The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1897-02-05
Acquired Grace.

women gives this account of the way in
which she acquired her admirable and
greatly admired carriage: All through
my girlhood my mother lectured me ON
my manifold awkwardncss. My walk,
my carriage, my sitting down and stand
ing up were series of angular move
ments, simply intolcrable to her artistic
nature. But it never seemed to me
that l could help it. I was ''made that
way and how could l change myself?
actress who always studied her parts be-
fore full-length mirror, in order to be
sure that her gestures were graceful. 1t
caught my attention in some way, and
| thought of it many times in the next
few days. At last l came to deliber-
ate resolution that I would adopt her
plan and see what would come of it.
Thereafter all my spare hours were
passed in the drawing room where there
was large pier glass. l took my books
there to read and chose an old-fashioned
looked ut my reflection after l was
seated, and actually blushel ut its ull-
calmly angles. Then l observed the fig
urc, approaching the mirror in short,
jerky steps, and hlushed again, until
was as dissatisfied with myself as my
poor mamma. and became absorbed in
my endeavor to improve. l studied pict
ures and copied their attitudes as closely
as | could. When l went to the theater
l gave earnest attention to the move
ments of the actresses and when l went
home tried to initiate them. | am afraid
that all this sounds as if had developed
into most self-conscious prig and
poseusc. but l can acQuit myself Of any
such feeling. was studying grace Of
motion as one might study drawing, and
with no more egotism, but, indeed, most
humble self-depreciation.
I practiced standing until learned to
correct the faults so clearly visible. in
that inspiring glass, until my limp spinal
column acquired self-reliance and firm
ness, and the protruded chin drew back
into line. l practiced walking on the line
suggested by mere chance sentence in
Il novel: ''She walked with rather long.
rhythmic steps as if to- music and
studied the different rhythms until
found one that seemed to me most grace
full. Girls, what do you think was the
special measure that adopted? 1t was
from Tennyson's "Sleeping Palace
And over the hills and far away
Beyond the twilight's purple rim,
And deep into the dying day,
Try it, and see if YOU do not find your
self unconsciously falling into a rhyth-
mic swing as YOU walk. You could not
move jerkily or awkwardly to such a
smoothly flowing measure.
Don't Go to Church.
The statement has been very freely made
of late that not only people in general,
but women in particular, are not attend
ing church to the extent or with the regu-
larity that was the case some few years
back. The bicycle is blamed for a great
deal of this alleged carelessness in mat
terS which received much attention at the
hands of the parents and grandparents of
the present generation. Whether the BIZ
cycle is to blame or not, it has to stand
considerable criticism as being, if not an
agency of his satanic majesty for the
weaving away of souls from heaven, at
least very convenient means by which
those who do not care to 20 to church be-
tween four walls, can obtain some conf
fort i'll what they are particular to ex-
plain is natures church among the green
Whether the statement is true or not,
that the bicycle has the tendency to d.
vert the feet of the fair from travelling in
new shoes to tho family pew on Sunday,
sending them instead to push the pedals
over the country roads, it is worthy Of
set up by various interests which imag CINE
themselves hurt by the at present ire
mendous popularity of the sport of cy-
cling. Some two years ago, while there
was no regularly organized effort upon
the part of clergymen generally to dis
courage the pastime of cycling, great
many ministers, fearing, il not foresee-
ing, what is said to have taken place
since them, started in to, if possible,
stem the tide of popular favor which was
setting toward the wheel" Their cru
SADIE was fruitless, and their efforts to ta-
boo Sunday bicycle riding only seemed to
stimulate the use of the bicycle, and do
for the pastime of cycling exactly what
they did not want to do.-Philadelphi
Times.