TW SECRET
REVEALED
HOW TO ACQUIRE PERSONAL BEAUTY.
BY
A SOCIETY LADY.
CHICAGO:Copyright, 1889, By R. S. PEALE.
All Rights Reserved.TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.	PAGE
What Is Beauty...................n
CHAPTER II.
The Bath .......................21
CHAPTER III.
The Complexion..................28
CHAPTER IV.
Care of the Hair................36
CHAPTER V.
Manicuring......................46
CHAPTER VI.
A Beautiful Foot................53
CHAPTER VII.
A Poet’s Mouth..................59
CHAPTER VIII.TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IX.
A Beautiful Form.................73
CHAPTER X.
Elegant Exercises................So
CHAPTER XI.
Importance of Dress..............SS
CHAPTER XII.
A Charming Woman	.	.	*95CHAPTER I.
WHAT IS BEAUTY ?
In that wonderful prose-poem, “Hyperion,” the poet Longfellow asks: “Gentle reader, dost know what a hero is? Why a hero is as much as one should say—a hero.” And thou, gentle reader, for the majority of my readers will be of the gentler sex, dost know what beauty is. Why it is just beauty. You cannot define it, and yet you know a beauty when you see her just as surely as you would know a hero.
It is some harmony of color, form, motion, or combination of these, that pleases the senses. We know what enchants us, but we do not stop to analyze it. We would not wish to do so if we could, since the greatest charm of beauty is that it takes hold of the senses instead of the senses taking hold of it. We do not like a botanist to pick a favorite flower to pieces, or to be told of what a diamond is12
WJ1A T IS BE A UTTt
composed, nor the causes that produce sunset clouds. We want to enjoy them, and to understand why we do it takes away half the pleasure. There is a great deal too in surprise. The infinite variety In nature furnishes infinite delight. No two days are quite the same, no two landscapes, no two faces in a crowd and—did you ever think of this? no two spectators who look on them will see with the same eyes, or be affected in the same manner or degree.
Where one sees the commonplace, another will see beauty, and I am not at all disposed to admit that the artist has the monopoly of the beauty-seeing and beauty-loving instinct. All men and women have it in a greater or less degree. It is one of the dispensations of Providence to compensate us for the other things we miss. The artist stands enraptured before the painting or statue of a child, but the mother sees more beauty in the warm tender limbs and the happy laugh of her little one.
Who is to say which is right? WhoWHA T IS BE A UTTf
13
would say it and destroy the pleasure of either in what is most beautiful to each? We only know that beauty is found everywhere and that all men are moved by it. I believe they are made better by it. It is impossible for a person to be ill-tempered, impatient and unhappy when enjoying something pleasing to the senses.
I suppose I shall be uttering rank heresy when I say that it seems to me to be the mission of women to furnish this element of beauty in social life. Some strong-minded woman will hold up her hands and make a protest for intellect and equal rights. I will not enter into a discussion of that, but I believe that the women who are getting the most out of life are having all they can do to enjoy their privileges. Even if we do not like it what are we going to do about it? We may protest ourselves out of breath, only to discover that the men have not heard what we have said except to feel irritated, They have been standing aside all this while with their hats off for some woman to walk unmolested over flower-strewn14
WHA T IS BE A UTTf
paths to success who has not protested at all, but who has simply made herself as charming as possible.
I do not decry this state of things. It has been so from the beginning, and since it is so a woman had better be engaged in curling her bangs than in butting her head against circumstances. In aThe Story of an African Farm” beautiful Lyndall beat her life out against these inequalities over which she brooded, when she might have been happy had her beauty been turned to the sweetest instead of the bitterest possibilities.
“ Waldo,” she said to her old playmate, “do you see that dimple in my chin? I might have the wisdom of Minerva in my head, yet would that little dimple in my chin serve me more.” She said it with such a bitter lightness of manner that her dreamy companion looked out to the sunset and envied every beautiful tint and tone for her, and then back at the more beautiful, unhappy, sensient face clouded with the problems of the universe, and wished with all his soul that she*WHA T IS BE A UTTt
15
might be as happy as she was enchanting. Lyndall undervalued the gift she had. If you are a woman and have beauty, count it your greatest blessing and means of doing good and giving pleasure to others. If you have it not! I seem to see some readers look discouraged at this point, as if they thought, “ Since beauty is the greatest gift to a woman there is no use for me to try.” They have been taught to consider themselves plain, and now the case seems hopeless.
But are you plain? Has it never happened in the whole course of your life that no one has admired you? Has no one ever been attracted to you? You may be sure that some have been pleased by something in you or you would have no friends. Every woman has something about her that is individual, that no one else has in the same kind or degree, and which attracts others. She may be unconscious of just what it is, but it is there. Now study yourself; find out what it is others like in you, then the gift will be of ten-fold power if directed intelligently.16
WHA T IS BE A UTT f
Is it a beautiful coloring of the skin, a sweet expression, a fine head of hair, white, even teeth, or a graceful form? Any one of these or it may be something else has been the attraction, and gives a woman a claim to being considered a beauty by those who admire and like her. It is not necessary for the homage to be universal. Some men would not admire Helen of Troy, who once plunged the whole world into warfare, and would yet be attracted by the glint of an eye, the color in a cheek or the dimple in the chin of some woman, and instantly she is the most beautiful and desirable creature on earth for him. His wayward heart is caught in the subtle meshes of her enchantments, and he is only the more happy if she binds him tighter by disclosing new graces of person, of mind and of heart. It is not more surely a woman’s duty to be good and pure and cultivated mentally and morally than it is to be attractive in person. Physical beauty is what compels instant attention and admiration and excites a curiosity to -pene-WHA T IS BE A UTT t
17
trate beyond what gives promise of inner loveliness.
No one would question for a moment the possibility and propriety of training the mind and heart. Every aid to this is legitimate, and the results spoken of with pride openly, as having been attained by great effort and at great expense. But to enhance the charms of the body has been falsely considered something to be done in secret. The woman who curled her hair by artificial means, concealed a blemish of the skin or some imperfection of the body was thought to be doing something reprehensible. It would have been thought almost a crime for a mother to neglect the mental and moral training of a daughter, but for her to spend an equal amount of time in perfecting the fair body was vanity.
That is a false idea which we are happily outgrowing. Except under the best conditions nothing in nature reaches its most perfect state unassisted. Fruits and flowers repay all the efforts expended upon them in greater beauty and profusion, trees must be trained in the way they18
WHA T IS BE A UTT t
should grow, grass mowed to make the velvet lawn. What I wonder about most is how the human body has withstood the neglect and scorn of centuries, and remained so fair. When we see how all other creations of God have been cultivated to their highest state of beauty, perfection and usefulness, this body of ours, created in His own image, the temple of the immortal soul seems a waste, neglected field of whose wonderful capabilities we know nothing.
I want to awaken in the mind of every woman who reads this little book a feeling of reverence for her body as the highest work of creation ; an idea of her duty to perfect it, and then to show her that just as there are certain ways by which nature may be assisted in other things so the body may be scientifically treated and developed. The starved skin may be fed as grass is watered, and imperfections eradicated as we cut out weeds that choke the healthy growth. Color may be retained, the hair burnished and encouraged, the hands and body made graceful andWHA T IS BE A UTT f
19
shapely, the eyes bright and teeth white and even by intelligent attention. These things have been reduced to a certainty by a few notable women who considered it their highest duty and pleasure to make themselves a power in their own households and in society by giving the most careful study to every detail of the toilet; and by physicians who have given the results of years of experience of the effect on their patients of observing the laws of health.
We have got to go back and undo much that has been done ; contend against the sudden changes of our climate, and resist the nervous hurry of our national life. With all these things against them American women are still the most beautiful of any on the face of the globe, because the plainest face in this country has the charm of intelligence and sympathetic understanding. American women who have had the world at their feet have had the double advantage of beauty and intellect, and the greatest prizes of the world, as well as the profoundest happiness have20
WIIA T IS 'BE A UTOT t
been theirs. We may as well have the greatest physical perfection also by giving the same intelligent care to the body that we give to the mind and heart. To begin at the foundation: there can not be perfect beauty without health, and the first requisite to health is cleanliness.CHAPTER II.
THE BATH.
If I were building a house and could have but two rooms, one of them should be a bath room. I am not an amphibious animal, but one of the first uses to which water seems to be put in the economy of nature is that of purifying.
