The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1899-01-14
NEW CURE FOR NERVOUSNESS.
Chinese Wear Soft Soled shoes and Are
Perfectly Calm.

A new cure for nervousness has been
suggested to American sufferers from
this indefinable but terrible malady,
and by a Chinese student OF national
and racial characteristics. The man
who has formulated the new nerve spe-
cifc says that he believes its adop-
ton will cure the worst case of head
ache couchant over the nerves ram
pant known to mankind. He believes
the entire absence of
which characterizes the Monaghan
race to result simply from the centur-
les OF practice which his countrymen
have given to the simple cure. And
this is the cure: always wear soft
soled shoes and you will never be cor
sc1ous of possessing nerves." says the
savant from the fiowery kingdom. To
Americans but recently induced to try
the wearing of heavy, thick soled shoes
with a view to mitigating the very con
ditions now under discussion the idea
would seem at first sight ridiculous.
upon closer inspection, however, 1t
bears at least a semblance of reason.
"A hard soled shoe, like a tight or a
high heeled shoe, puts a person under
a tension" says the man who is re-
sponsible for the p~ropounding of the
new idea in America. This tension
Is naturally n necessarily wearing,
and the nerve seem to wear out first.
1t is relaxation which is necessary to
cure nervousness, not braCing up or
tension. | feel convinced that the
theory which | have advanced, to The
effect that if Americans will stop cal
ing the stiff soles which keep them I'M
der a strong, if unconscious, tension,
they will cease to be nervous, will o 10
be borne out by facts" In support of
this theory the Chicago people who are
just now interested in the Chinese doc
tors ideas instance the facts that a
tight shoe will produce more wrinkles
nervous wrinkles around the mouth,
eyes and forehead-inside of a given
time than any other form Of suffering
known. The sudden adoption of a
heavy soled shoe after the wearing of
light kid shoes will sometimes in
sure a similar result. Some of the Chi
cago physicians talked with on the
subject, while d~eprecating anything
which will tend to drive the sensible
thick soled shoes which nave lately be-
come fashionable out of popularity, de-
clare that they believe much truth to
be enshrined in the Chinaman's state
ments. This is the way in which l
would compromise said one Of the
best known physicians in the city not
long ago. Let everyone, man or wo-
man, who steps outside the house at
all in cool or bad weather wear thick
soled shoes, but see that the soles are
also as pliable as possible. 1t is not
the thickness of the sole which is at
fault; that is always good. 1t is the
stiffness. Get shoes as pliable as can
be found, and rest the feet and nerves
further by wearing the softest shoes
to be had, real Indian moccasins, if
possible in the house and when and
wherever conventionality allows. Ev-
erybody realizes, albeit most of US do
1t unconsciously, what a relief to
nerves and feet alike comes with the
getting into slippers process so dear
ly beloved of the average man. Wo-
men, too, usually slip off their heavy
shoes and don easy slippers the mo-
ment they reach their own rooms, and
this Is right. Pliable shoes furnish an
easy and simple way Of resting for
overtired and overworked people. SO
far, at least, the Chinese doctor is
right. The experiment of treating the
nerves by wearing pliable-and to pill
able I should add wide, roomy, COM
fortable'-shoes whenever possible Is
an experiment exceedingly easy to
try, and it has a better chance of PROV
ing efficacious than is the case with
many popular ideas of the kind.