The sun., 1901-08-04
WOMAN'S VANITY As A TONIC,
Fewer Rules Nowadays Against Looking
Glasses In Hospitals.

The nurse approached the doctor eau
tiously.
THAT woman she said, indicating with
her thumb he occupant OF a bed in the
southeast corner Of the room. has brought
a hand glass into the ward and lies there
looking at herself from morning till night.
She il pale IA a ghost to-day, and | am
anxious az to results. I'm afraid she Il get
scared over her ghas'ly appearance and
worry herself to death. Don't you think
I'd better take il away from herr
The doctor contented himself with a
shake of the head till he got out In the corri-
dor. and then he did some pretty plain
talking:
plan tried, and il worked most dlsastrously
I began my career by serving severa !
months IA an inferno in Pittsburg hospital.
II was the rule there that no ward patient
should be- allowed to have a mirror Of any
description, and YOU might rake every
ward in the hospital with fine tooth comb
without finding piece OF looking glass as
big rs postage stamp.
hThe management had formulated and
enforced that law with the hest interests
Of the patients at heart. for they figured
Just a. you have figured, that to study ones
own pallor and sunken cheeks and eyes II
conducive TO depression OF spirits and
consequent physical deterioration. | con-
siclered their reasoningf alse, but was
only one against many and did not forcibly
express nv opinion but discreetly watched
the women patients fuminy and fussing
awav in secret over their appearance, OF
which each tried TO get an idea from the
description given her by her neighbors'
"Ons day | was passing through GER
tain ward and stopped beside the bed Of a
colored girl. whose face ut that moment
wore the most lugubrious expression ]
had ever seen on a human being. ! took
alarm instantly and began to study her
condition.
= Why, Elsie I said, what in the world
-She cried then in earnest. Oh doctor,
she said, IL could only see myself I'd got
better, know I would haven't looked
In a glass for month. The girls try to
tell mo how | look, but l know they are
fooling me. I'm sure must look great
deal worse than they make out. II ! don't l..
why wont the matron and superintendent
let me have a glass;
i went right down To the Office then
and spouted out the piece OF advice l had
had stored up for 40 many weeks. After
! thinking the matter over they decided TO
allow Elsie to cultivate the acquaintance
| of her own features once more. and when
! deathly III AZ she had imagined she began
| TO mend and continued to improve steadily.
$50 | give sick people, especially the
women, a mirror when they ask for it..
| There may be times when person who is
very nesr deaths door loses interest in her
personal appearance and does not care
| Tor mirror: but the average woman who
| IL able 10 lift hand wants 20 judge for her
| self how she is looking. and II she may not
! have the privilege Of finding out her sus-
| pense will be more harmful than positive
| knowledge.
There are very few hospitals now that
! forbid the use Of looking glasses and IL IL
! TO be hoped that those few will soon rescnd
their absurd rules and provide mirrors
| OF their own. I urge this latter point for
! the reason that there is a great difference
! in glasses. Some lend ghasfly hue TO the
| freshest countenance. whereas Others throw
| pink tints on a color less skin. look into
| one OF these fattering mirrors now and
| then would be worth more TO sick person
than dose Of medicine, and they ought
| To he supplied abundantly.'
The nurse smiled
| ITS one of the fattering kind she's got,
she said. nodding toward the vain invalid
Il suppose I'd better let her keep II.