The rain washes the dust out of the air and dissolves all decaying matter, changing it chemically so that it passes off into new, harmless and life-giving forms. Water does the same office for the skin, dissolving the accretions, cleansing it, keeping it open to the action of the atmosphere, and allowing the accumulated poison to pass away. It is the alchemist that turns everything in nature to pure gold. The comfort afforded by the bath is sufficient to repay one for the time and trouble, even if there were no improvement in the appearance. How often have we heard people say after a22
THE BA TH.
refreshing bath, “ I feel brand new ! ” You may feel that way every day of your life, and look that way too, gain in comfort and beauty and save doctor’s bills. To bathe in the greatest comfort, and secure the best results one should have the use of a property constructed bathroom where plenty of hot water can be obtained, and the room be well warmed and perfectly ventilated.
On awakening in the morning step into the bath-room where the temperature should be about 68 or 70 degrees. Plunge the face in cold water and dry thoroughly with a soft towel. Then sponge the whole body quickly with tepid water into which a few drops of borax has been poured. Rub the whole surface into a glow with a Turkish towel or coarse crash and put on clean dry linen. Some people use cold water and find the shock bracing, but delicate persons, or those with sensitive skins will find the tepid bath and rubbing to be effective and refreshing. The whole process need take no more than five minutes.THE BA TH.
23
Just before retiring for the night a more leisurely hot bath can be taken to remove the dust and perspiration, and relax the tired muscles. There is nothing like a hot bath to rest one, and induce the body to sleep. Turn the water on while undressing, and let the bath tub run half full. Step into the tub and sponge from head to foot using the purest soap. Then lie down in the water, which should be as hot as can be borne, for ten minutes. Wash the soap off with a stiff flesh brush and rub dry with coarse towels.
I don’t know how one dollar can be spent to obtain more luxury than can be got out of a Turkish bath. In no other way can one secure such a perfect opening of all the pores of the skin, thorough cleansing and the benefits of the massage and friction. The temperature in the hot room should be at least 135 degrees, which is impossible to secure in a private house. Then the strong, dexterous manipulation of the trained attendant, the rubbing and twisting of the muscles, the slapping of the skin, and the rough scrubbing that24
THE BA TIL
makes every inch of the surface tingle, the delicious shock of the shower bath that makes the rosy skin glisten, the quick rubbing with towels and long sleep when lying in a cool room rolled in blankets, is a dream of oriental luxury. The whole process, including the sleep, should occupy three hours at least, then if there is the slightest danger of catching cold on going out have yourself rubbed off with alcohol.
If you have a maid, the Turkish bath can be indulged in at home, otherwise you will have to do without the massage, the one process which makes the bath so beneficial. The Turkish bath will refresh a person when greatly fatigued, or enable one to endure unusual exertion with greater ease than ordinary.
Beside this natural method of preserving and beautifying the skin, there are many artificial ways of softening, whitening and polishing it. A luxurious practice of the Romans was to take a hot milk bath which was found to be remarkable in its effects, making the skin white, lustrous and smooth as satin. A good sub-THE BA TH.
25
stitute for the milk bath is to use hot water, into which place a cheese-cloth bag filled with bran. As the bran dissolves it will impart to the water much the same qualities as those possessed by milk. After this bath polish the surface with soft dry towels. Friction is the chief agent in all processes used to bring the skin to a high state of polish.
The court beauties of Spain, noted for the soft luster of their arms and busts, use the following mixture, a recipe given by the famous beauty Lola Montez :
Infuse wheat-bran, well sifted for iour hours in white wine vinegar; add to it the yolks of five eggs and two grains of ambergris, and distill the whole. Bottle and cork carefully for fifteen days, when it will be ready for use. It may be applied every time the toilet is made.
Another recipe for making the skin supple and lustrous is to use the following preparation with the bath instead of soap: Boil in soft water a dozen pounds of barley meal, and four pounds of wheat bran until the whole is of the consistency of cream.26
THE BATH.
A still more delightful preparation with which to fill the cheese-cloth bag is almond meal, powdered orris root and grated soap. The water turns soft and milky as the contents dissolve, and the skin is rubbed with the bag which makes a smooth violet-perfumed lather, and leaves the skin as soft as a child’s.
A great aid in producing a soft, white skin is the numerous infusions of flowers, rose-water, violet lavender or Florida water. They are very cool and soothing and impart a delightful perfume to the whole body. Many women are troubled by a growth of hair on the forearm, and seek to remove it by clipping or electricity. The first treatment only makes it grow again stiffer and coarser than before, and the last is apt to burn or roughen the skin. The friction so often insisted upon is the only safe method, and daily rubbing with the hand will wear it away in a great degree. With the practice of wearing long gloves with evening dress this defect it readily concealed.
It may be stated as a fact that wheat.THE BA Til.
27
bran, borax, pure soap, almond and barley meal, tincture of benzoin, and any of the infusions of flowers, are all good for the skin. Glycerine, unless greatly diluted, hardens and dries the surface, and ammonia burns it. Borax or carbonate of soda will cut an excess of oil in the skin, and both are harmless. As a general thing good soap has as much alkali as the skin needs. A few drops of carbolic acid may be added to any of the liquid preparations for beautifying the skin with excellent effect. But the principal devices must always be frequent, and thorough cleansing in the bath, and constant friction. Never weary of doing these things, and the patient woman will be rewarded with a skin as soft, smooth, lustrous and sweetsmelling as a little child’s.CHAPTER HI.
THE COMPLEXION.
“ Why is it that all the blemishes of the skin 'will come out on the face ? ” I was asked recently by a lady whose complexion is her despair.
She showed me soft white hands, a polished arm and neck, and assured me that her skin was like satin all over her body except on her face which would tan, freckle and burn and be covered with eruptions. She couldn’t explain it, and after trying all remedies in vain, had resorted to powders to conceal the defects. Many women have been annoyed in the same way. If they understood the reasons for it, and then applied the proper remedies, a beautiful complexion would be the natural result.
There are three causes which bring all impurities to the face. First, infrequent bathing of the body so that all the poison must pass out through the one place where
28THE COMPLEXION.
29
the pores are always kept open. This gives the skin of the face more work than it can do, and it resents overtasking its powers by allowing the impurities to accumulate. Frequent and regular bathing of the whole body go a long way toward solving this question. The second reason is that the body is protected by the clothing but the face is exposed to every change of the atmosphere, to cold, damp, heat, dust and wind which constantly irritates it. Last of all, it is the index of the mind, when every emotion has a chance to write indelible lines on it, destroying the effect of any treatment we may give it.
But the question of having a beautiful complexion is not so complicated as it would seem. Keep the body as well as the face perfectly clean, cultivate a happy disposition, and then use certain soothing unguents to overcome the effects of atmospheric changes.
Go to bed early and get up early. Have your “ beauty sleep.” Late hours give a haggard look when all cosmetics are thrown away. Turkish baths will remove30
THE COMPLEXION.
the traces of dissipation for a few years, but a temperate life will prevent these ravages until late in life. The most beautiful complexions in the world are found among the Quakers and religious sisterhoods. If you are compelled to keep late hours, take a hot bath and beauty sleep in the afternoon.
At night, after the bath, use as hot water as can be borne on the face, with the bare hands. Rub the skin with a soft towel until the face is as red as a milkmaid’s. Then dash on cold water and wipe dry. The first cleanses the skin and the last gives it firmness. Now, if there is a tendency to roughness or wrinkles use the massage. Smooth the face up and out. Rub toward the hair and temples.
Wrinkles may be the result of age, but are more often caused by carelessness or poverty of the skin. I have seen ladies frown over a bit of fancy work, squint in the sunlight, and let every emotion of surprise, pleasure or pain, write its record in unsightly lines and crow’s feet. EvenTHE COMPLEXION.
31
the faces of school girls will be wrinkled over, their studies. Look serene if you die for it. It doesn’t help bear anything or make it easier to let every care furrow the face.
If the skin is starved, give it something to feed the tissues. Use no soap, borax or alkali of any kind on the face, but after the bath and massage rub in cold cream,, almond oil or wool-fat which can be procured only of the best druggists. Many ladies use thin slices of beef or veal on the face to feed the starved tissues. And then there is a wonderful unguent, which can be prepared at home, that was used by the celebrated Madame Vestris, whose smooth complexion was the wonder of the world until long after her grandchildren were grown up.
