Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-20
Mabel Jenness Defends Herself for Riding
Man Fashion.

The road the reformer treads is rough and
stony When pretty Mabel Jenness announced
TO a few friends that she tired of riding side
saddle, and in bifurcated garment would gallop
her horse astraddle. she had no idea of the
storm she was about to bring down upon herself.
She has been charged with immodesty, lack OF
felninity, breach of decorum, desire to create
a sensasion and dozen other oHenses against
the usages of society. To-day she consented to
reply to her critics. Her dark brown eyes
sparkled and her voice assumed an earnest tone
when she referred to the unpleasant things
that have been said about her. She is
a Young woman to face such a storm OF oppo-
sition. She is only twenty-five. little above
the medium height, with an abundance of fluffy
hair dark brown in color, large handsome eyes,
symmetrical features, and well-rounded inquire
that illustrates the success OF physical culture,
she presents pretty picture OF glrllsh simple
ity. She began by declaring that she never IN
tended the public to know anything about her
experiment. She arranged to have no one pres
entexcept her riding master and four friends.
They were all pledged to secrecy, but the
riding master gave the story away to q
gosslping woman reporter, and all the
world knows the result. Miss JennesS said
that she made the experiment in the search
of better mode of riding than is now in vogue
among women. short time ago she sustained
a serious injury to her hip by being trlpped up
by her conventional riding habit while dis
mounting from horse that was kicker This
fact, and her study of physica! culture, which
convinced her that riding in side saddle devel-
oped one side of the figure more than the other,
convinced her that reform was needed. She
first tried rlQl0g Win q S8QQle Oh tnS leu sue
one day and on the right side the next, but
neither the horse nor the rider satisfied with
| this Then came the determination to set
| astride lust to see how it would seem.
Il rode for an hour and a half said Miss
! Jenness. ''My saddle the ordinary man S
| saddle. NV costume resembled the conventional
habit except that the skirt was a divided gar
| ment of the accordion-pl plated variety. Ny seat
| in the saddle was much more comfortable than
| the cramped position necessary with side sad
die When dismounted was no more fatigued
! than would have been riding the old way the
| same length OF time. Yet / not entirely
satisfied with the experiment I made up my
mind to try it again with smaller saddle be-
| fore deciding that it is the best way for women
| to ride.
| ~ never said that would appear in Central
| park in the divided habit. That would only
| make a sensation, and if there is anything !
| abhor it is that 1 shall 60 on with my expert
| ments and if finally decide that women ought
| to sit the saddle like men, l shall have the
| courage of my convictions, and shall ride In
! that manner. AS TO its being indelicate, think
| the divided skirt is less so than the present
! costume. If there is anything improper in out
| lining the figure, the ordinary habit does that
| more than the divided costume. The divided
| skirt hangs down at both sides, and is soft and
| full and not tightly strapped to the figure like
! the present style. The women who saw me ride
| declared that the costume was graceful and be-
| coming
! And as Miss Jenness arose her eyes snapped,
| and in her face was plainly written the deter
| mination to go on, matter what the world
| may say.