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CHAP. XI.] against them in the act of walking. This is one great reason why girls, when walking with their brothers, become fatigued so much sooner than the boys do.

Men complain of fatigue in the same way if they walk in those long ulsters which flap against the legs, and I remember to have read somewhere of a gentleman of a scientific frame of mind, who determined to make the experiment of walking in petticoats in order to estimate the disadvantage under which women labour in regard to dress. He walked for a mile up hill; but was so exhausted by the endeavour that he gave up, with the remark that women must be stronger than men, or they would never be able to stand it. Somewhat in the same strain the London Medical Record observed some time ago: "Many women complain of feeling tired after a short walk, whilst they are really carrying a weight which would soon tire a strong man. Their waists are encircled with a belt or hoop, to which a load heavier than a felon's chain is attached, and the shoulders and chest are compressed by an additional burthen. Breathing is laboriously performed, and the contents of the trunk and pelvis are thrust down with a force which, if represented in pounds, would occasion considerable surprise. It would be a matter of great interest if medical men would ask their female patients to ascertain precisely the total weight of the clothes they wear in-doors and out."

These remarks are obviously made by a man considerably ignorant of the mysteries of female