Take the whites of four eggs and boil in a little rose water; half an ounce of sweet almonds. Beat the whole together to a paste.
This can be rubbed in or spread uoon a silk mask.
The virtues of tincture of benzoin*32
THE COMPLEXION.
cannot be too strongly presented. Its action is thoroughly curative. Mixed with rose water in the proportions of
3 oz. rose water,
^ oz. tincture benzoin,
it will remove tan, sun-burn and freckles. For an oily skin, add ten drops of carbolic acid; to give firmness to the surface, add \ oz. alum.
For obstinate cases of tan and freckles, use a wash composed of
i oz. alum, i oz. lemon juice, i pt. rose water.
Another remedy for freckles used by Madam Maintenon is made as follows:
i oz. Venice soap,
^ oz lemon juice,
£ oz. oil of bitter almonds,
^ oz. oil of tartar,
3 drops oil of rhodium.
Dissolve the soap in the lemon juice, add the oils and let stand near gentle heat. Apply at night and wash off with clear water in the morning.THE COMPLEXION.
33
Pimples may be of a scrofulous nature and require medical attention. But the small red pimple brought out by heat or the bite of mosquitoes may be cured with the following simple preparation:
i oz. sulphur water, i oz. acetate ammonia,
1	gr. liquor of potassa,
2	oz. white wine vinegar,
2 oz. distilled water.
“ Flesh worms ” must be squeezed out. Wash the face with hot water, apply friction with a rough towel, and then use this compound:
1	oz. liquor potassa,
2	oz. cologne,
4 oz. white brandy.
For a skin that has an excess of oil, a good remedy:
6 oz. carbonate of soda,
i oz. borax.
Dissolve in hot water and use on the face instead of soap.M
THE COMPLEXION.
If the skin is very rough and harsh, use:
i oz. spermaceti, i oz. white wax, i oz. oil of sweet almonds, i oz. olive oil,
1	oz. oil of poppies.
Beat to a cream and apply at night. Another:
2	oz. white brandy, i oz. rose water.
Moles and birth-marks must be left alone unless removed by a skillful surgeon. The long, stiff hairs which make these still more disfiguring can be burned out with an electric needle by any physician.
The last resort should be powder. No lady paints her face under any circumstances. If going out immediately after a bath, a little powdered magnesia may be used to dry the skin thoroughly and then wiped off. A complexion that is not faultless is preferable to a face covered with powder. Ladies grow careless, too, in applying it, and should remember thatTHE COMPLEXION.
35
the imperfect light of the dressing room often deceives one, as powder shows much plainer in the open air.CHAPTER IV.
CARE OF THE HAIR.
“A woman’s hair is a crown of glory.55. Without abundant tresses, the most perfect form and features go for very little. So universally is this truth recognized, that all sorts of devices for improving on nature are resorted to, even to hair dyes and false hair, but with proper care and attention, almost every woman can have a good head of beautiful, natural hair.
Unless the scalp is absolutely sterile — contains no glands—false hair is not only unnecessary, but is a positive injury to the natural growth. The scalp must be healthy, and the most essential condition to its being so is to keep it perfectly clean. This is accomplished partly by the daily use of a brush with bristles long enough to penetrate to the scalp, and stiff enough to cause a pricking sensation. By this means the scalp is stimulated, and the hair freed from dust and dandruff as wellCARE OF THE HAIR.	37
as being rendered soft and silky. Coarse hair that rebels against the comb can be utterly subdued and made tractable and glossy with the brush, and thin hair and a torpid scalp are encouraged and invigorated by it.
There should be a regular time to attend to this part of the toilet, if any practical result is to come from it. The most beautiful head of hair I ever saw was produced from a scanty, uneven growth by fifty strokes a day with a stiff brush. The lady parted the hair in the middle and then gave twenty-five strokes on each side from the roots to the tips, which reached a little below the waist. Every hair seemed to be of the same length, and of a soft, bright chestnut color. She assured me that the brush alone had changed it from a dusty, dull brown.
In addition to this, to make it even, she braided the hair once a week after the brushing, and then cut off a half inch from the end straight across. She washed the head much less frequently38	CARE OF THE HAIR.
than most people, and used the following .simple shampoo:
i oz. powdered borax, i oz. camphor,
.1 pt. soft water.
Into this dissolve white soap until the whole is of the consistency of cream. Rub with the hands into the scalp, making a thick lather, then rub through the long hair. Wash off with tepid water until the soap is thoroughly rinsed out. Dry by rubbing briskly with towels, taking care to apply sufficient friction to the scalp to make it red. Brush until the roots are dry. This is exactly the process followed by hairdressers. Next to a Turkish bath, the most luxurious experience is a good shampoo by a skilled attendant.
If hair is inclined to be dry, a fresh egg rubbed through it after the soap is washed out will stimulate it. Hair that has an excess of oil should have twenty-five droos of ammonia added to the shampoo.CARE OF THE HAIR.
39
For scurfy diseases of the scalp, which are almost sure to make the hair coarse and stiff, use the following preparation, which apply to the roots and brush in:
3 dr. salts of tartar,
15 drops tinct. cantharides,
15 drops spirits camphor,
^ pt. lemon juice.
I am insisting on the brush a great deal because the efficacy of any of these applications depends on constant brushing. If I am ever so fortunate as to possess a maid, I shall encourage her to use the brush on my head as a means of keeping her from getting into mischief.
Chateaubriand’s recipe for promoting the growth of the hair is:
\ dr. ex. Peruvian bark,
2 drops oil of roses,
8 drops bergamot, i oz. beef marrow.
Mix thoroughly and use twice a week on the scalp.
Nearly all cases of dandruff will yield40
CARE OF THE HAIR.
to the brushing and shampooing. When it is obstinate, use
2 oz. olive oil,
2 oz. castor oil,
2 oz. rosemary water,
The white of one egg.
Rub this into the roots, wash the scalp twice a week, while using this, with rosemary water, and use a stiff brush.
The celebrated beauties of Europe have used a wash known as “ honey water,”* for a century or more. It is made as follows:
i dr. ess. ambergris,
1	dr. musk,
2	dr. bergamot,
15 drops oil of cloves,
4 oz. orange flower water,
4	oz. distilled water,
5	oz. spirits of wine.
Mix thoroughly and let stand fourteen days.
Don’t use hair dye under any circumstances. Don’t use any preparation advertised to remove superfluous hair. Don’t bleach the hair, or “blondine” it*CARE OF THE HAIR.
41
no matter what the temptation. Don’t nse hair oil. The first three are dangerous, and the last is vulgar.
Besides the injury that may be done to the hair by dyeing or bleaching, they have often been known to undermine the health by absorbing poison into the system. Then no one is deceived by these very cheap tricks, and a lady who bleaches her hair might just as well rouge her checks, for the opinion people may entertain of her. The most charitable will consider her silly and frivolous. Oil on the hair is vulgar because it is dirty. I once saw a lady vigorously rubbing a spot on a tapestry-covered chair where a caller had left the mark of his greasy head. If he could have seen the disgusted look on her face, he would have blushed with humiliation.
If gray hair is the result of age, it is the natural adjunct, and should be left alone. Nothing is more beautiful than soft, abundant gray hair on a woman of middle age, nor its gradual change to a lustrous silvery whiteness as the years advance. Prematurely gray hair is caused by some42
CARE OF THE HAIR.
disease of the scalp, and can be eradicated by restoring it to a healthy condition.. Dyeing only aggravates it. If it fails to yield to the brushing, shampooing and hair washes given here, see a physician and get a tonic for the scalp. After a fever the hair often falls out and becomes gray and thin. It should then be clipped close to the head, the scalp be kept clean and healthy, when the dead hair will fall out and a new growth more soft and beautiful than the old will take its place. At such a time if the hair is slow in coming in, the following preparation may be used:
2 oz. cologne water,
2 dr. tine, cantharides, io drops oil lavender, io drops oil rosemary.
Shake well and use twice a day rubbing in well.
Women are not often troubled with baldness, but when they are it is oftenest on the top of the head where the hair needs to be most abundant. Nothing is more disagreeable than to be compelledCARE OF THE HAIR.
43
to wear a “ false front55 that never looks natural, no matter how skillfully it is made, nor how well it “ matches.55 For curing the defect of baldness, Baron Dupuyten became famous for a pomade that was efficacious in thousands of instances. The recipe has come down through a celebrated London physician:
6 oz. boxwood shavings,
12 oz. proof spirits,
2 oz. spirits rosemary, oz. spirits nutmeg.
