The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1890-08-22
Enall.h etrIs.


English girls, with the best materia
In the world TO work upon, do mo-
make the best of themselves. Wher,
in the world will you fiud a natura
complexion to equal the pure pink and
white of the English maid? I? And yeI
she ruins ii with hard water aud hard,
er towels. Then her tecth-we must
confess that teeth a size or two smaller
would serve all the purposes of use
and ornament.
AS to her figure, nature has endow-
ed her with a splendid physique, q
body well developed by walking, riding
rowing and tennis; but 1t is still in the
rough. 1t is marvellous that with her
strong, active and healthy form, she
still lacks that crowning beauty, the
"diyine grace" which the Greek god
dess sheds around her favorites. But
she does lack II. The French girl,sallow
aud even ugly, Is always graceful; the
English, beautiful and statuesquc in re-
pose, is awkward when she begins to
move. Does 1t all lie in the feet. those
feet which the English climate ripens
to such astounding size? 1t is proba-
bly, the result of her whole training.
She has never been taught, like the
French girl, that the chief end of wo-
man Is to be beautiful. The high
schools do not teach their pupils grace
of manner. The English girl has
tagged" at cricket for her brothers in
the holidays, played hockey at Girton,
climbed mountains in Switzerland and
toured through Normandy on a tricy-
Gle. But all this gives her strength,
not grace.
On the whole, English girls live a
jolly, careless sort of life, not so rest
less rs that OF the American and not
as secluded as that of the French girl.
Generally, when they leave school.
they consider their education COM
pletc. They have @lcarnt- French and
German at school, but they never look
into French or German book after
wards. English literature is a terra
incognita to them. They have sweet
tooth inbooks,and devour novels, which
Is, on the whole, good thing; for
certain amount of contemporary
thought filters through the circulating
libraries ia diluted form In the shape
of Robert Elsmeres and Donovans.
Sometimes the English girl gaes
through a mysterious process called
finishing" which means that she has
lessons in music and singing. Why do
all girls learn to play the piano? And
why do they so seldom learn enough
to know that they can't play; nine out
Of every ten arc physically or mentally
of even moderate proficicn-
cy, aud yet how rare pleasure 1t is 10
meet girl who frankly confcsses that
'he cannot play. And the songs she
sings! Well, there is nothing that ap-
pears more remarkable 10 the intelIi-
gent foreigner than the way in which
m English maid will stand up and |
'ing, without turning hair, an Inn
passioned love song, at which Sappho
night have blushed
The English girls arch enemy Is the
'hapcron. Theoretically, this social
detective is supposed to be always al
ler elbow. Practically the affair is
very simple. She must not be seen
It a dance without a chapcron, but
hat estimablc lady may spend the cv-
ming in the supper room while her
;hargc is sitting out on the stairs.
She dare not go TO picnic without
;haperon, but good old Mrs. Grundy |
'norcs under tree while the young
men wander of TO sport with Amaryl-
Is In the shade. A chaperon Is too
vary to shadow the young people
,loseIy; she is constitutional mon-
lrch reigns, but does not govern
ggaygen C,ago A., p;ru,.,,,e