202 OUR BODIES AND HOW WE LIVE 



of rheumatism, neuralgia, and chest ailments, especially 

 among young people who are careless, ignorant, or indif- 

 ferent in matters of health. 



Do not wear the clothing too tight, and thus allow it 

 to interfere with free movements and easy, graceful car- 

 riage, to say nothing of health. The improper use of 

 corsets often crowds important organs out of place and 

 retards their growth. Garters worn below the knee are 

 apt to hinder the circulation, and cause cold feet and 

 sometimes enlarged veins. 1 



273. Additional Hints on the Use of Clothing. Dresses 

 and skirts should never drag their full weight from the 

 hips, but should be partly supported from the shoulders. 

 Health and comfort should not be sacrificed to a desire to 

 dress in a slavish submission to fashion. 



Children, and older people too, should never run out- 

 doors without proper covering for the head. Pupils should 

 not be allowed to sit in the schoolroom with outside gar- 

 ments on, such as scarfs, coats, rubbers, and leggings. 



1 Many people, otherwise neat in matters concerning their personal health, 

 will come in from a long, hot, and dusty journey, remove a warm, perspira- 

 tion-soaked dress or coat, and hang it at once in a close, dark closet, or 

 place in the same receptacle a skirt that has been for hours gathering up 

 the filthy sweepings of streets and cars. It is no wonder that the average 

 wardrobe should give out a most disagreeable odor when the door has 

 been closed for a short time. 



All outer clothing, especially if of woolen material, should be hung up 

 in a current of fresh air to dry and cool before being put away. Dress 

 shields, the linings of women's collars, and the bindings of skirts should be 

 often renewed. 



The habit of giving a hasty brush to the bottom of a skirt in the house 

 too often in the bedroom is uncleanly and may be dangerous. Skirts, 

 even when they are not allowed to sweep the pavements, cannot fail to be 

 laden with dust mixed with bacteria which may cause disease. The same 

 thing is true, to a less degree, of other garments. 



