Newport daily independent., 1905-11-06
FEET AND INTELLECT.
P~sple with Small Pedal Extre.itiss Are Not Always Fsssessed of su-
 perier Mental Acasirene

perisr Nentsl AcasireRe Rents.
 Small feet are considered by many te De a mark of aristocracy, but they cer- .sinly do not indicate superiority of intellect, for many women of supreme intelligence have had very iorge fee1, George Eliot, for instance, who re- sorted to all kinds of devices to make her big, broad, fiat feet appear less enormous. Mime. De Stael, the most bril- liant woman Intellectually of her day, had such immense and ungainly feet l that she was made miserable by the consciousness of their undue prop0r- tions. and knew that she was the1ub- iect of many a joke on their account. Her face was not beautiful, but her | figure was handsome and statuesgue. and she once veDtured to assume the role of Greek statue in some tableaux vivants which were given before an au- dienCe composed of clever and distin- guished people, among whom was the ! witty Talleyrapd. Mime. De Stael was grievously offended at hearing that her brilliant friend had invented bon mot
 
 had recognized the impersonator of the Greek character at once by the pied de Stael."
 The Germans and Scotch are credited with having the largest feet in Europe, and Spanish women, particularly An dalusiaDs, the smallest. The queen re- gent, who is Austrian and of as aristo. cratic descent as the most fastidious could desire, is not blessed with small feet; they are large and broad, and al- though, of course. she has the best o1 chausseurs that money can procure, they never look neat. This is one o1 the grievances that the Spaniards have against her, for they have a horror of big feet on a woman, and look upon such 6 defect akin to crime.
 know Spanish lady who went to on dressing for ball she discovered that her maid had forgotten to pack the case containing her evening shoes. She sent out for pair, giving one of he2 walking shoes as a sample, and after : prolonged absence the messenger re. turned saying that no shoemaker hao anything so small on his premises ex ,ept for very young children. The whole city was searched, with the same result, and she was obliged to wear he1 walking shoes until some could be made for her. The shoemaker did not have 6 last small enough, and a special one mad to be made, which fact gives elo- qucnt if not altogether fatterjng proof concerning the truth of what we heal snent the size of the German ladies feet. Such a size and shape as would, think, not be found in any oth. CT country. yet it is commonly asked for here. English women are great walkers, and wear wide, comfortable boots for their long rambles through muddy country lsnes--they scorn rub bers-and in consequence their feet have become broad, but compared to those of their Scotch sisters they are fairylike.
 French women have short, thick feet and their shoes made rather to increase this appearance than otherwise. They wear their high heels almost in the mid lIe of the foot, the instep Is padded to arch it. and she whose foot is long and narrow will use every art to take of' about half its length, the result be- ing that as she gets older she Is so troubled with corns and bunions thai pair Of good old felt slippers-her husbands preferably-are the only things she can endure with comfort, and in these she will shuff1e about the house, an eyesore to everyone who seer her. donning the high heels, however. for outdoor wear religiously, for true French woman will suffer the tortures of the inquisition every day of her life ! with all the fortitude of a saint rather than wesr sensible, low-heeled shoe that would give any idea of the real shape of her foot.-N. Y. Telegram.