Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1885-04-10
rashion ana Common Sense.

If there is one Locality more than an
other where the voice OF common sense
is never listened to it is in that very eX-
tensive one where fashion reigus. Who
ever thinks of listening to the sugges-
tions of the former. when the decree OF
the latter potentate has gone forth?
Tight sleeves for the ladies, and tight
combinations for the gentlemen is the
fashion. supposing. The advocates of
common sense protest. saying. 1t Is I'M
possible to move ones limbs in them;
cannot bend the knee before the por
trait of my fondest hopes, says one;
cannot get my hands to the back of my
head, says another. which is far more
important. And fashion replies, can
not satisfy all tastes. Ny laws are
mostly made for the unretlecting; if
You reflect you will never be satisfied.
That which you complain of now Is on
" temporary Inconvenience, when
can no longer tighten in your limbs,
sleeves and leggings will take such am
pie proportions that the real size of an
arm or leg will be subject for divin-
alton. Fashion has no respect of per-
son: if high heels are introduced for the
benefit of short people, low heels are
never introduced at the same time for
people who are already taller than they
care to be. The latter must wait their
turn for the opposite fashion. and then
unusually short persons must have their
boots made to order if they wish to
reach up to the elbow of their superior
in height, or submit to be looked upon
as dwarfs by tall people, if they prefer
to keep in the fashion.
Fashion pretends to have an eye for
beauty; if this be true, she enacts at
least that all her followers be modelled
after the same fashion. They must
have heads and faces of uniform size
aud shape. that the hat or bonnet of
the season may become them all, and
they must have uniform tint of COM
plexion, that the color Ia mode may
suit it. Those who study fashion in
dress at the expense of their personal
comfort are surely wanting in common
sense, yet we most of us do so, and it
seems as though we like doing SO, since
the fashionable and uncomfortable ar
ticle is preferred to the questionable
and comfortable one, though it may
cost more than double the price of the
latter.
Common sense suggests that in hot
weather clothing for both sexes should
be light in texture and color; but if
fashion ordains that ladies' dresses be
heavily trimmed, and if she. refuses to
give her consent to garments of sum-
merry nature being introduced for gen.
tlemen, no one has the courage to pay
attention to personal comfort. When
ladies' skirts are made SO narrow as to
beinconvenient for walking. and liable to
assist the wearer to an awkward fall in
descending from a carriage, or when
they are widened to ludicrous width
to admit of unmanageable crinolines, or
burdened with useless trains. to be
draggled in the streets or trodden on in
the ballroom, who ever thinks of re-
fusing 10 obey the nOnscnsical man
date9 Even the most obdurate end by
giving in, believing that they are more
ridiculous to hold out. than to stand
alone with common sense. Nothing,
for instance, could indicate more plain
ly the folly of making long-trained
dresses the fashion, than to see year
or two ago how the latter was neces-
sarily punched up in the most ungrace-
full manner, or the wearcr was compel
led to have one hand always engaged
with holding up the superiluous yard
or two of stuff, making her invariably
wish that artificial hands had come in
to fashion with the trains, to allow of
her using her natural ones in some
more profitable way.-London Stand
yt