474 PLAIN FACTS FOR OLD AND YOUNG 



An old Scotch physician once gave the following 

 advice to Sir Astley Cooper for the preservation of 

 health : 



''Keep in the fear of the Lord, and your bowels 

 open. ' ' 



4. Perhaps nothing tends more directly to the pro- 

 duction of menstrual derangements, as well as uterine 

 diseases of every sort, than fashionable modes of dress. 

 We have not sj^ace here to give the subject the atten- 

 tion it deserves. It is considered in the next chapter, 

 and more fully in works devoted to the subject of dress 

 exclusively. Some of the most glaring evils are,— 



(1) Unequal distribution of clothing. The trunk, 

 especially the abdomen and pelvis, is covered with 

 numerous layers of clothing, an extra amount being 

 caused by the overlapping of the upper and lower gar- 

 ments. Very frequently, the amount of clothing upon 

 these, the most vital parts, is excessive. At the same 

 time, the limbs are sometimes almost in a state of 

 nudity. A single cotton garment, or at most one of 

 thin flannel, is the only protection to the limbs beneath 

 the skirts, which often serve no better purpose than to 

 collect cold air and retain it in contact with the limbs. 

 A thin stocking is the only protection for the ankles, 

 and a thin shoe is the only additional covering afforded 

 the feet. Under such circumstances, it is no wonder 

 that a woman catches cold if she only steps out-of-doors 

 on a chilly or damp day. 



(2) Another glaring fault is the manner of sus- 

 pending the skirts. Instead of being fastened to a 

 waist, or suspended so as to give them support from 

 the shoulders, they are hung upon the hips, being drawn 

 tight at the waist to secure support. By this means 

 the organs of the pelvis are pressed down out of place, 



