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CHAP. XI.] the sleeves and neck of the vest, the bodice, and the divided skirt.

These form the whole of the under-clothing, though in very cold weather an extra pair of woollen drawers may be worn under the divided skirt. The advantages of this system of dress are manifold. It clothes every part of the body evenly and warmly, permits perfect freedom of movement, gives the maximum of warmth with the minimum of weight, and, as none of the garments fasten round the waist, injurious pressure on the abdominal and pelvic organs is avoided.

Besides the advantage to health in adopting this plan, as the thickness of the clothing is removed from the waist its natural outline is shown; and if the figure is beautiful, its light is not hidden under a bushel, as in the former case. It is said that all the weight of the clothes should fall upon the arch of the shoulder and the pelvic bones; but, as in the young these bones are not sufficiently prominent to serve as supports, the weight has to fall chiefly upon the shoulder. Now many people, knowing the evil of tight clothing, have their children's things made so loose, that the hand can be passed up between them and the body; the weight thus falls entirely on the shoulder, and the bones, not having attained their full growth and firmness, are liable under this strain to become deformed. The weight of the dress, owing to trimming, &c., is not equal on all sides; hence, if it drags towards the front the neck is poked forward, while the shoulders grow round and