steel himself not to look at. But she blushes not a whit. The Christian name of this girl should be one of the good old-fashioned ones like "Hope" or "Charity" or better yet,— "Faith." For she is certainly "the evidence of things unseen," if that is possible in optics.

However, the mode of nowadays has one great attraction. One of the prettiest features of a pretty woman, her pretty foot, was never more in evidence. Most of femininity wear for street dress their walking skirts, or golf, or rainy-day skirts, and what more do you want to see in tidy "shoon" and ankles? And even down town, in their summer mulls and muslins, there is a swish and a swirl, and a man need cross himself, or cross the street, to avoid observing all sorts of laces and "frillies" and most alluring hosiery. Doubtless the department stores are responsible for this. All those petticoated things which a man sees in their windows, and at which he twinkles his nose, must be sold to somebody, and when bought must be shown.

But, apropos de bottes, it was not long ago when a French shoe for woman was a coveted luxury. To-day the American woman's shoe

leads the world, and is built on as graceful lines as a Cup Defender. Never did the "Columbia" show herself more trig and trim and saucy. The low shoe for women may be described generally as "distracting," and the adjective is used advisedly, as may appear. It glories in a high heel,-a military heel they call it, and you may have a Louis Quinze heel, or a modification thereof, if you please. This Louis did some dreadful things in history, but he realized the charm of a woman's foot and gave it a heel to add grace and height. Let the doctors and chiropodists talk as they please. What girl but would "take a little pains" to look like one of Watteau's maids? Alas! that with all her opportunities the girl of to-day may also buy a very ugly American shoe, and many girls do. It has an It has an "extension sole," so-called, is of patent leather, and looks like a Staten Island ferryboat.

If you have seen a lady chicken, a big fat chicken, in September, say,— scurrying around in the grass after crickets, bugs, or golf balls, or anything she can catch,-you may notice that when she lifts her leg her toes bunch together and her foot is as slim and tidy as may

be. When she puts it down, however, it spreads all over the lot like one of your goloshes, and the least you can do is to cry "shoo"! It is even so with the extension sole. When you see in front of you, on the avenue, a dainty dress and note the skirts and petticoats a-swirling and tossing and then see below a flat-footed monstrosity, splattering on the sidewalk, who wouldn't say "shoo" to that? Not more foolish is the ostrich who hides her head in the sand,- or any veil,— and leaves her splay feet exposed to view and criticism.

The winsome shop girl and the seemly typewriter know better. They have also developed tricks of tying the graceful low shoe with the military heels, which are worthy of encouragement. The notion was advocated years ago and now it is a fad. It is to be hoped that will not kill it, as died "those tassels on her boots," in the old song of many years ago:

The style I'm sure it suits,

The Boston girls they all wear curls

And tassels on their boots.

To-day's device is simply that the larger the

bow of ribbon on the instep the smaller the foot appears. It is very easy, and if you cannot afford to put in the best of silk braid, or will not take the trouble,-please, at least, cut off the tags from your cheap laces. It takes away that slovenly look. Even a man may profit by this suggestion, and seem more "fit."

There are other tricks in this trade also. For there is the girl in low shoes with red laces and with white laces. The practice is not to be commended and prevails only among the young and crude. They also tie these laces at the toe, wherein is a mystery.

Of course the pretty girl's shoe will come untied. That used to be part of the game. But the subterfuge is idle. It is easy to secure the bow absolutely with the "salmon knot." In the interest of young bachelors a description of that tie may well be omitted.

A few roguish girls have dared to wear with their white gowns, white stockings and a black low shoe. Venture it only if your feet are petite, and then "look out for squalls!" Where are the merry red shoes and red silk stockings of a decade or more ago? Someone sang of them:

Hers are those dainty shoes, red as the rose,
Or white as lilies, or yet brown or tan,
Or bright deep yellow like the marigolds
That dot the dusty sidewalk till it blooms
And blossoms like a brilliant flower bed.

And where is the girl who dares to wear on a black shoe the riotous red heels of our grandmothers, which you may sometimes still see in shop windows? Can you not picture "Beatrix" clicking down the stairs on them? Or was it red rosettes she wore on her slippers? No, when Du Maurier pictured her in his illustrations to "Henry Esmond," she wore "scarlet stockings and white shoes." Her "wonderfulest little shoes with wonderful tall red heels" appear later in the story; also that she wore "silver clocked stockings," and again, that her "red stockings were changed for a pair of gray, and black shoes in which her feet looked to the full as pretty." Thackeray knew things about a woman's foot, you may be sure.

A newspaper item says that a prominent actress has braved the red heels and rejoices in them. It is to be hoped that they are not too high, and are carried with circumspection.

And speaking of ribbands, with a "d" in