Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-12-05

activity Of her life. Tho short skirt.
therefore, suits her. The napptr
who sails down the avenue at noon u,
shop or office worker. She wiii Z
IL true, 70 to extreme limits 20 mako
herself fashionable But she sini
paunts the. short skirt ana darcs tho
horrible fate of being perhaps re-
gardod az old-fashloned. The short
skirt, we have been told, H. comforts
able. and when not carried 20 exc
trefnes Is far iess 20 De decried than
the hobbie skirt. sheath gown. tho
transparent. x-ray skirt the germ
catching train, and other whlms e
recent years.
The knee Is getting more attention
than Il has had for centuries There
/ is even a sentiment in favor ~ y re-
+ turn 70 knee exposure for men. While
! women are 50 impetuousiy pursuing
/ freedom and their rights. men. ~
/ seems, have been eutrapped by FASH
/ ion into foregoing their long held
right Of freedom Of the knees.
While his lady went weighed down
by "a ton Of silk train. The cOuriier =
a few centuries back proudly s'rods
about in doibet and hose or brccchss
and boots good calf and trim
ankle were assets of manly beauty. a
man might load himself down with a
velvet cape. lie would wear sleeves
that resembled giant sausages. Ifs
would even appear In trunk hoas
which made him look as II he had a
pumpkin about his waist. and forced
him 20 90 through doors sideways. Rlt
his leg remained pretty c0nslgtenf'Y
in evidence. And among ali tho Roe-
+ sip and Trades against eKtrneaeart
fashions there IS no record fn4t vs
= can find. to show that the world ever
, objected 10 the masculine knee.
The Pest Of PantaIoons.
Yet at the beginning ~ the nJne-
teeuth century. statesmen ard trades
men alike allowed themselves % 20
encascd in trousers Even Thomas
, jefferson. whose shapeiy calf was %
widely admired. surrendered 90 fhs
demands of style, This step t1kcu
7 by Nr. jefferson called forth eirhu p
, regret u was admitted. however. that
he could do M differently. consider
. ing that ne was ~ the progrcvsfvs
school Of politics. For politics wers
the means by which trousers wers
2 rairoaded into the fashion in this
/, country.
! The republicans. bcing the progress
2 sivc element, took to wearing FULL
. length pantaloons as a symbol ~ 'hnir
courage TO abandon the conventional.
o The fcderalists on the other hand.
- clung 20 the knee brooches and buck
led Shoes as a badge ~ gentlernaniy =
conservatism.
y is interesting 10 note that 'hs
society of the early nineteenth ccr-
z tury regarded trousers as unc0ufn
z an official refused the Duke ~ Wei
8 lington admittance 10 an assembly Io
. London because he appeared ~ the
< door IN trousers. Mistress Monroe a'
}. the White House made il a rule that
Z gentlemen were 10 attend the l'resi-
+ dents receptions in the conventional
{ small clothes. But at last trousers
Z took the place. Of knee breeches even
g at society functions.
. That the modern mans clothes are
20 unbes utiful. unsa anitary and uncom-
Portable has been pointed out by irwin
2 Cobb in an impassioned plea for the
= return OF short breches such as are
{ worn in the army and for golhng. Ife
s feels that the stOvepipes in which
= modern man stalks around hide a
2 feature OF his anatomy about which
f he can III afford 10 be o@er-modest
n He points out that a man generally
y retains the shapeiiness of his calf Ions
3 after he has lost the slender waist
= and wavy pOmpadour Of youth.
a But il is the comfort Of the army
breaches which Cobb bewails most
5 He predicts that knee breeches vii
e eventually be one Of the fruits oi
e the war since so many men had the
J. chance to test their advantages.
j. It would be a rash prophet VIM
would dare predict that the feminin'
3 leg is to be out or in next month
= But it may be forscasted with Ger.
o talnty that the leg will not retire n
a. its old status OF continual seclusion
Now that it has been dragged into ths
e limelight it will be with us, at inter.
e walls anyway. for years 10 come.