Caplin - Health and Beauty (1864)/Appendix A
APPENDIX A.
MADAME CAPLIN'S
INVENTIONS FOR THE ADAPTATION OF THE DRESS TO THE BODY;
THE PRESERVATION OF HEALTH;
The Cure of Deformity, and the Display of Beauty.
Who graced their age with new invented arts."— Virgil.
The position which we have for so many years sustained before the public has been so well appreciated that we may be pardoned the vanity of presenting a few of the many Testimonials which have been voluntarily offered to us by the Press. We are induced to do this the more readily, since the thousands who have privately borne their grateful testimony to the value of our invention and the merit of our advice have done so in confidence; and their communications cannot therefore be printed without violating that mutual understanding between us and our patrons which is always sacred in our eyes.
It is now many years since we set seriously and earnestly to work to reform the common notions respecting Female Dress. At that time ours was a solitary voice, uttered to a small and too often listless and inattentive audience. There were no Ladies' Newspapers, nor English Women's Reviews, nor Women's Rights Societies in those days, and, except a few doctors who knew nothing whatever about the matter, no one ever wrote on the subject of Female Clothing, except it were to ridicule its extravagances: nor did it ever occur to medical authors that in order to answer its proper purpose, the clothing should be adapted to the body which it was intended to protect and adorn.
Our purpose was simple and our object definite. It originated in a conviction that, to clothe the body properly, its structure and functions must be thoroughly understood—not pathologically, in relation to its diseases and infirmities, but physiologically—in relation to its growth, health, and full development. But after mastering this problem ourselves, the question was-How shall those facts be impressed upon the women of England? To this there was only one reply—Speak and write about them! This we have done, earnestly and constantly, from that time to the present; and every book and pamphlet which we have sent forth into the world, and every lecture we have delivered in our Gallery, has had this one object constantly in view, namely—to inform the Wives and Mothers of our own age how they may preserve their own and their children's health; avoid those deformities which too often mar the beauty of youth and increase the infirmities of age; and that dress should be constructed to display the natural grace and beauty of the human figure. With this object in view we have worked incessantly, and our success has exceeded our most sanguine expectations.
The following adaptations of the Corsets, for the purpose of preserving, supporting, and displaying the natural beauty of the Human Figure, have been invented by
MADAME ROXEY ANN CAPLIN,
AUTHOR OF
"HEALTH AND BEAUTY;" "WOMAN, AND HER WANTS;" AND LECTURER ON ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY, &c.
No. 1. HYGIENIC CORSET—Plain.
For ordinary use.
No. 2. ELASTIC FRONT CORSET,
affording an extra flexibility to the chest, for ladies practising singing, or of delicate constitution.
No. 3. MECHANICAL FRONT CORSET,
ut on and off instantaneously without lacing, and affording the means of relieving the chest or stomach without undressing.
No. 4. SELF-REGULATING GESTATION CORSET,
calculated to answer all the phases of pregnancy. Elastic and dilatable, affords support without pressure, and thereby preventing abortion resulting from a deficiency of muscular power.
No. 5. RIDING CORSET,
avoiding any inconvenience from the position of the body while on horseback.
No. 6. SEMI CORSET,
affording support to the back and abdomen, without interfering with the thorax.
No. 7. CORPORIFORM CORSET,
for corpulent ladies, combining the means of fitting most accurately, and to improve the figure, while giving ease and comfort by affording local support.
No. 8. SELF-ADJUSTING CORPORIFORM CORSET,
yielding to, and following the form of the body in its various positions, and resuming its former shape.
No. 9. CORPORIFORM CORSET, WITH INVISIBLE PROPS,
affording perfect support in case of corpulence combined with deficiency of physical power.
No. 10. SYMMETRICO-RESTORATOR CORPORIFORM CORSET,
for restoring the appearance of the figure in case of slight distortion of the spine, or malposition of the shoulders.
No. 11. INVISIBLE SPINAL CORSET,
intended for invalids, or persons predisposed to distortion of the spine; used with great advantage in the first stage of spinal deviations.
No. 12. ORIGINAL ELASTIC BODICE.
Most valuable for children, young ladies, and slight figures, affording the greatest amount of freedom of movement, and thereby promoting the development, suppleness, and grace of the body.
No. 13. JUVENILE HYGIENIC CORSET,
for young ladies growing too rapidly. They afford support and elasticity, directing the regular growth of the frame, without interfering with the free play of the vital organs.
No. 14. REVERSO-TRACTOR HYGIENIC CORSET,
for preventing children standing on one leg, and in such positions of the body which are generally the primary cause of spinal distortion.
No. 15. YOUNG LADY'S RIDING BELT,
to prevent concussion taking place in the lower region of the spine during horse-riding exercise.
No. 16. ABDOMINAL SUPPORTER BELT,
for preventing the increase and relaxation of the muscles of the abdomen.
No. 17. ELASTIC COMPRESSING BELT,
without either straps or lacing. A most valuable article in all incipient cases of abdominal weakness or relaxation.
No. 18. GESTATION BELT,
combining support and elasticity, keeping up the centre of gravity, and making locomotion easy, it permits the wearer to take exercise to the last period of gestation.
No. 19. CONTRACTING BELT,
superseding the bandages commonly used during confinement. Smooth, cool, regulated at pleasure by the wearer, affording constantly a gentle equal pressure, and susceptible of being worn without inconvenience until the figure is perfectly restored.
No. 20. DROPSICAL BELT,
to support the weight of the abdomen, and prevent the filtration of the serous liquid into the cellulary tissues.
No. 21. MEDICAL BELT,
for prevention and cure of bearing-down, and prolapsus uteri.
No. 22. DORSO-ABDOMINAL SUPPORTER,
to maintain the centre of gravity, thereby allowing locomotion and bodily exercise; adapted to all ages.
No. 23. INVISIBLE SCAPULA CONTRACTOR.
Light, elastic, and worn underneath the clothes. This article expands and developes the capacity of the chest, prevents and corrects the stooping of the body, and the malposition of the shoulders.
No. 24. THE PETTICOAT SUSPENDER.
An invention adapted to the Corset, which relieves the body from all pressure, dispenses with strings and pins, displays the beauty and grace of the figure, and bears the weight of the petticoats without in any way interfering with the natural motions of the body.