The independent-reporter., 1910-10-13
WOMEN WHO POSE AS MEN.
Few Cases Where Girls We're Success
full In Efforts TO Conceal Sex.

Is there an intangible, instructive
recognition that makes sex-masquer-
sde the masquerading of women in
mems clothes or men dressed in wo-
mems attire, SO often unsuccessful, or
is il a fundamental difference in ply
sioue, attitude, bearing and gesture OF
the two sexes which both seldom i'm
itate any length of time without de-
lection?
Police officers assert it is the latter
though in explaining individual cases
of women arrested while dressed as
men they merely say We'll, he
didn't look just right" Often they can
not ascribe any particular reason for
their suspicious; they just feel" that
"he" is a woman and usually find
their intuitions to be correct.
While there may be something sub
tly psychological about this feeling, a
sort of elusive instinct as many claim
the reason can usually be explained In
quite cold-blooded, practical way
Aside from the great physical differ
ences of strength and size, especially
of the hands and feet, in complexion
and formation of the features, the life
long adaptation of each sex to its
particular style Of clothing influences
bearing and gesture in radically oppo-
site directions.
A woman has always been hampered
by her skirts, and as a consequence
her stride is short and mincing with
the knees close together. This alone
would be enough to betray her sex in
mems clothes. Stiff corsets, belts and
tight waists make her sit up straight
while the young man sits on the small
of his back or lolls comfortably al
over the chair. The straight back al
right angles with the rest of the chair
hands folded In the lap and knees
close together would betray the most
perfect makeup. Then there are 6
thousand and one other little pecu'
larities characteristic of each sex. MeI
move the whole body while walking
arms, shoulders, back, but never the
hips; women seldom move at all, ex'
cept slightly swinging the arms ol
swaying the hips at each step.
Then gestures are 80 different, 6
womans outstretched hand Is rather
graceful, especially the hand of {
young woman, and most of those who
masquerade are young. The fingers
curve in toward the palm. while the
wrist is gracefully bent, while a mans
hand is held straight and stiff before
him like pump handle. The poise
Of the head, too, is entirely unlike
One seldom sees a man with his heat
on one side, yet this is an unconscious
position with women.
And 1t is these small differences that
discover the masquerader even though
the suspicious one may not be able to
explain why he had noticed the diff
ference. OF course these sex charac.
teristcs may be studied and overcome
and have been by the most successful
OF masqueraders. Vesta Tilley, the
English impersonator of men, attri'
butes her success to her careful act
ing of these small details, and Julian
Eltinge, who impersonates women ex-
hibts his stock in trade of feminine
gestures. carriage and bearing as an
explanation of his most deceiving i'm
personations.
But the greatest difficulties to sur
mount are differences in physique, sizf
CT hands and Get complexion and sc
on. Most masqueraders are discover
ed in this way. Willie Winters, who
was arrested in st. Louis about a year
ago, was suspected to be woman be
cause his" shoes, while not large
obviously were much too large for his
feet Willie Winters had lived and
worked as man In st. Louis for
nearly nine years without a suspicion
as 10 her real sex. She had started as
boy quite accidentally. She had
lived in Galveston as a child with her
parents. They were both lost in the
Galveston food. While Willie WIS res
cued and taken care OF. All her
clothes were swept away, and for
want of anything better she was
dressed in boys clothes. She went
to work in these, found she could find
work as a boy more easily, and con-
unued the disguise In st. Louis for
nine years. She 10 A strong woman
though not abnormally large, and she
dd the heaviest kind Of labor. She
worked in a boiler factory, drove wa
CONS and handled heavy iron plates
she worked on an ice wagon and
handled her 5000 pounds of ice day
she was laborer and did a laborer' g
neavy work successfully.
She lived with men without excit-
ing suspicion as to her sex until q
year ago. when she was caught in a
rad on a rooming house where an ex-
convict was supposed to be in hiding.
Inc Chief of Detectives spotted her as
woman at once by the fit of her
shoes her rather small hands and
nat intangible something that told
nim that there was something differ
.nt about her, and she was led pro-
Nctingly to the matron's room and put
h'o skirts. She had worn trousers
% long that she stumbled awkwardly
.nen she attempted to walk in her
feminine draperies.
another astonishingly successful
~ n hn a n