Morning journal and courier., 1889-10-28
ERRORS IN woMEN's DRESS.

High Heels, C0rsefs and Skirts Dis-
 cassed Before the British AssocIa-
 ton.
 From the London standard.]
 The sectional meetings of the British as- sociation at Newcastle-on-Tyne terminated yesterday. The most interesting feature of the days proceedings was lecture by Mrs. c. Slopes, of Lendon, on the "Psychologi- cal, Physiological and Physical Aspects of Dress." and northern races' savage and civilized pe- riods the human race in regard to clothes had been swayed by other instincts than those of art and utility. Ambition to excel on the one hand, love of imitation on the other, had created constant evolution. Cus- tom rested the eye, but variety refreshed it. We should apply reason to fashion, so as to evolve 0 rational dress. She was not going to suggest or discuss the irrationalities of mems clothes; she believed there were some, but it would be like trying to cast out the mote from brothers eye, while there was 8 beam in one's own. The true 'advanoe of woman" meant the advance of her reason, and the application of reason to her sur- roundings was the first sign of her advance. Did reason guide any of the interminable changes and varieties of the present dayf Did fashion consider hygiene, physical or mental development, utility or art princi- pies, az part of her spheres She denied that 1t did. Only by accident was fashion ever reasonable or artistic; but she might become both. A society had been founded for some years, called "The Rational Dress society,"" whose members differed on almost every point except the necessity of applying req son to fashion. They did not wish to elimi- nate beauty or decoration; they only fought against the unhealthy, the immoral, the ugly. Fashion blinded the eyes of its vota- ries. They wished, by reason, to open them. The present faults in women's clothes might be divided into classes: First, the temporarily ridiculous or disadTantageous; second. the permanently injurious. Among of crinolines and dress improvers, tied back skirts, tied down arms and sleeves over long dresses, over heavy trimmings, and any ab surd fashion that impeded the action, free dom or development of women or outraged art. Most of the evils of this class passed with the change of fashion, and yet not al- ways. There were many victims burned through light dresses on extended crinolines. There had been many killed or injured through long trains. The aim of dress makers, or whoever ruled the fashion, seemed to be to make women incapable of free motion or prompt action. Except on perfectly smooth, clean ground, 8 woman could not use her feet, cave by the aid of her hands. If she went up stairs or up hill she must lift her dress to prevent catching behind, or soiling, or tearing, or wearing. If she crossed a muddy roadway she had to take it up all round, If her various other draperies would allow of 1t. The conse- quence was that prompt physical action, in case of an emergency. was almost impossi- t,Ia <, n hv disnca became impaired. Another consequence of long dresses was uncleanliness and risk of receiving infection of various kinds from street dust swept up by trailing robes.
 Of the second class, the permanently inju rious, she might mention, first, the inequali- ties and disproportions of clothing. How many girl went out through the day in | through @ long drive in keen frost, or in draughty passages, in some of the various miseries of full dress2 How many colds, | consumptions and other diseases might be traced to these inconsistenciesi But, as many miraculously escaped, she would not say more on that point. Secondly, there was sort of falsi6cation of truth in dress | increasing the stature by the use of high heels. Very few women realized the terrible injury to their health caused by asing high heels, which entirely altered the natural pose of the body, strained important internal or gans, jared the delicate spinal cord, and ex- hausted the brain itself. It was very diff ferent motion from walking on tiptoe, nat ural expression of light spirits. No woman who wors high heels had the full use of her life, nor of her brain possibilities. When combined with tight shoes, as they generally were che established in civilized Europe an imitation of the Chinese feminine foot. Terrible accidents occurred through the use of high heels. High heels were valuable only when they were walking up hill. A patent might be taken out for movable heels, | to be screwed on when ascending mountains. But the woman who wore high heels was per- petually walking down hill.
 Tho third class of faults might be called an artificial diminution of truth, falsshood voluntary and most injurious. The habit of wearing tigkt stays was an evil of national importance. If, in reasonable age, we heard of 6 government punishing maefae- tors by tight lacing, we should cry shame on it for cruelty and demand the cessation of 30 horrible a punishment. Nature revenged herself for this falsehood. None of the compressed organs could act healthily and freely. When women tried to alter nature
 by such rude protests as tight stays they
 broke high laws, not only of truth, but of
 hygiene. The breaking of those laws tend
 ed to manslaughter or suicide, and certainly prevented the natural development of body 6uO OL 4Ao 9UsStlOA Wab WOIsuy OA consideration, whether women, from any
 motive, were justified in following fashion to an extent that not only injured their ewn
 health but tended to lower the physique of 6
 whole nation. There was no compensation
 for this destruction of the physical ideal of
 woman. Tight lacing prevented the natural
 development of the most beautiful outlines
 in animated nature, and substituted for it an
 inartistic absurdity, fashioned after the
 modes of wooden Dutch dolls, out of al
 proportion, and devoid of real grace. Com
 parisons she had made of the notes taken by
 different corset makers enabled her to saJ
 that during the last twenty-five years the fe,
 male waist had decreased in size by two inch.
 es.
 In the discussion which followed the May
 or of Newcastle said tight lacing, as a mat
 tor of art and as an attraction, was about
 exploded.
 Professor Philipson said great internal
 harm was caused by the use of corsets.
 Miss Ray drew attention to the misery in.
 fants suffered by the multiplicity of clothe
 at the beginning of their lives.
 Dr. Carson, recorder of the Anthropoligi
 cal society. pointed out the internal and ex ternal injuries occssioned by high heels ant corsets.
 ] Miss Finlay asked if tho question was be l tween oorests and no corsets, or between } tight corsets and loose corsets, because sh
 thought this made Q very great difference , Of course injury and discomfort were cause by tight laeing, but, speaking from her ow , experience, she considered that to have n a,pport at all waa uncomfortable Tha,