The shavings should steep in the spirits for fourteen days in a temperature of 6o degrees. Strain off the liquid and add the rosemary and nutmeg. Rub the scalp with this mixture night and morn-ing.
Superfluous hair on the upper lip, arm or on moles and birth-marks should be removed by a physician, as any preparation which will remove them will leave a scar, and the hair often grows again longer and coarser than before.
If the hair is desired cut into a fringe44
CARE OF THE HAIR.
or pompon, go to a good hair-dresser or ladies’ barber and have it done properly. Don’t curl the bangs with a hot iron or roll it on tin as both methods are injurious, drying it, pressing it out of shape and straining the roots. Fortunately tight curls are no longer fashionable, and if the hair is inclined to be curly at all, frequent washing of the short hair with a few drops of ammonia in the water will keep it fluffy and light. An accumulation of oil mats the hair.
As a conclusion to this chapter a few cautions may not be out of place.
Use the brush unsparingly. Don’t use strong alkaline soaps, as they burn the oil out. Borax, a few drops of ammonia and the best white castile soap are all that are necessary to cleanse the oiliest hair. Any preparation of rosemary strengthens and promotes the growth of the hair. Splitting at the end can be cured by clipping off a half inch once a week. Do not try to change the color. In nearly every instance the color of the hair harmonizes with the eyes and complexion, and aCARE OF THE HAIR.
45
change would not be an improvement. Spend the time in making it soft, abundant and lustrous. "Beware of patent nostrums !
It is within the power of nearly all women to have a splendid suit of hair, but with some it requires great pains and constant care to secure it. But the most beautiful head will grow ugly if neglected. The plainest face is beautified by this one charm, and many men who are susceptible to nothing else, have been captured by a bountiful head of lustrous hair arranged in an artistic manner.CHAPTER V.
MANICURING.
a What a beautiful hand! ” is often exclaimed involuntarily. Soft, white, firm, well-shaped, majestic—what are they not when beautiful—they are capable of holding the reins of government, or a man’s heart, in their own keeping. They ornament the rarest jewel that can be placed on them. Their caressing touch smooths away all the ills of life and makes many a man yield to their gentle ministrations.
A lady is notable for the careful details of the toilet, and what neglect attracts such instant attention as carelessly kept hands. They are always in sight in contrast with the face, hair and dress, are nervous with life and usefulness, and in hourly contact with those of our companions, so that they are constantly making impressions.
And yet, curiously enough, the scientific care of them seems to be a new art; or
46MANICURING.
47
an old aft revived, which? In old books of beauty pages and pages are devoted to the face, but the hands are disposed of comprehensively in: “keep them clean and pare the nails once a week.” Rare instances were noted of beauties who slept with gloves on.
How crude that sounds now in the days when every lady is expected to understand manicuring and practice it wTith a set of implements as sacred and personal as her tooth-brush. This toilet accessory is comparatively new. In order to get the greatest good from it I went to a professional myself to learn how to use the various tools. There is as much science about it as about the Turkish bath; and next to that I know of no greater luxury than to give one’s hands up to the deft manipulations of manicure for an hour.
First, they bring you a towel and a pretty finger-bowl full of warm soap suds, in which the ends of the fingers should soak for ten minutes, to soften the nails. The loose skin is then pushed back from the edges with the dull steel point, and48
MANICURING.
clipped with the little curved scissors; hang-nails and rough skin are removed. The edge of the nail is then filed into a rounded point and dirt under the edge removed with the steel point. The nails are then polished with a chamois skin pad and powdered, rubbed with red paste and polished again. This is all scrubbed off with white soap and a nail-brush, in warm water. When dried the nails will look like polished horn.
After having this done once any lady can care for her hands herself. The composition of the paste and powder is a secret and the materials had best be purchased already prepared. Get only the best implements that come in sets. They will last a life-time if properly used.
Taking an hour once or twice a week, and using a nail-brush with soap daily, will keep the nails hard, polished, pink and filbert-shaped, improving also the ends of the fingers, as the sandpaper tablets must be used on rough edges and callous spots.
The nail-brush must be used vigorouslyMANICURING.
49
all over the hands, as it removes all dirt from the numerous crevices, brings the blood to the skin and makes it firm and healthy by friction. The hands must be dried carefully after each washing. Rubbing in a little dry bran or almond meal accomplishes this thoroughly. Hands that are damp are apt to chap^ crack or turn red on being exposed to the cold.
If the hands are chapped, rub in cold cream, glycerine or camphor paste, which is made as follows:
6 oz. almond oil,
6 oz. rose water,
^ oz. white wax, i oz. camphor gum,
\ dr. attar rosemary.
Melt the wax and camphor in oil and add the rose-water slowly, bottle and cork.
A few people are afflicted with chilblains on the hands as well as on the feet. These can be cured with the following remedy:
i oz. (fluid) tine, capsicum, i oz. (fluid) tine, opium.50
MANICURING.
Wrap the chilblains in linen and dip in this mixture two or three times a day.
Sunburn, tan or freckles are successfully treated with the recipes given for the face. Ink stains can be removed with lemon juice and salt, and fruit stains will nearly always yield to a ripe tomato thoroughly rubbed in. The fumes from a sulphur match will take away fruit stains before soap is used on the hands.
One recipe for curing warts is common washing soda. Wash them in a strong solution, and let dry without wiping. Repeat this every day for a week. Old and obstinate warts must be treated with lunar costic. Get a prepared stick, with a holder, from a druggist, dip the end in water, and touch the top of the wart carefully each morning and evening, cutting away the burned top each time before applying the remedy.
For felons, whitlows, tetter, or other eruptions that indicate bad blood, consult a physician, as unskillful treatment often results in disfigurement or amputation.
It seems to me very unnecessary, asMANICURING.
51
well as uncomfortable, to sleep in gloves for the purpose of keeping the hands white. If in a healthy condition, the skin firm, and nails well cared for and kept perfectly clean, the fewer cosmetics used the better. But some skin is liable to grow dry and withered looking, or rough, with the use of much soap. For these the following beauty paste is recommended:
4 oz. bitter almonds,
3 oz. lemon juice,
3 oz. almond oil.
Beat the almonds with the other ingredients and add spirits of wine to make a paste.
Or wash the hands in hot milk or whey off sour milk, in the morning, and rub in palm oil at night. Palm, olive or almond oil are all good to make thin wrinkled hands plump, since they feed the tissues.
Another frequent cause of red hands is tight gloves, or those buttoned tightly at the wrists. The loose wrinkled tops, or those which button or lace comfortably, are the best. A lady should always in-52
MANICURING.
sist on having a glove perfectly fitted, and should buy none but the best. Kid should be soft and flexible, with no rough seams inside. If worn in winter for riding or walking out doors, they should be fleece lined or have a silk or wool mitten drawn over them. In the summer a chamois or dog skin glove is the best protection for out-door life. If thoroughly protected out of doors, the hands are more beautiful when uncovered in the house.
Don’t wear many rings. If the hands are beautiful, they don’t need them, and if ugly, attention is only all the more drawn to them.CHAPTER VI.
A BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
If there is one part of the body more than another which makes of women silent martyrs, it is their feet. If she says anything about them, her husband or brother will say in a cold-blooded, exasperating sort of way, that settles the matter so far as they are concerned:
“ What makes you wear shoes a size too* small, then?”
It is useless to protest that you don’t. They know better, and will probably whistle down your most elaborate explanation. It’s a way they have. The best thing for you to do is to keep still, study the matter quietly, and dress your foot as charmingly as possible. You may depend upon it my lord and master will look at it, and his criticisms will fly at the tip of a pretty slipper or the turn of an ankle in a silken hose.
The truth is, a shoe that is too loose is
5354
A BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
more damaging than one that is too tight, since it rubs, and more corns and bunions are made by rubbing than by pinching— provided always the shoe is not too short.
First get the foot ready for the shoe. This ought to begin in childhood under the care of a sensible mother or nurse. But if neglected or dressed in a bad manner, much can be remedied in later life by judicious treatment. Owing to its being confined in a thick covering the foot perspires very freely, grows tender, and requires more frequent bathing than the rest of the body. This should be done in tepid water. The hot foot-bath makes this member still more tender, and should be used only as a remedy for a severe cold. A little alum added to the water makes the surface firm and dry. When taken from the bath rub dry with a coarse towel.
