s behind them,
instead of carrying them gracefully about them. Some saunter along so
loosely they seem to be hung on wires; others are as stiff as if they
supposed only straight lines were agreeable to the eye; and others,
again, run the chin forward considerably in advance of the breast,
looking very silly and deficient in self-respect.

"Sometimes a lady walks so as to turn up her dress behind every time
she puts her foot back, and I have seen a well-dressed woman made to
look very awkward by elevating her shoulders slightly and pushing her
elbows too far behind her. Some hold their hands up to the waist, and
press their arms against themselves as tightly as if they were glued
there; others swing them backward and forward, as a business man walks
along the street. _Too short_ steps detract from dignity very much,
forming a mincing pace; too long steps are masculine.

"Some walk upon the ball of the foot very flatly and clumsily; others
come down upon the heel as though a young elephant was moving; and
others, again, ruin their shoes and their appearance by walking upon
the side of the foot. Many practice a stoop called the Grecian bend,
and when they are thirty, will pass well, unless the face be seen, for
fifty years' old."

Gymnastics, dancing, and the military drill are excellent auxiliaries
in the work of physical training, though all of them may be, and
constantly are, abused. We can not illustrate their application here.
They will receive the attention they deserve in "Hints toward Physical
Perfection," already referred to as in preparation.

IV.--SELF-COMMAND.

Without perfect self-control you are constantly liable to do something
amiss, and your other social qualifications will avail little. You
must not only be fully conscious who you are, what you are, where you
are, and what you are about, but you must also have an easy and
complete control of all your words and actions, and feel _at home_
wherever you are. You are liable to lose this self-command either
through bashfulness or excitement. The former is one of the greatest
obstacles with which a majority of young people have to contend. It
can be overcome by _resolute effort_ and the cultivation of
self-respect and self-reliance. Do not allow it to keep you out of
society. You will not conquer it by such a course. You might as
reasonably expect to learn to swim without going into the water.

V.--OBSERVATION.

One of the best means of improvement