The Modern Figure

1917

Milady's Boudoir

The modern corset for the beauty figures is a bit higher busted, and curves in a wee bit more at the waist than they have for a decade past, but the finished effect is one of suppleness and natural curves. Anything like rigidity or the stiffness caused by tight lacing is avoided and the new corset is quite as comfortable as the almost boneless model, reaching just above the waistline, which the "natural figure" demanded. Figures are better taken care of by the corset, which offers a little support to the bust and rises just high enough above the waistline not to cut into the flesh when its wearer bends or sits, as the very low girdle corset was apt to do.

This support of the bust is essential in the new basque frock or the snug-fitting girdle dividing bodice and skirt. If they are fitted over a low-bust corset, the unsupported bust bulges over the upper edge and gives a bad line.

The brassiere is an important adjunct to the modern figure, for the new corset-covers of net and chiffon are soft and transparent and something must be worn to hide the corset and break the top line. If the outer blouse is not of transparent stuff, brassieres and corset-cover may be combined in one garment. The material must be firm enough to hold the figure, but under the blouse or chiffon bodice, which demands an equally flimsy corset cover, must be worn a little brassiere of one sort or another.


Every Day Etiquette

"When a new employee comes into the office and is introduced to me, should I rise and shake hands or simply acknowledge the introduction while sitting?" inquired Mabel, the stenographer.

"It is a business affair. You should certainly rise but need not shake hands unless he extends his hand to you. A courteous bow is only necessary in such cases," said her older business friend.

Daily Exercise

1905

Clerks, bookkeepers and thousands of other indoor workers suffer from the lack of pure air and muscular exercise. If an attempt is made to begin systematic exercise, or an hour or so is spent in digging or chopping wood, undue soreness and fatigue are produced. This disagreeable result often stops the experiment. Instead of discouraging the trial, the very soreness should point out the great need of the body.

If the work were persisted in and gradually increased the stiffness would soon disappear, and leave in its place a general feeling of increased vigor. The nerves are strengthened and the bodily activities quickened. The effect is not alone on the muscles used, but upon each organ. The blood is purified and the digestion strengthened.

The effects of a prolonged sedentary life are overcome only by working off the accumulated poisons and creating an appetite for new pure food. This is built up in the body, and thus the whole man is renewed.

Exercise must be carefully increased and adapted to the individual muscular strength. The weakest muscles must be brought up to the standard of the others.

For feeble persons who are not able to do the desired work, massage, Swedish movements and mechanical exercises should be employed. For more robust persons, walking, horseback riding, rowing, bicycle riding and especially swimming are to be recommended.

Stone Man Dug Up in Rio Grande Valley

1915

Deep Mystery Still Veils Queer Find

Now in Warehouse to Await Decision of Scientists — Cartridge Shell Found Near Body

El Paso, Texas, is now likely to get some publicity as a result of the discovery of the form of a man in stone in the Rio Grande Valley. The discovery was made by J. K. Mann of Highland Park, who is rather reticent regarding the exact location of his find.

Mr. Mann is taking great care of his find and it is kept in a bonded warehouse in El Paso and is guarded as carefully as would be an equal amount of virgin gold.

Opening a heavy case containing his discovery, Mr. Mann said that what he would show the writer would be in the nature of a surprise. The scribe then put a query, "What is it?"

"That's just the question, What is it?" said Mr. Mann. "I am making absolutely no claim regarding it. I will simply say that it was dug up from the ground and that it is a Texas product. I have my own ideas what it is, but they may not be in line with what learned men will tell us later, and I am anxious to have their opinions."

Has Human Form

Turning back the covering, Mr. Mann disclosed what appeared to be a human form in some sort of bronze. The writer was then given a chance to make a careful inspection and it was seen that the body — for that is the easiest way to refer to the discovery — was not bronze, but apparently stone.

A close inspection revealed lines and pores similar to those in a human skin. Part of the abdomen was missing and the cavity bore the look of a piece of stone broken away. In the left breast was an indention, and Mr. Mann produced an old and much rusted cartridge, which, he declared, was found near the body when it was dug up.

This cartridge was evidently from a large-bore gun and was made in the days when the whole base of the cartridge was a cap, which would be discharged by the hammer of the gun hitting it anywhere, This cap had been discharged by a gun with a strong hammer, for the firing pin had been driven thru the cap.

Right Hand Has Extra Finger

The "body" is in a reclining position, the left arm supporting the head, while the right arm is thrown across the breast and the hand rests in front of the "body." One peculiarity of the "body" is that the right hand has two perfectly formed index fingers — five fingers and a thumb in all. The lips have been slightly worn away and three white teeth are visible. If the "body" is that of a human being turned to stone it must have been that of a young man, probably 18 or 19 years of age, and of a person used to outdoor or a rugged life. The sinews of both arms and legs are quite apparent. The hips are small, but well developed.

Measurements Given

Accurate measurements were rather difficult, owing to the peculiar posture of the "body." However, the following are approximately correct: Height, 5 feet 6 inches; present weight, 350 pounds; approximate estimate of weight of man similarly built, 120 pounds; measurement around chest, 35 inches; between shoulders at back, 18 inches; across chest, 16 inches; from shoulder to wrist, 22½ inches; wrist, 7½ inches; neck, 14½ inches; around head above ears, 23 inches; feet, from heel to toe, 9½ inches; knee to heel, 17½ inches; biceps, 12 inches; around knee, 13½ inches; around hips 36 inches; from instep to crotch, 29 inches; waist, 28 inches.

Questioned closely as to the whereabouts of the discovery, Mr. Mann stated: "I have my own reasons for not being too explicit regarding the exact location of my discovery. I have reason to believe that there are further discoveries to be made in that same location.

