The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-02-28
BEAUTIFUL WOMEN.
ONE MAY BECOME SUCH BYTRAlNlNe,
SAYS MILE. PlLAR-MORlN.

SAYS MILE. yPILAR-MORlN.
The Homely Woman Has the Capabilities
In Herself-How the Art of Pantomime
May Be Employed as an Element In a
Social Education.
A homely woman is sadly handicapped,
and vet l have seen many such develop
Into very pretty creatures through proper
training. Pantomiming in its present
perfection is much more than an ordinary
theatrical accomplishment 1t is one of
the subtlest of arts, to which are brought
quick sympathy and comprehension and
an adaptability as quick as thought itself
In Europe it is no uncommon thing for
women Of high social position to study the
ant as part of their polite education. 1t
gives polish, poise and symmetry. 1t
broadens, expands and at the same time
softens personality. 1t makes continual
harmony, running from infection to in
Fiction with perfect rhythm. Its golden
secret is in curves, to which the body
gives expression.
My scheme of training for any one de-
sirous of following it would be to begin
first with the arms and legs. Endeavor to
walk with the body well balanced and
supple, turning slowly first with the left
foot forward, and then the right should
come in for much practice This may per-
haps seem very simple matter, but feet
that are uneducated often have habit of
throwing their owners in awkward posi-
tionS.
The greatest difficulty in the training
of the hands lies in the fingers. They
should be able to move entirely independ-
emit of one another. And this is not easy
of ccomplishmnent. Fingers of the or
binary person are sAf jointed, but once
under control are capable of variety of
shadings that are important in complete
picture.
There is just as much coquetry in
hand as there is in fan, and it is much
more telling, because it is human. The
day may yet come when my lady can flash
the music and sentiment of De Musset
from her finger tips. No such diversion -
mine. 1t is business with me, and yet a
business not unmixed with certain SEN
timent, for I am the creature OF the au-
thor whose work delineate.
[ have sometimes given Is hours day
to practice to the hands alone. Especially
when cold attacks the muscles of the wrist
this is made absolutely necessary. OF
course, to q person LII private life this
would not be essential. To the artist it is
different.k
With the adaptability of the hands and
arms comes the training of the body in
concord of action. 1t may be of interest
to know that it is contrary to fixed rule
and an excellent one, TOTO cross the
body with either of the arms. 1t has been
done in some rare cases, but the action is
calculated to MAKE discord.
1 come now to the most important fea-
ture-the face. OF what depth and variety
of expression the eyes are capable poets
have sung for ages, and everyday life fur
nishes us with numberless examples.
They are the changefuI jewels of woman
hood, that tell the truth of her being-and
quite frequently, too, silent, lily hued lies.
There are eyes which, though they are
jewels, do not often sparkle, and which
tell, if they tell at all, quite common
place tale. But the possibilities are there.
A friend of mine, who is an enthusiast,
once told me that the eye of fate could be
SO trained as to melt all its fearsomeness
into the languor of poetry. Perhaps!
Practice with the eyes is comparatively
easy to one apt at expression, but the
method is just as severe as that applied to
the fingers. Anything approaching per-
lection demands that the eyes should fol-
low the general rule and be able to de-
scribe the curve, to which the art owes its
contour. I am perhaps a little vague, but
the action must be seen to be appreciated.
Any eyes can be trained SO as to be ca
pablo of all the delicaoy Of expression pos
sessed by words And this perfection,
should judge, is one that all women would
desire. I have read of women who had
speaking eyes, and these should not be
the particular endowment from novelist,
but indeed should be SO natural to all
women that the fact would be foregone
conclusion.
Some of those natural speaking eyes, y
I imagine, as a result of not being trained
are limited in their expression, and often
what they do say is silly and uninterest-
ing. If mary eyes expressed what their
owners wanted to say, there would be
some odd looking persons in the world.
And here is where the art of pantomime
comes il. 1t enables ono to conceal as
well as to reveal. An unframed speak
ing eye" like an unframed tongue, is
very often apt to cause trouble
/ have known some artists who have
put their faces through exercises for plas-
ITCHY until tho muscles actually ached.
The muscles OF my face are SO pliable that
I have suffered severely from neuralgia
there. This, however, should not deter
any amateur who desires to cultivate ex-
preston. Such a condition and liability
are only acquired after years of incessant
practice, and that would be far more than
any society woman would need.
Ii the art Of pantonime pure and simple
were applied to the parlor, the result
might DO startling, but I elnphatically
hold that, modified to such conditions, it
is one OF the necessities Of refinement.
For instance, in a lnero technical sense
a volume could be written upon the method
of smiling, and yet that is something SC
simple and natural that we never give it
thought when we arc moved by some
quip or clever mot or even by the spirit
of ooquetry that is Inherent in all women.
Some women smile heartless, soulless
smilo merely with the mouth, and there's
tho end of it. The action in every case
should be more than mere showing OF
the teeth. Next TO woman's eyes her
smile is her glory, and it should be well
cultivated to mean more than mere phys
@E II