Note 11 — Chapter Seven
Reading edition
... poor kid ... destined as he was for the exhibitionism of lecture-platform, rostrum, grand-stand, David had not escaped the Schuyler femur. From the hip to the knee, with most of us, the line was too short, making us a top-heavy-looking lot. We girls managed to hide it. But with the boys, Henry excepted, the effect was stockiness. We used to laugh about “the Schuyler femur.” It is the answer, I think, to the fact that my brother Dave was what is known as a static speaker, remaining quietly behind his table or stand. It is also the answer to why, with the one exception of the Landsdowne painting, there are no full-length portraits of him. From the waist up, he gave the appearance of towering solidity. The effect of the long waist and slightly too short legs, even in the Landsdowne, was to make him appear stocky.