This is the time to attend to the nails, which should be cut straight across to prevent ingrowing nails. If the nail persists in becoming imbedded in the flesh,A BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
55
scrape down the center until very thin. The growth will then be forced to the top.
Corns may be pared with a knife after soaking the feet and will often disappear under this treatment. Common vaseline laid on with a bit of cotton will soften them so they may be picked out with a knife after a few days. I know of no better way to cure a soft corn or a corn between the toes than by using the vaseline. The chiropodists who advertise to “ remove corn without pain/5 do nothing more than to cut the kernel out with the manicure knife and scissors and apply vaseline, which heals the sore place, and prevents its return.
Bunions are really enlargements of the joints that grow inflamed and callous where there is any pressure. They are more obstinate than the corn, since one cannot get at the cause. They are painful only when the callous spot becomes thick and hard. Vaseline will soften this and permit it to be pealed away in layers.
Very tender feet are liable to chilblains, especially in damp and frosty weather.56
A BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
Be careful not to get the feet wet, wear lamb’s-wool or cashmere hose, and bathe the feet in alum water, as a preventive. If the feet do get wet or frost bitten, rub them with spirits of rosemary and turpentine. Then wrap the toes in camphor liniment at night and take the alum water bath in the morning. Should the chilblains break, dress with
i oz. hog’s lard, i oz. bee’s wax,
^ oz. oil turpentine.
Melt these together and apply.
Be sure that the hosiery fits. I have noticed many ladies purchase hose in the most indifferent manner. When asked, they did not know what size they wore, and would buy them without any regard to coloring matter. The stocking should fit snugly like a glove, being careful that it is long enough, so as not to cramp the toes. Colored stockings often “crack” and poison the skin, besides giving the naked feet a very unlovely appearance. It is well to insist on fast colors and to stick to standard varieties. Don’t be tempted byA BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
57
a fancy hose. The stocking should be fine, thin, flexible and seamless. Then insist on a shoe that fits. If a man goes with you to purchase a shoe, he will make you get a “common-sense,” which is just common nonsense for most women. This is following the English style, but it must be remembered that the English foot is flat and square, the American being more delicately shaped and with a higher instep. Nothing makes nine women out of ten so tired as the “common-sense” shoe. The arch of the foot is flattened, and there is nothing to rest the instep on. Then there is a quarter-section across the toes with nothing in it. If this kind of shoe fits you, wear it, if it doesn’t, don’t be lectured into it.
The French shoe with high arch, broad across the bend and tapering to the toes seems to fit the American foot best. Get them a half size too long on a narrower last. This lets the toes lie flat and buttons the instep and ankle snugly in, permits a free and graceful step and prevents swelling.58
A BEAUTIFUL FOOT.
A high heel is injurious, as well as ungraceful. They should never be worn on a walking boot or dancing slipper, but may be permitted on the house-shoe for effect, and when no walking is to be done. The high buttoned boot with low heels, and snugly buttoned about the ankles, are the best for walking. Oxford and all low shoes are bad, because they give no support to the ankles and permit them to swell.
It is better to have a handsomely shaped foot than a very small one. The foot and the hand are generally proportioned to the body, and their beauty consists not so much in their size as in their perfect form and grace.CHAPTER VII.
A poet’s mouth.
“ Breathing warm languors s	And vapors from the South.”
After the eyes I doubt if any one feature of the face has received so much attention from poets and singers as the mouth. “Ruby lips ” and “pearly teeth” are fanciful figures that have become a part of our common speech, so often do we find them in literature. Even Milton acknowledged the charm of a beautiful woman’s lips, and so we find them celebrated in song from this ascetic poet, back through Dante and Petrarch to the extravagant singers of the East whence came the old fairy tales in which the lips of women were made to indicate their character by dropping precious jewels or poisonous vipers.
This fable is not so extravagant after
all, since the mouth is the most sensitive
5960
A POET'S MOUTH.
and expressive feature, and the most flexible. It is affected by every passing emotion just as a leaf is stirred by every breeze. The lips will quiver, flush and pale, droop at the corners or curve upwards or contract with pain or anger in an instant. It seems as if almost the first rule for beautiful lips would be: “Indulge only in beautiful thoughts/’
The celebrated Lola Montez, famous for her beauty and amiability, has left this recipe : “ If a lady is anxious to have her mouth look particularly charming for some occasion, she will do well to fill her thoughts with some very delightful subject. And let her not forget that the muscles of the mouth and face are, like the rest of human nature “ creatures of habit, and long use in the language of amiability and happiness, gives that expressive organ its greatest charm.”
We cannot all have the poet’s ideal, a “cupid’s bow,” but we can improve the lips by judicious treatment, and cultivate a sweet, tender expression. This alone was enough to make a man exclaim inA POET'S MOUTH.
61
my presence one day of a rather plain girl: “Her lips look kissable.”
You needn’t be shocked. That is exactly what a man does think when a woman’s mouth pleases him. Why not? Since to be kissed is the highest and most esthetic use to which lips can be put. And no matter how beautiful in other respects, the woman who cannot excite this feeling is very unfortunate.
So a beautiful mouth is not one that is formed according to the strict rules of beauty, but is one that is fit to be kissed.
We cannot govern the shape or size of the one we have, but we can change its expression and improve the form and color, care for teeth and breath, and let only amiable words and sweetest tones pass the lips.
If the body is healthy, the lips should be a dewy pink, as if moist. It sometimes happens that there is a deficiency of coloring matter, and the lips will look dry, shrivelled and blue. Now don’t get discouraged, and don’t paint them. The tissues are simply starved and need to be62
A POET'S MOUTH.
fed with cold cream or almond oil, the same as wrinkles. Biting the lips destroys the tissues, and lozenges of peppermint have only a temporary effect. Tincture of benzoine may be applied freely and has a tendency to draw the blood to the surface.
If the lips are chapped apply glycerine or cold cream at night. Blisters indicate some internal disorder, generally indigestion or fever, and should be treated by a physician.
The sweetest and most beautiful lips are spoiled by a bad breath, one of the most difficult things for a person to detect on herself. This is the result of bad teeth or a disordered stomach. It is only necessary to keep the teeth clean and in a perfect condition to guard against the first.
The teeth should be cleaned after every meal with a brush and tepid water, using some simple powder of charcoal or chalk at least once a day. Avoid the patent tooth powders. In this, as in all toilet preparations, be your own chemist. TheA POET'S MOUTH.
63
following was used by Mme. Pompadour:
i lb. precipitated chalk,
^ lb. powdered orris root,
^ lb. powdered gum camphor.
Mix in a morter, bottle and keep corked.
Nearly all tooth powders are composed of charcoal, chalk and orris root, with the addition of some perfume or acid which whitens the teeth and destroys the enamel. If the teeth are yellow or discolored, have a dentist whiten them. Ordinary powder should keep them so, and the friction of the brush should harden the gums and keep them red. If the gums are tender and colorless, a mouth wash of alum water will harden them, and friction will do the rest.
At least once in every lew months the teeth should be inspected by a dentist, and any decayed places be promptly attended to, as one decayed spot is a source of danger to the whole set, grows worse by being neglected, causes toothache and neuralgia, and taints the breath. The dentist should remove tartar and teeth too64
A POET'S MOUTH.
badly diseased to be saved. There is, practically, no limit to the dentist’s art, and teeth that *e sound but disfigured can be removed and replaced with very little trouble, Get a good dentist, and then take advantage of all he knows, to improve and preserve the teeth.
This will largely remedy a foul breath. Sometimes if proceeding from a disordered stomach, a dose of magnesia will make everything right. The lozenges sold for this purpose are to be avoided. A small dose of soda will sweeten a sour breath. Mme. Du Barry used the following as an aperient every morning for a month when the breath was bad:
1	dr. sulp. mag.,
2	dr. tine, calumba, i-| oz. rose water.
It seems almost impossible that beautiful lips, teeth and a sweet breath should be accompanied by a harsh, unmusical voice, yet we are sometimes startled by a discordant tone issuing from the most charming mouth.
“A low voice is an excellent thing inA POET'S MOUTH.
65
women,” A loud voice is vulgar, but I have heard women who went so far to the other extreme as to be almost inaudible. This is just as disagreeable, since it is not pleasant for anyone to be compelled to “listen with all their might” to catch the words from even the rosiest lips. The voice should be low, but clear and distinct, the tones well modulated and expressive of different shades of thought.
