Evening star., 1920-03-07

sp"th. %NoN TIC SOutu Ot TIC pOets
not the reluctant feet" type; not the
youth OF the world is an oyster for
sou to open, Young man." but the
hedgling ambitions, the desire to ape
the elders. the fantastic and absurd
reaching out into the passions and man
nerisms Of the decade to come
These two writer's have shown us the
path Of laughter with youth and have
given TO US long-needed understand
ing of the human being who is "going
un seventeen"
The girl has a decided desire for her
mothers cast-off clothing Few pleas
nres appeal to her more than the chance
to dress up in long skirts and high Golf
fure. She is ecstatic when she sees her
self before mirror gathering mass
of trailing drapery into her hands and
pretending that adultism has happily
fallen upon her Child though she may
be, she sropes out into the dark after
the dreams of wifehood, motherhood and
romance. The symbols she unconscious
ly chooses arc long skirts and baby
dolls.
The subd.b lbs and the Penrods of the
world also have decided attitude in
regard to their own costumery. They
know what thes want They can be
compelled to wear what their mothers
cnoose, but sullenness is the result
Catch them mapping or stagnant when
it comes to knowledge of the pre-
Naiiing fashions for their kind They
can give their parents pointers there.
They do not get their information from
the printed word and the pcnciied
sketch. but from the live passing show
They fear ridicule to degree that
makes them powerless before it's at
tack and they know their kind send
their poison shafts quickly when pro-
Noked by n single garment that does
not have proper place in the piano.
rama of the hour. They are the real
motiernists, children; not for them is
tradition. nor adage. nor axiom.
Therefore, the task of controlling a
girls choice in clothes is no easy task.
The boy is limited. He goes along a
straight and narrow path compared to
the primrose paths which a girl can
trod
A mothers work is to keep her in
vent her from aping the artificialities
OF those who are often considered by
young girls to be the best expression
of the hour. Usually they are the
worst. The chorus girl in the war
paint Of the footlights is their model.
lt IS useless for mother to stick
her head in the sand and make be-
lieVe that girls Of this day are as
demure as their grandmother Nhen
they are cautioned concerning this the,
could readily and truthfully retort that
th'se same ancestors were permitted to
DE married at sixteen and that they
ma" heaux when they were fifteen And
"hat can one say if the young girl
utters such truth, be it ever SO sweetiv.
And suppose they see the ancient
and honorable family collection OF
pictures and perceive-and trust them
1or seeing the fact-that the bril-
liant colonials had powdered hair.
patch on cheek and chin and delicate
rouge on cheek when they were sew
enteen, because then they were fully
iauHCifeO INTO society.
Nothing is SO powerful to 4 school,
girl as the phrase that all the other
girls do it. That is. to her, the law
and the gospel. And she gets COM
fort out of this statement on SO many
counts. 1t would seem that little is
left undone by the schoolgirls of the
day If one takes evidence from such
talk. and listens bit to gossip.
81 Tse nFother who has to be guide
ana friend has task worthy of her
name aud calling. II SENSE that her
worst task is to resolutely bar cos
metics after she permits powder on
the nose. She must work hard to
convince her girl that the lip stick
and the clown like whitening of the
face is ugly, and that intentional
us s,incss 10 in poor taste II she SAYS
1t is Vulgar. she will probably have
her best frernd held up to her as an
example.
And there is no use in trying to
persuade her to adopt the sweet six
teen type of froclsing. She does not
approve of that. Mary Pickford may
be u boys example Of admirable
dressing, but his sister differs with
him No curls for her