Vitality Supreme

Now in considering what we should wear we are compelled to adhere, at least to a reasonable extent, to what we call style, but beyond this our first thought must be for bodily comfort. And in speaking of comfort we mean not only the warmth essential to this but also the ability to use every part of our bodily structure with as little restraint as possible. If we could wear a costume which would permit us to feel just as free and untrammeled in our movements as we do when without clothing such a form of dress would be ideal. Our movements should not be restricted by our clothing any more than is absolutely unavoidable. The ordinary skirt, supposed to be a necessary part of feminine apparel, Is in its nature an evil of first importance. Every step taken by a woman wearing such a garment is hampered; she is continuously handicapped by her skirt. If a man were compelled to walk through tall, heavy grass all his life he would get some idea of the extent to which the feminine skirt interferes with the freedom of woman. Numerous other defects of our costumes interfere with bodily freedom. Take our tight and ungainly shoes. Here is an abominable instance of our slavery to style. In most instances the foot is made to fit the shoe, and the suffering that is endured by many so-called stylish people for the purpose of making the foot fit the shoe would be difficult to describe. A shoe should fit the foot. The more nearly you approximate the same freedom when walking in a shoe as you do when barefooted the more perfect the shoe. The toes should not be squeezed out of shape. The great toe should follow the straight line of the inside of the foot instead of being bent over to the position normally occupied by the middle toe. All the toes should be allowed to spread out in the shoe, at least to a reasonable extent. Furthermore, a shoe that really fits should feel comfortable the first time it is put on. There should be no necessity for "breaking in" a shoe.