A flat voice, a monotone, is singularly depressing Lessons in vocal music or voice culture, under an elocutionist, do much to remedy what is largely a matter of habit. If one would know the power there is in a beautiful voice, go to hear a celebrated singer, and listen with the eyes closed.
Not everyone can sing, but every voice is capable of infinite cultivation in conversational tones. It is excellent practice to read aloud to one’s self, or family, the best English expressive of the most varied thought one can find. To sing even moderately well, many a girl spends years in training the voice. One-fourth of the66
A POET'S MOUTH.
same time devoted to cultivating conversational tones, would give her a pleasing voice in talking, a far more valuable possession.CHAPTER Vili.
THE EYES.
“ Where is there an author anywhere in the world who can teach such beauty as a woman’s eyes ? ” asks Shakespeare.
Beautiful eyes are a gift for which the possessor should never cease to be profoundly thankful, nor to guard them as her greatest treasure. It is a hackneyed expression to call them the u windows of the soul,” yet this is so true that I cannot refrain from insisting on purity of soul, mind and heart, as the first requisite to beauty in the eyes. Ill-nature and consuming passions will show themselves and draw a curtain over the clearest window. But clear, frank, undismayed eyes have a beauty independent of their shape or color. The expression of character that shines through them decides the estimation in which they will be held by most people.
They are affected in their appearance
6768
THE ETES.
also, by whatever affects the general health of the body, and by the manner in which they are used. Excess of all kinds is reflected in the eyes, whether that be of the body, the mind-or the passions. Any tampering with the organ itself to increase its beauty, is but little short of sinful and is sure to bring the punishment in its train. If understood, defects can be prevented by taking proper care. But if a defect exists, consult the most eminent occulist to be found.
Short-sightedness is too often cultivated. Children become short-sighted by too close study in an imperfect light, and adults by application of the eyes to fine work or reading by a bad light or when lying in bed. I myself have seen ladies bend over a bit of dazzling fancy work for months, only to be surprised at the failure of their eyes. The best cure for short-sightedness that is the result of abuse of the eyes, are glasses to be adjusted by a skilled optician. After being worn for a few months the defect will often disappear.
Squinting and blinking are often causedTHE ETES.
69
by carelessness, or may be an effect of nervous diseases. Exposure for a long period to strong sunshine or snow, or loose short hair that blows across the eyes, will produce these defects. Hair, if worn short on the forehead, should be invisible to the wearer who looks upward. The projecting brim of a hat, fluttering ribbon or feather are often a source of irritation and should be guarded against. Cross-eyes can be straightened by an occulist.
Inflamed lids and styes can be successfully treated at home. For the sty wash gently with warm water and apply a warm bread and milk poultice which will draw the sty to a head so that it can be opened in the morning with the point of a fine needle.
For weak eyes bathe in weak salt and water or an infusion of rose leaves, which must be made by boiling carefully selected rose petals and straining off the liquid. Lay a bandage wet in this on the closed eyes before going to sleep. Be careful never to touch the eye-ball itself or to press it. If the lids grow wrinkled with70
THE ETES.
crow's-feet about the corners, rub in a little cold cream or almond oil gently.
On certain occasions a woman may indulge in artificial means for increasing her natural beauty, but remember that a “ made-up ” eye is an abomination, and is permissable only on the stage. There is a false idea that dark brows and lashes enhance the beauty of a blonde face, but it will generally be found that the coloring of the whole face is harmonious, the eyebrows and lashes corresponding to the hair, eyes and complexion. Besides any attempt to color them is dangerous to the eye-ball, and should never be attempted. The eye-brows and lashes can be made to grow more luxuriant. Brush the brows gently outward in the line in which they naturally grow every time the toilet is made* dampening the brush with the recipe for encouraging the growth of the hair. Sulphate of quinine dissolved in water is a good tonic for the eye-brows.
The lashes should be carefully cut by someone else while the eyes are closed. Do this once in six weeks and they willTHE ETES.
71
be strengthened. But use no preparation on them as there is danger of its getting into the eye. Don’t use belladonna with the idea of making the eyes bright. It may dim them forever. Rather take an hour’s rest before some festive occasion. And don’t cry unnecessarily. Some women weep for pure sympathy over the woes of a heroine of fiction. Save your tears for greater occasions, griefs of your own, or the real sorrows of the world when one must weep.
Don’t grieve because some other woman’s eyes are brighter or a different color, or larger than your own. Fashions change in these things, and then, when a man catches the glint ’o the eye that is to be all the world to him, he dosen’t care if it is green. He will be ready to believe and to swear that they are the most beautiful eyes in the world. They are to him. Keep them bright with good health, a happy heart and mind serene, in a healthy condition by judicious use, and let green old age come before crow’s-feet begin to show, and your eyes will be beautiful after72
THE ETES.
the brilliant ones of the jaded belle have faded and become diseased by excesses and experiments.CHAPTER IX.
A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
If the same skill «and patience that are exercised in stables to bring a horse to the highest degree of physical perfection were expanded on the human form divine, what a fine race of men and women we should have. Literally, we need to be groomed, exercised, dieted and trained.
Americans especially, men and women, are considered as a nation to be “ lantern jawed ” as the result of their nervous activity, and several generations of hurry and money-getting. I don’t know how the women manage to be as beautiful as they are with this drawback of thinness. We have time and money enough now to get a little more flesh on our bones and want to sit down and study seriously “how to grow plump.”
I am something of a Turk in the belief that an excess of fat is more to be desired
than an excess of leaness. There is some-
7374	A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
thing sinister about the idea of a “lean and hungry Cassius/’ while we all have a laugh with the obese Falstaff. It is not without cause that fat people are considered jolly and lean ones melancholy. But we don’t want the extreme of either. A noted physician who has made a study of the development of the form has left a table of relative heights and weights, so that ladies may test for themselves if they come up to the requirements in plumpness.
Stature.	Weight.
5 ft.	i	in.............120	lbs.
5 “	2	“...............126	“
5 “	3	“.............*33	“
5 “	4	“...............136	“
5 “	5	“ •	•	•	•	• H2	“
5 “	6	“...............r45	“
5 “	7	“.............148	“
Occasionally women will be found to be under or over these heights and should weigh accordingly. This proportion makes the body appear smooth, plump and rounded, but not fat.
The manner of life has much to do with the development of the person. SchoolA BEAUTIFUL FORM.
75
teachers, clerks, book-keepers, or students, those following sedentary pursuits or closely confined to mental work, are apt to grow thin unless of a naturally lymphatic temperament. Under such circumstances much exercise should be taken, long walks after the work is done, fat-making food eaten freely, and the sleep should be regular and of at least eight hours duration. On the other hand, those who live out of doors do not grow excessively fat as might be supposed, but keep to the right degree of plumpness by working oft the daily deposit.
In giving directions of how to gain flesh, it must be remembered that people differ in their power of assimilation. A bilious stomach will reject fat-producing food, and biliousness is the result of nervousness. This must be overcome before good results can follow the treatment.
Don’t grow discouraged if after a few weeks of proper dieting, exercising and sleeping, the waists of your dresses have to be let out. Thank fortune a big waist76	A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
is fashionable after generations of the “hour-glass.” This same physician quoted before says that one must bloat first. After a time the bloat will disappear and the plumpness be distributed over the body.
As water is good for the outside so it is good for the inside of the body. Take a drink of water on getting up. Then eat a good breakfast of some cereal food like oat or corn meal porridge, steak or chop, potatoes or eggs, and a warm drink. Strong coffee or tea should be sweetened and diluted with cream.
The other meals of the day are governed by the circumstances of life. In large cities the heavy meal of the day is eaten in the evening, with a light lunch at noon. The lunch, whether in the middle of the day or in the evening, should consist of fruits, tea or milk and bread and butter. If dinner is eaten late, it should be served at least three hours before bedtime. Begin this meal with soup and end with fruit or li^ht dessert.
Oysters, eggs, milk, starch or sugar are all fattening. Acids, spices and condi-A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
77
ments or stimulants tend to reduce flesh. After eating dinner lie down or lounge in the most comfortable chair you can find for a half hour. Don’t “burn the midnight oil.”
