St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-09-14

teeth size or two smaller would serve
all the purposes of use and ornament.
As to her figure, nature has endowed
her with splendid physique. a body
well developed by walking, riding, row.
ing and tennis; but it is still in the
rough. 1t is marvellous that with her
still lacks til at browning beauty, the
''divine grace" which the Greek god
dess sheds around her favorites. But
she does lack it. The French girl,
sallow and even ugly, is always grace
full; the English. beautiful and statu-
eSque in repose, is awkward when
she begins to move. Does it all
lie in the feet, those feet which the
English climate ripens to such aStOund-
ing size, and which their owners persist
in reducing by the process of peine
forte ct dure? 1t is more probably the
result of her whole training. She has
never been taught. like the French girl,
that the chief end of woman is to be
beautiful. The high schools do not
teach their pupils grace OF manner, and
the expatriated French noblemen who
taught our grandmothers dancing and
department. have long since taken
down their brass plates and gone forth
into the unknown country. The Eng
fish girl has tagged" at cricket for her
brothers in the holidays. plaYe d hockey
at Girton. climbed mountains in Swift
Zerland and toured through Normandy
on a tricycle.. But all this gives her
strength, not grace.
On the whole, English girls live a
jolly, careless sort of life, not so restless
as that of the American and not so
secluded as that of the French girl. Not
all, of course: for we, every one of US,
know here and.there motherleSs girl.
who brings up whole family of
younger brothers ahd sisters, and sacri-
fees her own life to theirs. But these
are the exception. Generally. when they
leave school, they consider their educa-
ton complete. They have 'learnt"
French and German at school. but
they never look into a French Or
German book afterwards. Eng lish
literature, outside the ''set. books"
in all Oxford local examination is a
terra incognita to them, and this is the
more ineXcuSable because English news
papers and magazines, and, in fact, all
contemporary literature, is written with
an eye on the young person." and
there are few libraries where sweet sew
enteen may not range at will. They
have sweet tooth in books and deyOur
novels, which is, Oh the whole, good
thing; for certain amount of cOntem-
porary thought filters through the cir
culating libraries in diluted form in
the shape of Robert ElsmereS and Don
evans.
Sometimes the English girl goes
through 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 are either physically or men
tally incapable of even moderate pro-
ticiency, and yet how rare a pleasure it
is to meet a girl who frankly confesses
that she cannot play. And the songs
she sings! Well. there is nothing that
appears more remarkable to the intelli-
gent foreigner than the way in which
ALI English maid will stand up and sing,
without turning hair. an imprisoned
love song at which Sappho might have
blushed!