Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1836-06-09
From Ms Ktcrrk Daifg Adpoiiser.

Country REsIDENCEs.- Our time and
Our regien are utiliiarian yet the practi-
cal man, whose views are enlarged, will
| not fail to see that pleasures Of imagination
! and taste have their price. Decoration
naturally comes after use; We build our
houses before we deck them, But in the
advancement of society there is a stage at
which men always set value upon Orna-
ment. And though luxury may grow out
OF these same Circumstances they have
fruits which are desirable, such as increas-
ed contentment, placid joy, refined taste,
cheerful reflection, and rho love Of home.
On these particulars / cannot enlarge,
though each Of them IS pregnant. Ri
Along the bank Of . half-iaished canal,
saw, the other day, asettlelnent-whicll,
at the distance .ofa iurl0hg, showed the or
igin Of its tenants. Extesnporaneous huts,
barrel chimneys, windows without glass,
floors without boards, and a dunghill mt
the portal. these afforded the diagnosis ofa
HovEL. Here was mo- decoration; and /
argue concerning this settlement, that there
are mo- Intellectual pleasures, no taste, no
genileness, NO refinement, no freside hap
piness.
Let me change the scene. I knew
family Of English people, no richer than
those just noticed, who lived in dwelling
no larger than one Of these--but how dif-
ferent! ! see it yet in memory-its whit
ened paling and beaten walk TO the door
! its tight sides and close roof, aud especial
~ its edge Of summer flowers around plat
Of the clearest grassland its roses and
woodbine creeping over every window
They were poor, hut they were tidy. More
than this !; they were fond Of natural beau
ty, and fond Of home, and therefore they
were always aiming to make home lovely.
Every reader has many times scen the
same thing, and some have already learned
the connexion between simple decorations
and domestic virtue and peace. Why does
an English cottage strike an American with
surprise Z Why does no look, as at a
strange thing, upon the French peasantry
taking their evening repast beneath their
trees and vines Because we Americans
are SO particularly PRACTICAL, and SO pos
sessed of the demon of Trade, that nothing
is valuable which cannot be sold. Value
is becoming equivalent to vcndibility val
liable means sa!eable worth means money.
Ifa fiowcr, or hedgerow, or cascade,
or a bust. or prospect, add 70 the price
under the hammer, these things are valua-
BILE. and are straightway inserted in tho
photographic view Of the auctioneer. They
are useful. Usefulness is that quality Of
things whereby they bring money. Mr..
Trollope exaggerated when she said that 10
one could hear two Americans talk FIVE
! minutes without the word DOLLAR. So
Buonaparte exaggerated when he called the
British o nation Of shopkeepers.' Be il
so. Caricatures often tell the truth. Even
the hideous@ concave mirror, though il ex-
aggerate ever SO much, shows me some
grand blemishes Of my face. ! have tried
the experiment in walking the crowded
streets Of our cities, to catch the predOmi-
nant words Of the passers-by. The cata-
l0gue 10 limited, and consists Of such as
these Ten-per.ce cent Doing good
business exchange stock thousand
dollars credit profit fortune'-kc.
fla man is 80 practical that he viii not
wash his face without value received i
entertain no hopos Of bringing him over. /
have no purchase for my Instrument
Now cleanliness is sort Of decoration !;
negative perhaps, bot the condition Of all
tho rest. Neatncss follows very closely:
clearly child is usually neat. The cleanly
housewife is sure TO produce in her cottage
certain trim and symmetrical arrange
mens, which satisfies the eye. This is
neatness budding into beauty. This tran
! sition ought to be seized upon wherever it
appears. The pleasant little children who
are yonder playing in the dust may be
TAUGHT TO keep themselves clean, and then
TO be neat. This is the path towards dec
Grafton. Taste needs development. These
creatures may be bred to enjoy ornament.
And thus we may get a race Ofpoople, even
among the poor, who will begin to beauti-
fy the land. live in the hope Of seeing
cottages along our multitudinous and dirty
rail ways, each adorned, mot only with a
white surface, and trim fence, but with
roses, pinks, tuIips, daisies, and all the pref
ty gifts Of loving Providence gifts which
our yeomanry have too much banished to
green houses and ballads.
The ways Of adorning house by rural
appliances are various, and so we'll known
as scarcely TO need enumeration. They
may be adapted to the lowliest habiiation
of civilized man. No less thant to the villa or
the chateau. Nothing but love for domes-
tic beauty, aud ordinary tact, are required
to rear thousand abodes along our high
WAYS. And if but one pr0vident honse-
holder will begin, we shall find that, hum
BILE as his habitation may be, he will soon
be initiated by his neighbour. FAsHoM it.
self. the cause Of so many follies, may be
| Subsidized in aid of virtuOus enjoyment