By strictly following the laws of health in dieting alone, flesh can be gained, but exercise distributes it more freely. Walking is the best. English ladies, whose plump figures and healthy appearance are the admiration of the world, take long walks daily and eat much more heartily than we do. In sitting or walking keep the figure erect, throw the shoulders back, the elbows in, head elevated, chest expanded. To get the correct posture for the body, try carrying a light weight balanced on the head. It is in this way that the water carriers in Oriental countries become possessed of lithe bodies. In having corsets and dresses fitted permit no pressure or confinement of the bust. Make the dressmaker fit you snugly across the back between the shoulders, so as to keep them in position and give you plenty of room across the bust. If necessary take a big78
A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
breath and “swell out” while being measured and fitted.
The limbs will naturally become rounded and graceful with use, but the bosom, the most beautiful possession of a lovely woman, is often flat and withered. Round shoulders and a flattened chest will encourage an ill-developed bosom, so the converse is true. More than any other part of the body the bosom resents pressure, and is easily transformed and transferred from its original place and intention. Keep the shoulders back, expand the chest, do not wear stiff or tight corsets that press on the parts, and one’s own hand should not touch it too roughly. Let it grow unconfined, like the lily of the field, which it will rival in beauty and purity. Use no padding or artificial means of increasing its apparent size. Gentle massage with the hand will encourage the growth, and the following ointment can be rubbed in twice a day:
\ oz. tine, of myrrh,
4 oz. pimpernel water,
4 oz. elder flower water,
6 oz. rectified spirits of wine.A BEAUTIFUL FORM.
79
If the bosom has become soft from sickness, the following wash will restore it to plumpness and firmness:
\ oz. alum water,
1	oz. strong camomile water,
2	oz. white brandy.
This used for a month will have a marvellous effect.
Exercise and proper methods of dressing have a great deal to do with the beauty of the form and the bringing out of the strong points of one’s figure. These will be treated at length in other chapters.CHAPTER X.
ELEGANT EXERCISES.
One thing this generation of women has to be thankful for, is that it is no longer fashionable to be “pale and interesting,” nor a reproach to be as “ blooming as a milkmaid,” as it was a hundred years ago, when our grandmothers were blessed, or cursed, with wasp waists and a languishing air.
But while it is no longer fashionable, the habits of American woman have fastened this national characteristic on us, so that a robust looking woman attracts instant attention because of her rarity.
It begins in the school-room where the “forcing process” is understood to perfection. The intellect is developed at the expense of every other consideration. A boy, with his superior physical strength, resents this and gets his exercise in spite of the pedagogues. He will run and play ball, skate, swim, and have games in
SoELEGANT EXERCISES.
81
which trials of strength and skill are the main interest, so that “Young America,” that is, the American boy, is a synonym for everything unruly, and the despair of the educators.
The girl never resists law and order. She is weaker and more docile. Then as she grows older, the traditions of past generations descends on her and she learns to “sit still and be a lady.” Oh, for not quite so many “ladies,” and a few more robust women. We are waking up to the fact that one can be a lady and be healthy at the same time, not to say happier also.
I know, too, that with some women this appeal will not be so “fetching” as the fact that without bodily vigor one cannot be beautiful. All the cosmetics in the world will not brighten the eye or complexion, or give the thousand and one charms of which a woman desires to be possessed, like rich blood bounding with health and vigor through the veins. Machinery rusts out quicker than it wears out. Wheels and cogs are kept bright82
ELEGANT EXERCISES.
with use and motion. So it is with the machinery of the human body.
I might go into a learned dissertation on the muscles, the bones, the respiratory and vital organs, perspiration, etc., and my fair reader would probably throw the the book down and say she knew all that before, “ learned it in the physiology at school.” You probably did, and got one hundred on examination for learning it well; got a headache, too, and pale cheeks or round shoulders at the same time.
Now learn it again in a way that will make you hungry as a hunter and sleep the sleep of the just. That’s a good deal pleasanter. Throw away the “isms” and live.
But it is not a bit of use to tell you to get dumb-bells, or practice on parallel bars. I wouldn’t do it myself. It is uninteresting, and would be taken in a perfunctory manner just as any other medicine. A man doesn’t do this. He does something that has a glow of interest added to the exertion. He plays ball, rows, rides a wheel, swims.ELEGANT EXERCISES.	S3
“ Oh, but a lady can’t do these things ! ” I hear in a regular chorus.
Can’t she ? The most charming women and girls I know do them, and they are the really elegant thing to do. There is a coquettish costume for every one of them. It takes a little courage at first, especially in a rural community or “ slow ” town, but the rest of the sex will stand off and admire for a short time and then follow suit. As for the men, they will simply take that girl in among them as a comrade and equal. Try it.
Human beings are gregarious animals; they never like to do anything alone. Women especially had rather die on the rack than to do anything “odd” or different from the others. In England they think nothing of taking long walks, constitutionals, daily and alone if there is no one to go with them, over fields and through the woods, bringing back the rarest wild flowers and rosy cheeks. In America a solitary stroll is a bore and “looks odd.” I have in mind a young girl who set a whole village to gossiping84
ELEGANT EXERCISES.
because she started off each morning before breakfast for a brisk walk. Everybody was looking for other signs of mental aberration. Yet she finally made it fashionable to walk.
If people won’t believe that you really enjoy the walk, just pretend you do it because it is “ awfully English,” and my word for-it you will have more companions than you know what to do with. Wear thick shoes so you can turn off the road into the dewy fields, short walking dresses of serge or light-weight flannel and broad hats, veils and umbrellas as a protection. Then walk like an Egyptian water carrier from the hips with lithe and easy grace. American women simply bend the knee and jerk the elbows.
It is said that in Greece, where the form reached its greatest perfection among women, mothers told their daughters “to be virtuous and throw their shoulders back.” American girls all need the latter injunction addressed to them daily. Grecian women were as remarkable for their straight bodies as for their virtue.ELEGANT EXERCISES.
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Their arms fell free at the side from straight, sloping shoulders.
George William Curtis gives a humorous description of the posture of American women in walking. u Her gait gives a movement to her body like the squirming of a wounded insect with a naturalist’s pin through the midriff. They carry their hands in front giving them the look of a trussed fowl, and have about as much freedom of motion.”
Walking, as the English woman walks, will correct this false attitude, and make our movements natural and graceful.
Skating is an elegant and invigorating exercise, but in very few of our States is the weather favorable for even a short season. But equestrianism can be practiced everywhere. Nothing can be more graceful than a well-groomed girl on a well-groomed horse taking a sharp canter in the early morning or evening. Do this for your own sake. Then if it is fashionable to ride in the park at a different hour, you can do that, too, and get just so much more enjoyment out of it.86	ELEGANT EXERCISES.
Many women who cannot afford to keep a horse, or who are in business, use a very tractable steed, the “ wheel,” that will stay in the corridor or office patiently all day, and doesn’t require to be fed. It was a dreadful innovation at first, “ so unfeminine,” but now so many women have adopted this convenient and healthy method of locomotion, that one who owns a wheel is envied.
Tennis playing can hardly be overestimated for its grace, beauty, and the charming costume that gives such perfect freedom of motion. Dancing is to be commended for the same reason, and its usefulness is increased since evening costume is more simple so as not to impede the limbs. Rowing expands the chest, develops the bust and squares the shoulders, and swimming calls almost every muscle into action.
Furthermore all these are fashionable. In certain society that is “in the swim,” a girl is expected to do all of them with a certain dexterity that insures practice and ease. A girl may even box and fenceELEGANT EXERCISES.
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with perfect propriety. It is even considered now-a-days that the languishing girl is simply lazy, or sick. She excites the pity or contempt of the healthy active girl. As for the men, they don’t think of her at all.
Some old cynic has uttered a truism: “A girl isn’t built for running. When she runs, it is in order to be caught.” I know that a man is more apt to run after the girl who even makes a lame attempt to escape him, than one who sits still and looks at him appealingly. If I were talking to men, I should say:	“Put that in
your pipe and smoke it.”CHAPTER XI.
IMPORTANCE OF DRESS.
“It has been worth thousands of dollars? to me to be always well dressed/’ said a very successful business man to me once.
If from a business point of view it pays a man to dress well, what must it mean to a woman ? I think it often means the happiness of her whole life. Dress helps to make or mar the harmony of a beautiful woman, and completes a good impression or spoils it.
