The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1894-10-26

THE MUSCULAR GIRL.

"Ihc times are out of JOINT, sald al
octogcnarian 4 few days ago. THE girl
these days are more manish than thei
brothers, and, bless your soul, if they &c
the ballot along with all tt ,ir other getting,
I'd like TO know where our reserved rights
| will come in,'
The gentlemen belongs to the class tina
has always associated plebeiansm with ;
fine physique in woman. He might wei
| have been the author of some of those oil,
letters from Fond parents to a daughter
at school, in which all ''manishness' was
condemned and headaches were regarded
us more womanly adjunctS than desire
for physical culture.
But the world moves and we must move
with it, accept the situation, and cry "bravo
bravisSimo, or be run over. While modesty
and refinement are the keystone to the arch
in Il woman's character, it is still possible
to develop her physical condition without
pulling out this keystone, or doing violence
to the structure.
1t goes without saying that the athletic
girl is the demand of the present age
the ''clinging' variety a thing of the past
Brain and muscle score more than senti-
ment, and the athlete will have walk
over every time, although her sister may
be more beautiful. "Physical culture is
now the universal cry. at home, in the
colleges, and school rooms: in the club
houses and libraries, in the asvlums and
public reading rooms, in fact wherever
hygiene has its supporters. In flats scare
ly large enough to turn around in we will
find "eXercisers' of one kind or another,
indian clubs, dumb bells, rubcr straps home
gymnasiums fixed against bathroom doors
and even rowing machines launched in
small Railways.
The Swedish and Delsarte systems,
gymnastics, military evelutions athletics
fencing, boxing, voice training, wrestling
bicycling, SIX ating rowing, riding and
lawn tennis, find as many and as enthusias-
tic followers among the women as among
the men. In many of our institutions the
ovcrcrowded classes in these departments
show that physical culture and hygiene in
all its branches have almost usurped the
place of the fine arts
The girl of the period takes more
pride and delight in telling YOU how she
can shine the bar vault over the
poles, leap from the spring board, swing
from the trapeZe and even (sotto voce)
turn a back somersault, than she does in
entertaining you with the choicest NOR
Ceauy from MeIdelssohn or Wagner.
She woulo Il great deal rather row
stroke oar in crew than dance at the
most fashionable german; rather plunge in
the ocean than ilirt with IA foreign prince
She will play tennis all day long, with the
thermometer standing at ninety seven de-
grees in the shade beat her opponent,
although heavily handicapped, mount her
bicycle and speed away rapidly as if she
had been doing nothing more exciting than
lolling on the yeranda, and then dance un-
til midnight.
The sunburnt girl of to-day, with her
bronZed face and hands and brawny muscle
would have been a thing of horror to our
grandmothers, who associated Sunburn
with plebeianism, muscle with vulgarity
and considered poke bonnets and green
wells necessary adjuncts to Il ladv's toilet
She will bathe, dive, float and swim like
a duck, then come out of the water lie flat
upon the shore in the broiling sun in order
as she says, to dry her hair The result
is that each bath adds an additional tinge
to the complexion and an additional JOY
to its posSessor, who returns to the city at
the close of the season prouder of her
bronZcd face and hands than of her con-
quests.
If You come across a beyy of girls strik- |
ing their chests, moving their arms up and
down like pump handles, executing a sort
of blacksmith'S bellows performance with
their lungs, balancing themselves on the |
balls of their feet or their toes until their
bodies look like leaning towers defving
the centre Of gravity, you may know that
you have run against the disciples of
Delsarte, or some other system of physical
cultre that has set the world agog.
With some it is a passing fad with others
it is good, conscientious work that will
produce fruit, ten and an hundred fold, !
not only in this generation but in those vet
unborn. Parents, lend your aid to the
passing fad: you will be repaid by vast
diminution in your doctors bills, and the
blessings of the next generation
Mrs. F. +. DEFoNTAINE.