"I am in El Paso for my health, and I hope to resume my explorations within a couple of months. Just what I will do with my discovery I cannot say at the present time. I intend to have some experts examine it in the near future, and make a report. Very few people know of it at the present time, but those who do know have been impressed."

—Saturday Blade, Chicago, Dec. 18, 1915, p. 9.

Good Exercise Needed for Body and Spirit

1896

A Vexed Question

The great problem is how to train and keep the physical system at the top of its capacity for work and enjoyment all the time. Those who do not get an abundant of outdoor exercise in their regular avocations must secure its equivalent in some other way, or suffer the consequences.

The more exacting the work of the brain, the more needful is it to keep the whole system toned to the highest degree of endurance and vitality. How to do this each must settle for himself as best he can, with such professional advice as he can command; but to do it in some way is both an interest and a duty.

There is a religion of the body as well as of the spirit; indeed, true religion includes both body and mind. It is not a crusade on calisthenics and the other methods of physical training that is wanted, but a wiser and more general use of them. We have mastered the art of making a perfect tree, and persuading a rose to bloom in any color we may choose; we know exactly how to rear just such a horse or dog as we desire; but who shall tell us how to develop and train the human body to perfection?

When we go back and study the old Greek and Roman models, our pride oozes out and we are inclined to question whether we have not lost in one way quite as much as we have gained in another by this intangible something we call civilization.

Put a Head on a Corpse

Maryland, 1896

The remains of George D. France, killed at Kauffman's, were taken to his home at Cearfoss, Md., Friday, accompanied by his brother-in-law. Repository has told how dreadfully the body was mangled. The head could not be distinguished from any of the other crushed portions. Undertaker Smith and his assistants by painstaking and careful work found all the skin of the head and face making a head of cotton and sponge the skin was stitched together and drawn over it and the corpse placed in a black suit and made presentable. The man could have been identified readily from the restoration of the head. It was a wonderful piece of workmanship. — Chambersburg Repository.

A Sure Protection Against Body Snatchers

Advertisement, 1879

MOOERS' Metallic Coffin Shields.

A Sure Protection Against Body Snatchers.

The above cut represents Mooer's Metallic Coffin Shield. It is made of heavy sheet iron and is of such shape and size to completely inclose the coffin. A flange projects around the lower edge by means of which it can be securely fastened to the base upon which the coffin rests and thus prevent the removal of the corpse. Manufactured and for sale by A. H. Mooers, North Ridgeville; also for sale by Suearer & Waldeck, undertakers, Elyria, O.

—The Elyria Constitution, Elyria, Ohio, June 20, 1878, p. 2.

The Body Perfectly Obeys Your Rapid Brain

1922

YOUR POWERS

Lulu M. Cargill, clerk in the New York post office, takes from Nina E. Holmes of Detroit the title of "champion letter sorter of the world."

Miss Holmes attracted attention by sorting 20,610 letters in eight hours, or nearly 43 a minute. Miss Cargill sorts 30,215 letters in eight hours, which is better than one a second. And she sorted the first 23,500 letters without pause. Then she stopped for a cup of tea. Sorting a letter means picking it up, reading the address, recalling the postal route to reach the address, then tossing the letter into the proper bag.

Miss Cargill is 26 years old. She has been a postal clerk only three years.

Miss Cargill, you reflect, must have wonderful co-ordination of body and mind. A brain that works with lightning swiftness has automatically perfect teamwork with a body that perfectly obeys her rapid brain.

The body is a collection of machines, each trying to work cooperatively for the good of all. It is a more perfect system of government than man has been able to devise.

Miss Cargill, judging from her work, has what scientists would call "an extraordinary well-balanced system of endocrine glands."

In the so-called "efficient" person, the body glands speed up when needed and slow down when the energy of the body is required by the other glands.

In a boy who is growing too rapidly, as a result of abnormal activity by the pituitary gland in the brain, the other glands slow down and surrender part of their share of the body's energy. With most of his energy devoted to growing, the lad is apt to be otherwise languid.

Or, for example, you suddenly are in danger, which requires a quick use of reserve energy. The word is telegraphed through the blood. The message is sent out by the adrenal glands, which stand guard as a mobilizer of reserve energy. Other glands slow down, as if saying, "If the adrenals fail in this emergency, we all perish."

The heart responds to the adrenals and rushes blood to the arms or other parts of the body that have to meet the danger. This rush of blood is why "the face goes white" in a time of peril.

The crisis met and conquered, the blood rushes back to normal distribution through the body. The other glands "come to life." The sudden change makes the person, calm in or, half-collapse "after it's all over."

—The Bridgeport Telegram, Bridgeport, Connecticut, Sept. 26, 1922, p. 3.

Comes To Life In The Tomb

1910

Cleveland Woman Tells Weird Tale of Mother's Experience.

Cleveland, O., Nov. 25. — That Mrs. Anna Hubbell of Aurora, O., was buried and came forth alive from the tomb several hours later, is the story Mrs. Etta Winfield, a daughter of Mrs. Hubbell, tells.

Mrs. Winfield, who lives in Cleveland, says she was called to Aurora two weeks ago by the announcement that her mother had suddenly died. She says she believed Mrs. Hubbell was merely in a trance and so told the doctors and the undertaker. At her request the woman was placed in a cemetery vault and the sexton was told to watch the body.

About seven hours after burial the sexton discovered that the body had moved in the casket and notified the relatives of Mrs. Hubbell, who had the body removed, and physicians succeeded in apparently bringing the body back to life.

This is the story vouched for by Mrs. Winfield, but Mrs. Hubbell, who is at Aurora, declines to discuss the affair, as do others of the family living there. They admit that the woman was very ill, however.

—Coschocton Daily Age, Coshocton, Ohio, Nov. 25, 1910, p. 1.