I think that very few women, and those few the so-called “reformers ” really have or profess to have a disregard for dress. Every woman has a laudable desire to appear well, but oh what “guys” some of them do make of themselves. To go onto the busiest Street of a large city at the hour when fashionable ladies are out shopping, not more than a half dozen artistic and appropriate costumes will be
counted out of hundreds. It seems to be
88IMPORTANCE OF DRESS.	89
perfectly natural for some women to always buy the right thing and to get it made up in the most becoming style. Others try all their lives, and spend years of time and a mint of money and then never look “ fit to be seen.”
The trouble is they buy a certain thing because it is the fashion, or because the dress-maker told them to do so without thinking whether it is becoming or suits anything else they have to wear with it. If a lady follows this plan, she may empty a merchant’s counters of his richest goods and yet look like a ninety-nine cent store.
In the first place don’t put too much on, and make what you do wear harmonize with yourself and the occasion. Don’t go to the extreme of fashion nor be entirely out of it. Conservatism in dress is the least noticeable and has the best effect because it doesn’t startle the beholder. Then be perfectly comfortable. Avoid a “ dressed up ” appearance. The best taste is to be always “ dressed up,” that is not to be slovenly at times and then to “ load on the livery.” It always tells be-90
IMPORTANCE OF DRESS.
cause the wearer herself is conscious of looking unusual.
There are times when magnificence is: appropriate, that is in sumptuous surroundings and on ceremonious occasions. But in the home, on the street, church or small gatherings simplicity should rule. The dress should be perfect in detail rather than calculated to astonish. A. hostess never outshines her guests. Outdoor costumes should be quiet, those for indoors can be more varied, lighter and graceful in form. There is one time when a woman can deliberately “lay herself out” to capture and that is in her own house in a “ tea-gown.”
Blessed invention! A woman can make herself anything in a tea-gown and the men just fall down and worship the artistic creation.
For public occasions perfection of fit and finish and fineness of materials are chiefly required. With the numerous ways of making dresses any defect of the form can be concealed by judicious arrangement of drapery and ornamentation.IMPORTANCE OF DRESS.
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Consider your figure and modify the prevailing fashion to its peculiarities. The national slenderness has seemed to induce the inventors of styles to make costumes becoming only to slender women. One never sees a plump woman in a fashion plate so that a woman inclined to embonpoint feels herself at a disadvantage and is thrown more on her own resources for becoming costumes. The fluffiness, fussiness and much betrimmed bouffant effects that look well on a Sara Bernhardt are ridiculous on a Hebe.
Yet a plump woman with a round figure can dress effectively and at less expense than her attenuated sister, if she will discard every adjunct to dress except what outlines her form. She must have a snug, taut look. Let everything be in straight lines and princess effects. Do not break the curve from the arm-pit to the ankle with draperies or trimmings. Use smooth, soft, clinging materials; very little inconspicuous trimmings, and place none of it where it broadens the outline. For instance, a puff at the shoulder or92
IMPORTANCE OF DRESS.
elbow, while becoming to a slender figure, makes a plump one look squatty. But a flat epaulette or standing one gives height. A snug jacket or long close fitting ulster is the wrap for a plump figure, while the slender one can indulge in the mantle and cottage cloaks.
This is true of all the accessories of the toilet. A round wrist should be buttoned into a close fitting glove, while a thin one should be concealed in wrinkles. A slender neck should be dressed in niching, boas, draperies, and high collars, but the round short neck should have the simplest, flattest finish possible.
Dress modestly and according to your age. The young girl can indulge in many a vagary of form and color that would look giddy on a young matron, who on the other hand can dress in a richer manner than would be appropriate for the girl. But the form of the dress should be quieter and more elegant. The majestic old lady who dresses well has only the richest fabrics in ample folds. It is a nice distinction, the muslin, the cashmere andIMPORTANCE OF DRESS.	93
the velvet age. Velvet and point lace are as inappropriate for the girl as tennis flannel and blue muslin for her grandmother. Ornaments should be worn in the same way. Natural flowers or simple gold, very fine and chaste, with a pearl or sapphire, can be worn by a girl, while her mother can blaze with diamonds for the same occasion.
One of the most difficult things to determine is the color to be worn. Right here I want to say that I hate black, perhaps because it is “ so serviceable.” As a nation we wear black, when all the most beautiful and enduring colors of nature are being reproduced in the softest fabrics. If a woman has no taste at all, perhaps she had better stick to black to the end of the chapter to avoid mistakes. It is a temptation all are not able to resist, to see a beautiful color that maybe totally unbecoming and refuse to buy it.
Then there are no more “colors.” A few years ago a green dress was green, now it is olive, moss; a purple is heliotrope; a red,cardinal, rose; and a brown is94	IMPORTANCE OPPRESS.
anything. It is very odd if in the multitude of tints and tones and shades to choose from, and the wonderful combinations that can be made, a woman cannot find what is most becoming. She is not hampered by a few materials and fewer colors to choose from.
An idea has descended from somewhere in the dark ages, that a blonde should wear blue and a brunette red, when in fact the opposite is oftenest true. A rosy blonde looks especially well in green and plum color and crimson. I saw a redheaded girl the other day who had done a very daring thing. She had dressed herself in golden brown in nasturtium shades from pale yellow to dark brick red. About her neck was tied a dull brick red ribbon almost the exact shade of her dark red hair. It was wonderfully successful and effective.
As a rule neutral tints or dull shades are suitable for the streets, the brighter and richer ones for the house and evening
wear.CHAPTER XII.
A CHARMING WOMAN.
And after taking all the trouble to make herself beautiful by increasing her natural charms, with a complexion of peaches and cream, eyes like stars, the form of Juno or Aphrodite, a woman may find herself overlooked in her own home and in society. A plain little woman with no figure at all, nor the faintest idea of style, may have a train of admirers while she is neglected. Why? Simply because she isn’t “interesting.” You have got to make men see you with emotion,, excite their curiosity or awaken their languid interest. You maybe spicy, brilliant, diplomatic, considerate, appealing, and understand human nature. In a word, the successful woman of society has got to be all things to all men and hold herself constantly in reserve—make people think there is more concealed through modesty
than revealed from pretense.
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A CHARMING WOMAN
Respect yourself thoroughly. Have the highest regard for your own' worth, but have infinite charity. Believe that other people who may differ from you widely may be just as worthy. It is not only narrow minded, but provincial to recognize only one standard, and the traveled person is always recognized by this cosmopolite understanding.
As a hostess, no characteristic is so charming. It makes the guests feel free and unconventional, and brings everybody’s best points forward. “Mrs.------’s
is such a charming place to visit,” means no more or less than that Mrs. Blank is herself a charming woman.
Don’t be “fussy.” It irritates a man and makes him wish you anywhere out of sight. Find something interesting in everybody, even if you have to search for it. Be ready to give up your own plans to further those of others. The small things of life don’t matter, but they produce the greatest amount of friction and wear and tear. Save your resistance for great occasions. If you are bound to have your ownA CHARMING WOMAN.	97
way, that is the best way to get it—to make someone else believe he is having his.
One thing the whole world hates is noise. Be quiet, cool and collected. Don’t jar anybody’s sensibilities, but be soothing. Make yourself like a breeze on a hot day or a well-spring in a desert, restful and grateful. That is, make everybody comfortable, but don’t let them see how you do it.
Every woman now-a-days is expected to be generally well-informed, but a strong minded woman is an abomination. She rides a hobby to death and tires everyone who tries to keep pace with her; but a bright woman who has something to say on every current topic is entertaining. Let your comments be as witty as may be,, but beware of sarcasm. People may laugh at it, but they feel uncomfortable, too, fearing your sharpness may be directed against themselves.
Be frank and fearless but not blunt. Be natural; affectation never deceives very long, and remember that the butterfly has.98
A CHARMING WOMAN.
just as much of a mission in life as the bee—to be beautiful, graceful and pleasing have their uses. Men who see only the stern realities of life in business often seek relaxation in the society of a women whose whole objects seems to be charming. They avoid women too much like themselves; the cold, exact, judicial, intellectual women who could discuss international politics or the law of supply and demand with him. He wants the wrinkles caressed out of his brain by soft rosy finger tips, and to forget sordid cares in the smile of coral lips.
There isn’t any use to try to deny all of this. It is so. God made it so. Men and women are
“ Equal, not the same,
Else sweet love were slain.”
It is a woman’s place in nature to be fine and sweet, higher morally, weaker physically, intuitive rather than argumentative. Instead of bewailing this, rejoice and find in it fuller opportunity for utility and for grace than any lot you could have chosen for yourself.