"While I am unalterably opposed to corset wearing, I do not hesitate to say that the women who wear them will do well to substitute the Q.D. Clasp for those now in use." - Annie Jenness Miller, Dress Reformer.
If you'd like to more about the Dress Reformers click here.
I learned that the movement started with corsets and underwear because it "could be modified without exposing the wearer to social ridicule". And did you know that "In the 19th century, poor women were known to wear corsets "boned" with rope, rather than steel or bone, to facilitate work in the field."