The Madisonian. (Richmond, Ky.) 1913-1914, 1914-04-21
Better Dress Standard for
Women
Mrs. Eugene Walker

We all agree, | think. that we
need better dress standards, or al
least that other women do. When
we stop to think of some of the
ridiculous styles we call to mind
the shadow veil, which causes,
women to look as though their
faces were marred by birth marks
the murderous hat pin, the mush.
room hat. SO pitiless to the mid.
die aged women that wore it,
since it concealed their best fea
lures the eyes and general look
of intelligence then the stout
woman who outlined her figure
mercilessly in the sheath skirt
and made locomotion almost i'm
possible. The compelling voice
of the tyrant fashion has decreed
that skirts must be made fuller
but adhering strictly to the law
of economics, has agreed to alloi
a more scanty amount of goods
to the bodice. Many have joined
inthe back to nature" movement
and apparently hold with Herbert
Spencer, that clothes were only
created to hide defects and voice
the opinion of the frenchwoman
who said. eff your figure is pretty
it is a shame to conceal it, if is
ugly, it is a sin to reveal it."
The Sunday supplements con
tinue to dub the scantily attired
pernicious peaches, nevertheless
built on the foundation of an I'm.
distorted body; woman's dress is
to-day structurally good and ar.
tistic;; it follows the line. of the
figure it clothes, it's true some.
times follows them too sincerely.
Bodices are more comfortable,
sleeves are loose, collars are no
longer of advanced altitude
common sense heels are in vogue
and today the French dressmakers
accept as the size Of an ideal
waist, tWenty-six inches. You
remember the wag declared a
woman's happiness depended on
her waist measure. Paul Poirets
chief exploit has been the phys
ical remodeling of the modern
woman. He has, by taking
thought, added a cubit to her
stature, and has substituted the
Botticelli silhouette for
the erect carriage of ten years
ago, to say nothing of the grecian
bend. William Archer said the
of the waist from nine
teen to tWenty-Six inches, is the
most radical change in fashion
since the transition from the
style of Louis XVI to that of the
Directoire, but it required a Reign
of Terror to bring about the lat
ter. In the twentieth century
there are no great ladies who Can
make or mar a. fashion by a nod
as could the Empress Eugene or
Marie Antionette- and other wo-
men follow like sheep and some
like sheep have gone astray. The
present day puts a premium on
the expression of self-personality
and we no longer wait for the
time to come, when this mortal
shall put on individuality.
Some critics continue to be
very severe on present day modes.
Jane Adams declares all woman
kind is suffering definite deg
radiation from present day fash
ions, and deplores the fact that
fashions result in such a tremen-
dous waste; frstsdue to the per-
iShable material that is now used.
And second, because clothing is
before it isworn out. For
instance, many women of moder-
ate means buy a new suit every
season. These articles are dis
carded because they are no lon
ger the fashion; they were pro-
duced by labor; the articles that
take their place are also produced
by labor. This discarding results
in needless labor the women
who work in these, trades that
minister to the extravaganza and
the waste of fashion ought to be
free from bondage and their work
turned to constructive uses. The
white slaves of society are not
all of them slaves to the vices