Dear Sir,–The views of Miss Maud Allen, the pioneer of bare-legged dancing on the stage, and one of the world’s greatest dancers, on the corset, should interest your readers. “How could a corset improve a figure,” she declared to the writer. “I have never worn one. Nature,” she said, “has given you a corset – two fine sets of ribs, a backbone, and an excellent auxiliary force of muscles. Why this craving for whalebone and steel? They are unnecessary – unnatural.”
To support her argument she had recourse to antiquity. The Greeks, model of races, know of no such monstrosity. Boys, the finest physical specimens of modern times, don’t need them. Why? They develop their muscles – they know how to stand, walk and run.
“If women would but learn these three things,” said Miss Allen, “there would be a general discarding of casings.
“Balance your weight properly, let it swing from the ankle, and you will find no strain on any muscle. Moreover, you will find your figure improve, each part of your anatomy in its proper relation to the others, no need of artificial aid to produce a graceful line.
“Women complain that their backs ache – that they need corsets to support them. Do you know why? Because they can’t walk. Heels first, they strike the ground, and the result? A jar, of course. Let them try walking on the ball of the foot and note the difference in the result.”
Miss Allen occasionally does violence to her feelings by watching her sisters’ hurry to catch cars.
“They don’t run,” she said. “Thy waddle, no swing, no speed. They should be taught, minus their corsets.
“Bandage your arm,” she said, “and see what happens. You push away the flesh in one part, only to have it reappear elsewhere. It will out, like murder. And the only result of tight lacing is inability to breathe properly. The woman who is uncomfortably corseted breathes from her chest instead of from her diaphragm and the consequence is bad for her lungs and her general appearance.”
And then, when the case for the corset seemed irretrievably lost, Miss Allen made a concession to the enemy.
“There is one case and one only, when a corset is a help – that is if any of the organs have been displaced. Then wear one, by all means, until you have been restored to your normal condition; but have as little boning as possible.
“I myself always wear the Grecian substitute – a band cut to my own measurements and fitting loosely over the hips. Practically every woman, however well developed needs that much support. But even those who have been accustomed form their childhood to the unhealthy assistance of superfluous whalebone can easily learn to dispense with it.
“Exercise mild at first, but taking in every muscle from head to heel – that is the proper substitute for the corset.”
Wishing your excellent paper every success.
Yours faithfully,
“ANTI-CORSET”
New York.