Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-09-11
NEARING THE VENUS.
The American Girl Is Fast Growing
Into the Ideal Beauty.
HER FORM BECOMING MORE AMPLE,
The Waist More Natural, the Feet Larger
and the hands Smaller.
NOT ASHAMED TO EAT A SQUARE NEAL

ski remarked the other day In converse
tion that American girls seemed to hin
very arti6cial-that they are "always pos
ing" Now, this opinion. must be regarded
not lightly, in as much as the author Of il
has been Newport's most conspicuous beau
this season, for whom all the unmarried
their caps Certainly it is surprising tt
note such view of Yankee maidens, wht
| have hitherto maintained so marked a rep
utation for naturalness of demeanor. In
deed, this was judged to be their prime and
distinctive charm, though the Prince o.
Wales thought it carried too far when one
of them dropped piece of ice down the
back of his neck.
The American girl of q generation age
represented distinct type physically. But
her delicacy of physique appears to have
been lost, partly through the adoption Of
athletic habits in imitation of the English.
The most famous ladies' tailor in this coun-
try told me yesterday that within ten years
the average native born young woman of 20
has become one inch larger in bust measure
and more than one inch bigger around the
hips, as shown by his measurements.
Tho Ensct of Tennis Playing.
''Their figures are better developed alto
gether," he said, tand they do not need nor
use so much padding as formerly. I at
tribnte the increased measurement about
the hips chiefly to tennis playing. Amer
can young ladies have bigger waists than
they used to have, but that is because it is
no longer good form to lace much. OF
course, the corset should compress the fig
ure somewhat, but in the best society tight
lacing is ruled against. The practice must
go, for the reason that it has been relegated
to persons of inferior station.
"What do 1 think of the figures of Amer
lean girls? They are charming, of course.
But will say frankly that there are no
figures in the world equal to those of the
English girls. They represent the perfec-
tion attained through generations of
healthy living and good exercise. We en-
ploy English girls only in our show rooms,
and their figures are the admiration of our
customers. French women have we'll
developed busts, but their legs are too thin.
Thin legs are considered most correct in
France. A ballet dancer once told me that
American girls required less padding for
the stage, as to their lower limbs, than
those OF any other nation"
Prettier Arms and Necks.
A great Broadway manufacturer of cor
sets said: 'The American girl of to-day
has more arms, neck and bust than formerly.
Twenty years ago her arms were apt to be
skinny, and the bones in her neck showed.
To certain extent these things are true
now, SO that it is often remarked that En-
glish young women have better necks and
shoulders than those of this country, though
their faces are not SO pretty. The present
style of corsage makes the bust seem high
and the waist as long as possible, the latter
effect being heightened by making the cor
set so as to repress and confne both bust
and hips. One must commend the first
point, which is an improvement on the old
fashion requiring that the bust should be
low. A low bust is q mark of an inferior
physical type, as you may observe in many
tribes of savages In that respect it is like
an over-long waist, which can never prop
erlv be considered beautiful. After awhile
we shall see revolution in the style,
which will demand that the hips shall ap-
pear as high as possible, SO as to give ap-
parent length to the limbs and the most
graceful effects of drapery Look at the
Greek statues and you will understand
what mean"
A manufacturer of ladies' shoes on Duane
street said that women wore larger sizes
than they used to.
Not ashamed Of Big Shoes
'It used to be the case that a woman
would never acknowledge wearing shoe
bigger than fve," he declared "Dealers
were obliged to mark seveDs and eights
down to lower numbers else they could not
sell them. Customers would say that they
could get smaller sizes to fit them at other
H.. Il al. Ii
shoes are sold up to nine and the wearers
are not ashamed of them. 1 don't think
that the female foot has grown bigger, but
that the development of common sense in
dress has brought about the change. With |
in the last five years it has ceased to be the
fashion for little girls to wear shoes with |
high heels Most of the shoes made for |
hem nowadays have no heels at all, and |
ladies' are adopting the same fashion. |
French heels seem to be rapidly going out.
"Women usually wear low shoes in sum-
ner, though it is claimed that they enlarge |
he ankles. Vanity about the feet seems to |
nave diminished of late years. Even the
landies no longer pinch their toes. Feet in
parts of the country vary so much |
n shape that different forms of lasts have
% be used in manufacturing shoes tor
various sections geographical. 1t is not
blood, but climate that determines these
matters. In Kentucky, where people have
he smallest feet, the same rule appears to
apply to animals, even the horses being
remarkable for the smallness of their ex-
remities."
women's Hands Arc SIN ,lIer.
A manufacturer of gloves on Broadway
made very unexpected statement.
Said he: American women wear
mailer gloves than formerly. We have
,een compelled to notice the difference
within the last few years. Ten years ago
Te sold very few gloves of sizes 81 and 6,
,ut now great part of our trade is in those
izes The tendency is to plain gloves, and
he fashions in them change verv little,
whereas they used to alter constantly, often
eaving big stock of unsuitable goods on
land."
A fashionable physician of cele ebrity was
Isked to account for the physical improve
nent of the American girl. He said:
Physical culture is accountable for it all.
IN sunny afternoons, when 60 driving in
central Park, often see as many as 20
'oung girls playing tennis on one meadow.
70 me it is delightful spectacle, because
hese are the mothers of the coming genera
ion. Women walk nowadays and indulge
n many athletic sports. 1t is no longer the
ashton for young ladies to be delicate, and
hey do not chew slate pencils to give
hem what used to be considered becom-
ng and interesting pallor. Unwholesome
iris are not in demand for wives. The
hief danger to be apprehehded, in my no.
ion, lies in the fact that American tami-
les are ceasing to produce offspring. Now
days parents who have one or two chill
rem consider that they have contributed
efficiently to the population. There is every
hing in breeding. Look at the wrestlers
f Japan. They and their women have be-