Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1897-09-30
THE BEST AMERICAN GIRL
Fitting Around in Her Latest
Summer FroCk.
SKIRT ALMOST GLOVELIKE IN FIT
A Tiny Gore Here, and Another
There.



New York, Sept, 24.-After several months
IN the country run into town shows that
the best type Of American girl is fitting
around in her latest summer frock, which
is apt to be silk one with a cloth bodice or
jacket over it. Her skirt is almost gloveiiSe
in its fit, tiny gore here and another there
making it smooth over the curves of her
| hips, although in the back and around the
edge there is sufficient fullness to allow
| made1noiselle to take the long steps which
| she is just now affecting, because they are
| suggestive of n summer spent in the open
air. For all that her skirt is so tight at the
top that it causes the clubmen TO wonder
how she ever gets into IT, 1t must be said
that neither u shoehorn nor glove but
| toner is used for this purpose.
Her bodice is the new blouse Jacket, which
| looks as ii it were cut ont of one piece, be-
cause of Its fullness, and yet which is fitted
| in some mysterious way, since it makes the
waist look smaller and brings ont tho
breadth of the hips and the shoulders.
| That she must wear very short stays pre-
| ferably those made Of straps of ribbon, such
| as Ivette Guilbert fapcied, is known to the
| good dresser, and she does not mar her
entire appearance by assuming the long
| English corset that would take away all
| shape from the new Jacket An American
| girl, better than any other. can wear this
| new bodice because she has the figure for it.
| Her English cousin is too long aud too fiat.
her ffelcn cousin Is too short anu too
| much inclined to be ltlmpy.
| The American girl is seldom over me-
dium size, extremely well shaped about
| the hips, achieves the line of beauty
that Henner taught us must exist in the
| feminine back, and has a small bust. Her
| feet are small and well shaped, shod to per
| lection, and any American seeing this ex-
| ponent Of good form should feel like rush
| ing up to her, telling her how he admires
| her and how vain he is at heart of the
| American girl.
The American girl is the woman of the
century about whom everybody talks She
| is what Rudyard kipling calls knowledge
able"-that is to say, she is willing to know
| and she doesn't need TO be told anything
| twice. The shrill voice to which her cousins
from over the sea used to object has become
subdued. The wearing of expensive jewelry
on the street has been given the 20 by by
| this we'll bred girl. and the curious inquisi.
tiveness, really form of childishness and
funny desire to know, has become anso-
| lutely nil, since she sits placidly and permits
herself to be informed.
She doesn't eat any more sweets than any
other woman, and she is a hundred times
| more interesting to man than either q
| French or an English woman. When she
gets married, she loves her husband and her
babies, and you seldom see in her household
the violent and lasting quarrels that are by
no means uncommon in English homes.
1 AllG 10 NbllI u great ueal more To nEf GOilD-
try than either the Declaration of Inde-
pendence or the tariff bill. And if her own
country doesn't appreciate her, then some
other will, and she will be taken off in the
night and disappear AS mysteriously us do
most other blessings. So it's just as well for
the American men to be considerable OF her,
FOR she is well worth it, and, after all, as
hnanciers our men are great ones for took
ing out for the value ofthings.
| picturesque figure is missing from the
streets, 1t Is the soubrette. She has gone
to Join her company on the road, but | re-
greet her beautiful audaciIy and her happy
little lace. II was saucy face, but not
wicked one. The soubrette doesn't seem to
know MUCH but she Utilities what knuWl-
edge sne has in decidedly fascinating way.
during the summer she had on, nine times
out of ten, dark blue or black skirt that
had been pressed and sponged, mended and
altered, and evidently seen great deal Of
service With it she wore u shirt waist and
a nattv belt, and drew that belt in so that
she measured just Is inches about the waist
her sailor hat was tilted over her face and
her hair was arranged in the latest fashion.
The wife OF millionaire may be aDso-
lutely ignorant of it, but the soubrette and
the shopglrl can always arrange their locks
after the latest fashion and always seem to
know how to do it without being taught
But it was at the waist and the feet of the
souhrette that one must look to see her
charm. No matter how shabby her skirt
her shoes were as bright as possible and her
black SILK stockings were III the best cpndi.
ton. Havin. an eye for good effect, he rather
fancled at standing some place near the
corner talking to the heavy villain of the
play, and sometimes quite unconscOuslv,
one hand would 60 on her hin and one foot
would come out from under her SKIRT as il
she were going to do bit of n dance.
She was always laughing--she laughed as
she was drinking soda water because it was
In FlfR4 81 t..ttV II. ..nl
ciam choWder because it was so hot Size
DIDN'T seem to have care in the world but,
dear soul, We don't know what her cares
were 10 us she was girl who danced and
sang in sort of variety play. and vet.
somehow when | pass tine corner and She
Ism there and J remember the heavy vii
lain. do hope he isn't PLAYING his part OF
the stage as well as on 1T. And give sigh
and wish that next summers sunshine may
look down on the little soubrette and find
ler as merry as ever, and on the heavy vii
IAN with tile clearest of lonsciences.
, Aprop0s OF girls, | am reminded that we
, are to be atrocionsly Greek again this wear
and wear those low, shurt-waist butlires
! Tor evening say ''atrociousiyi Greek be.
cause the right girl with the right figure
never seems TO get one OF thege artistic
! gowns. Instead, frumpY looking women.
who are SO thin that they are painful to
, look at, or women fat 10 beehness. choose
them, and the result is something perfectly
disgusting, Funny, isn't it, that these old
Tools never seem to realize hat while We
, Keep the bapes-the real new babies--al
! bundled up the same rule ought to apply
to them. But second childhood and semi
nudity seem TO be the combine fancied
a lady who is over so, whose skin is like
parchment, whose bones seem 10 crack as
i walks, but who because of her great wealth
IS invited everywhere, persists in wearing
the lowest of low bodices and natural
flowers in her hair She is one of The
women VINO didn't understand how to grow
old gracefully. With years have come an
| accumulation of folly, and this poor old
wretch--for, with all her wealth, she de
, serves pity-makes herself a laughing stock
, is deaths head at feast aud Vet the
people who know her best and care for hei
most do not dare to hint to her that she is
dressing over 60 wears too Young.
! don't read Greak, but / have seen NJ
end OF pictures of Grecan ladies' and
though the costumes were as artistic as tho
Anthony ComstocK of that dav would per
init, still in not single one Of them can
find woman who looks over 30 years old
Now, what did they do with their old
women? Evidently they did not permit
! them to dress in Greek fashion and sit on
. benches in artistic attitudes What 4 pity
! | some of those people who are always dig
a ding antiquities up can't get hold Of a rea
J creek. Greek of the tine of long ago put
life into Inn aud induce linn to tell how tile
elderly tirecian lady dressed!
This sounds dIsrespectful to old age but II
ISM meant to be so. There is nothing 81
beautiful to me as the woman VINO respect.
! | herself and who, being great grandmother
doesn't display n large portion of the tlnpeI
, part of her body to a soothing multitude
! For the women who insists llpOn duiu, thi.
! i can only be said that, having no respect
] Tor themselves, they cannot get il from
o nIlnr nGnIlle. Iln lnL Mnlul llnL. III. /.