Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-03-08

the best examples of tasteful and artistic dress
ing. 1t has always been great moral teacher
as well. Should we not, then, look TO the
women of the stage to inaugurate those reforms
which shall make woman's attire a comfortable
and healthful covering as we'll as tasteful
adornment for her person. Even now many ac-
tresses are setting good example to their non-
professional sisters in the abandonment of that
instrument of female torture, the corset. Fanny
Davenport dispenses with it entirely in LA
Tosca.'' never wear one, but use, instead, 3
whalebone waist, and even do without that a
Brown Potter nd'Miss Eastlake never owned
corset in their life, and that Sara Bernhardt sub
stitutes flannel waist for one, while Modieska
wears an invention of her own-a buckskin cui
rass that reaches from the armpits down over
the hips.
But says some one, lit may be all very
we'll for women with good figures to dispense
with corsets, but very stout women must wear
Them Must they, indeed, and why? Does
appearance of stoutness? Does she not rather
only lace it into more suggestive prominence?
BY the way, who ever knew a woman who
would acknowledge that she laced tightly or,
indeed, that she laced at all? There never was
one of mother EYES daughters who would not
protest most vehemently, even though she were
not laced at all. And she would prove it, too,
by thrusting her hand between her person and
her stays-no matter how tight the latter-after
the manner of Rosa, in Charles Reade's novel
of "A simpleton,'' when accused by her physi-
clan and future husband of tight lacing.
In The artistic details of dress, such as the ar
rangement and combination of colors there
have been great improvements and reforms of
late years though there is nothing in which
even the French, those masters of the art of
dress in form and pattern, have made greater
mistakes. For instance, it would once have
been thought bad taste to have combined certain
colors or two shades of the same color, blue
with blue, for example. Now it is deemed all
nonsense about one color not going with an
other. Nature defies that; and how? By chos-
ing the very tints of each color that will go to-
gelher. The loveliest room 1 ever saw was
painted by great artist, and. do you know, he
had he Inc thn lS
and assure you the effect was heavenly, but
then, he had chosen the exact tints of green and
blue that would go together. The draperi es
were between crimson and maroon.
EMMA JUCH.
JAEAusCHEK SUGGESTS SOME WISE REFORMS.
Formerly everything was said to go by fits and
starts. Now it may not inaptly be said to go by
''fads,' and the latest ''fad'' is dress reform.
Every woman that was ever born into this world
always wanted to look as pretty she possibly
could, and therefore the subject of dress has &C.
cupied the lions share OF feminine attention al
most ever since the creation, and will continue
to do so till the end Of time. To introduce any
radical reform in the present style Of feminine
attire, that all women would accept and follow
would be an impossibility. In any changes that
may be made in the present mode of dressing
every woman must be governed by her circum-
stances in life, her svocation, her individual
likes and dislikes and a thousand other personal
considerations.
Without adopting the radical methods OF
those who are posing as the dress reformers of
the present day: without following the example
of DR.. Mary Walker by dressing in male attire,
and without SO altering the general style OF
woman's apparel as to convert 1t from thing OF
beauty into an awkward and nnsightly mons
frosty, readily make certain changes
which will at once commend themselves TO every
lady, and which will greatly condGce to the
health and comfort OF all who adopt them.
For example, can dispense with carriers,
which compress and tire the leg and check the
circulation of the blood. and replace them with
stocking supporters at the side. We can dis
pense with stays and substitute for them some
form of waist. Instead OF letting our skirts
hang from our hips, exhaugting Us with their
heaviness and often causing US martyrdom In
long walks, we can pin them to the waist we
wear in lieu OF corset and thus throw their
weight upon our shoulders
It's not only in the nnhes1thfulness OF femi-
nine dress that reform is required. Its artistic
details demand it quite as much Take stock
ings, for example. What is more offensive than
8 loud, fancy stocking? To my mind, stockings
should always be of one solid color. Those OF
black silk are the most appropriate and econom-
ical for general wear. Bronze silk Stockings also
look we'll, especially when worn with slippers of
the same hue.
From stockings we pass naturally TO shoes.
and there is certainly article Of woman's
dress which stands in greater need OF radical re-
form While the shoe should always be little
larger than the foot OF the vearer when she COM
presses il upon the ground by bearing her whole
weight upon 1t, the reverse is generally the case
The misery thst some women Will endure for the