Lippincott's Magazine Of Popular Literature And Science, Old Series, Vol. 36—New Series, Vol. 10, July 1885Various
Science
Lippincott's Magazine Of Popular Literature And Science, Old Series, Vol. 36—New Series, Vol. 10, July 1885
Various
Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- Periodicals
Next to the supreme question of eyes we hear most about Gillian's "blonde
head," and her "flaxen head," her "flax head," her "bowed flax head," her
"tossed head," her "wilful head," her "fair head," and her "well-poised
head," while to match these maidenly attributes she has a "fair Sphinx
face," a "tragic pale face," a "serious face," a "humiliated white face,"
a "flaming face," a "hotly-flushed face," a "sweetly apologetic face," and
a "flower-textured face." Moreover, being a very remarkable girl, she is
endowed with a "severe young figure," and a "gracious figure," whatever
that may mean, while her "lily-fair" and "delicate-cold" hands have
"satiny backs," and are "small and capable" as well. She is never merely
pretty like other women, but she has "ripe June beauty." and a "robust yet
delicate beauty." If she loses her temper, which happens rather often in
the course of the story, she manifests the same by the "red scorn of her
look," or by her "beautiful vexed eyes," which resemble a "sudden angry
gray arrow,"--imagine an angry gray arrow,--or by "flaming out into
crimson anger," or "with wreathed neck and flaming cheek," or "with
enkindled eye and vermeil cheek," both of which expressions we would
recommend to lovers of simplicity.
If she is sad, however, she "lifts the drowned stars of her impatient,
suffering eyes," or lowers them with a "moist look;" or she strays in
"confused red misery," or in a "passionate scarlet hurry," which is as
extraordinary in its way as an angry gray arrow. When her father dies, she
stands "long and craped," with a "black elbow" resting on the
chimney-place; while her various methods of blushing take up half the
volume. Never, indeed, was there a heroine who blushed so much about so
little. Sometimes it is merely a matter of "flaming cheeks," or of the
"young roses of her cheeks," or of the "mortified carmine of her cheeks,"
or of her "hot bloom," or of her "beautiful hot red roses." Sometimes it
is the "deep color of mingled shame and joy;" while on more especial
occasions we are assured that her face is "made all of poppies," that it
"changes from poppy-color to milk, and back from milk to poppy-color,"
that it "keeps shifting from frightened white to mortified red, and back
again," and, better than all, that "cheek and chin and pearl-fair throat
grow all one rose-red flame," with which triumph of compound adjectives we
will close our quotations, only remarking that Gillian's blushing chin
rivals the achievement of Ursula in "John Halifax," who, we are gravely
told, colored over her throat, neck, and arms.
All honor to the lady Olivia, who has taught us how to make a rational
inventory of a woman's charms! "Item, two lips indifferent red; item, two
gray eyes with lids to them; item, one neck, one chin, and so forth." To
these let us add, item, one blush indifferent rosy, and then have done
with the subject forever.
A.R.
* * * * *
LITERATURE OF THE DAY.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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