Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-04-20
FROM CRANBEOT8EIis TO
GItiG-.
some ISsmsrhs L.eia;iVe % Women's
Dresses Past and Present.
Chr@3ae Ter5ure Hsyrjct.
COPYRIGHTED

fail to achieve an end, the result may b.
gained If fashion comes 10 the rescue
This modern Moloch, so termed by many
would-be reiormers OF they know no
what, has TO shoulder the responsibility o.
countless blunders and foolish practices
but few are ready to lay to the same score
the removal OF old abuses and absurd Gus
toms. AS true as that what is fashiona'
BILE is apt to be becoming is the statement
that in this day common sense is at the
bottom of a goodly number Of the new
modes. Furthermore, where an expert
ment has been tried In dress or habits and
proved inadvisable there is little OF that
blind adherence to the new fashion sim
ply because it mas been cOmme IL Jdut that
used to be considered one OF the prime
characteristic Of the followers OF the
popular goddess. We are apt to praise the
good old times rather recklessly, and TO
reflect too little upon the radical changes
for the better that have taken place In
dress alone during the past fifty years.
There are a few prominent instances or
this kind that will indicate the improve
ment. Oar graDdmOthers laced them
selves into stays that were like irOn-clad
Jackets for ~tightness and iniexibility,
wore high-heeled, low-cut shoes out Of
UOOEk. IGEnIUiEHb OF weather duA ny uL-
ter neglect Of the cOmmOnest rules OF
health laid the foundations OF the Ameri-
can fragility of constitution among wom-
en- that was for years a by word. Not the
least fertile source Of disease was the eX-
IRENE lightness of the underclothinR pre-
eenied that day. We read that at the
wedding OF Nine. PattersOn-BOnapaTte she
wore a dress OF some tain material and a
single garment underneath. Nor was hers
an exceptional case.
In the reaction from this clinging effect
OF costume, the other extreme was sought.
Women wore twelve and fifteen
Btifly starched petticoats at once, all sup
ported from the w~alstband, a dragging
weight upon the hips. Observe the con-
frast with the present prevalent modes.
Hlgh-heeled walking boots have been aD-
jured by nearly all sensible women. Shoe
makers acknowledge that they are rarely
purchased except by actresses or coca
sionally by a foolish schoolgirl. Their
place has been taken by the low-heeled,
bTOad-tOed and wide-sOled common
sense" boot for street use, while for house
and dancing wear the narrow slipper with
Louis QuinZe heel is less popular than
formerly. Nor is tight lacing OF stays the
crying sin Of this generation. Even the
fashionable dressmaker recommends a
loose corset, and a wasp waist Is now
more likely to be considered a deformitY
than a charm. Warm lannels next to
the skin are the rule, while dress sup
pOrters by which skirts are buttOned to
stout waists. relieving the hips and abdo-
men of unnecessary strain, are sold by
every dealer in wOmen's underwear.
A slight but significant instance of this
reign Of common sense is evinced by the
going out of the long clOaks so fashiOna-
BILE a year or twO ago. They were the rage
for a season, u it was found that their
49, 49, Hkay .-Y rar
Idly being superseded by shorter wraps.
Tn owners OF sealskin coats that just
cleared the ground are cutting them over
into dolmans, and merchants advise the
purchase OF shoulder clOaks rather than
those of greatlength.
While there are still fashions among the
wealthy that call for reform, it may be
noted in passing that if imprudent dress.
ing has its deVOtes anywhere, it 10 rather
among the lower classes than in the ranks
Of the so called supper ten" Long-suf-
ering mistresses know only too well the
5mprudence committed by the inmates Of
their kitchens, and the same state of af-
fairs prevails among shop and factory
girls. BY them tineTy is preferred TO
comfort. They are the ones who neglect
the use Of flannel underwear and rubber
oVershoes and who illustrate the truth of
the story OF the ragged vagrant who in
being offered aid and clothing replied that
she could get along without a new shirt
but be was perishing for wautO OF a buzzOm
pin!' There are OteXceptiOnalinstances
where a maid spends all her earnings on a
velvet cloak or bonnet and denies herself
warm wO0lens and thick shoes. The
theory of the superior health OF the lower
glasses is about exploded, and finds little
credence among those who are close OBJ
servers OF customs among the poor as
well as in the higher walks of life.
To return to fashion. One Of the new
S0gues which bids fair to become a fix
ture IS the gymnasium. 1t is estab-
lished on "A varying scale In nearly all
cities, from the regular gymnasium, with
its paraphernalia Of light and heavy
dumb bells, Indian clubs, rowing ma
chimes, trapezes, horizontal and parallel
bars, 90 the simple health lift, whose par
tisans claim that it possesses in one COM
biBatiOn all the merits seVerally djstrib-
uted among the numerous parts OF more
elaborate apparatus. Mems and women's
Christian associations, c~lubhOuses, high
schools. boys and girls colleges, nearly
all provide some such means of active
and systematic exercise. Nor Is Its prac-
tee, as formerly, confined TO men alone.
Physicians recommend it for delicate
women and growing girls, and at the pres
ent rate Of progress, If this new depar-
lure fulhlls all 1t promises, the boasted
robustness and activity OF English girls
VIII pale their Intellectual fires when con-
trasted with the muscular development of
their American cousins.
The danger to be guarded against is
that the course SO we'll begun may not be
continued with equal yigor. Said a prac-
tical physician once:
"spasm0dic exercise is worse thar
none. A woman who habitually leads a
s%edentary life does herself more harm
than good when she wearies herself cut
by taking an absurdly long walk once or
twice a month under the impression that
exercise is always beneficial, and espe.
cially so when il leads to fatigue. A
brisk walk Of halt a mile every day is far
more advantageous than a 5-mile tramu
oDce a fortnight
The trouble in c%ultiyating habits Of req
ular exercise in girls arises from its be.
Ing, 20 TO speak, "A forced growth. A wo.
mans life runs in very different grooves
from those worn by a mans habits. The
latter trudges TO and from his
place OF business two, tire.
Or four times a day as a mat
Ter OF course and thinks nothing fit. A
woman must frequently makes an errand
rs an aim for her waik-a more difficult
Rflair In this day, when the grocer auC
meat merchant come daily 10 our door,
and their shortcomings are suppllmentet
by the telephone, than in the times
when a woman must 10 In person TO the
market.
W. rood Il, Eng1tsf, boobs or o,.fs liz,