opinion,
the chief reason for the superiority of woman
over man in grace depends on the freedom OF
her shoulders from constraint II you have
any doubt that women really are more
graceful than men just put some fellow into
skirts and see what q hulking, awkward,
outlandish figure he cuts But if for loo
years all of the women were to shift the
weight Of their clothes from hips to shoulders
the sexes would be brought to par, the
gentler having in the meantime become as
numbering and heavy as the rougher. Be-
lieve me, we have no reason to put the upper
parts Of our torso in bondage.