Many mothers have very imperfect
notions of what physicians mean, when they say that corsets impede the
circulation, by preventing the full and undisturbed action of the lungs.
They get no higher ideas of the _motion_ of the _chest_, than what is
connected with bending the body forward and backward, from right to
left, &c. They know that, if dressed too tightly, _this_ motion is not
so free as it otherwise would be; but if they are not so closely laced
as to prevent that free bending of the body of which I have been
speaking, they think there can be no danger; or at least, none of
consequence.

Now it happens that this sort of motion is not that to which physicians
refer, when they complain of corsets. Strictly speaking, this bending of
the whole body is performed by the muscles of the back, and not those
of the chest. The latter have very little to do with it. It is true,
that even _this_ motion ought not to be hindered; but if it is, the evil
is one of little comparative magnitude.

Every time we breathe naturally, all the ribs, together with the breast
bone, have motion. The ribs rise, and spread a little outward,
especially towards the fore part. The breast bone not only rises, but
swings forward a little, like a pendulum. But the moment the chest is
swathed or bandaged, this motion must be hindered; and the more, in
proportion to the tightness.

On this point, those persons make a sad mistake, who say that "a busk
not too wide nor too rigid seems to correspond to the supporting spine,
and to assist, rather than impede the efforts of nature, to keep the
body erect."

Can we seriously compare the offices of the spine with those of the
ribs, and suppose that because the former is fixed like a post, at the
back part of the lungs, therefore an artificial post in front would be
useful? Why, we might just as well argue in favor of hanging weights to
a door, or a clog to a pendulum, in order to make it swing backwards and
forwards more easily. We might almost as well say that the elbow ought
to be made firm, to correspond with the shoulders, and thus become
advocates for letting the stays or bandages enclose the arm above the
elbow, and fasten it firmly to the side. Indeed, the consequences in the
latter case, aside from a little inconvenience, would not be half so
destructive to health as in the former. The ribs, where they join to the
back bone, form hinges; and hinges are made for motion. But if you
fasten them to