The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1848-04-12
ORLEANS MORNING.
DAILY CRESCENT.
For the Crescent.
Sketches of the Sidewalks and Levee:

For the Crescent.
Sketches of the Sidewalks and Levee:
With Glimpses into the NeW Orleans Bar (rooms)
MRS GIDDY GAY BUTTERFLY.
The interesting specimen of the {" blessed wo-
menknd,'' as Sir Walter Scott calls them, whose
fanciful name stands at the head of the present
Sketch has lived and flourished in Orleans
for some length of time: but strange to say, the
flight of years that acts differently from what
the poet says of disance-the one lending enchant-
ment to the view, while the other takes all the en-
chantment out of it; strange to say that years.
and the flight of years, had fallen harmlessly upon
the feminine person of Mrs. Giddy Gay Butterfly.
She was we will not say how old. A man
may brave the dangers of the ocean wave, may
rush into the jaws of death while facing the can
non OF the enemies of his country-rnay ascend in
balloons, and may 60 down into the very bowels of
the earth, but he may not presume ruthlessly to
trihe with woman's age-a pretty woman's age
when once she has passed the rubicon of thirty
The age therefore of this lady is sealed book
'ssealed with seven seals" One thing, and one
only we may venture to set down, or rather to de-
tail in this our sketchy-biography, namely: that
time had laid the very tips of his fingers gently upon
her-he had to do this much in order to maintain
his consistency for all things subject to grow
old and to decay in world so transtory, SO fleet
ing, so fiuctuating as this.
Mrs Butterfly had been widow, but she was one
no longer than it pleased goodness to keep her
SO. Old Major Butterfly is her second husband
We need not say that she is both giddy and gay
her name declares this to mathematical demon
stration-she never has been any thing else. OF
no boeb hoo n 81 IF boar a
ceptible heart-a heart so OVERLOOKING with love
that there is space in it for passions or emotions
of any other kind She loves her children vastly
that is to say, she would jump into the river to
the life of of them, or rush through the flames
of burning house to their rescue, but whether her
love for them is of practical, serviceable nature.
we shall see presently.
She loves her husband-yes, a little, and that's
good deal considering that she is yet in the bloom
of early summer while chill November's surly
blast has already began to whiten the 'pow" of
the old Major. She loves her friends, at least those
of them that love her, which is very natural but
especially she loves her own fair face and fairer
form, and her exceedingly gentee feminine person.
atty Unfortunately, however, this passion of love
in its reflex and other tendencies has closed up the
avenue of her affections for those simple, homely
domestic duties, domestic fondnesses, that go to
make up woman as she is and as she ought to be-
Unfortunately, we say, in the case of Mrs Butter
fly love, in her, takes the form and shape of admit
ration, and we are only too sorry to make the I'M
handsome avowal that a love of admiration has
swallowed up nearly three thirds of her feminine
nature.
There is fashion in the world, of praising,
rather say dolizing women, whether they deserve
it or not sort of blind, Pagan idolatry of wo-
man, because she is woman: that is, while youth
and beauty blooms about her-for when de
cined into the vale of years., the worship becomes
more rational and very often the need of well-de-
served approval is then withheld Miss Martineau
somewhere alludes to this species of foolish idola-
try and reprehends it as equally unjust and injuri
Gus and to tell the TRUTH the sensible portion of
the sex have hearty contempt for all fulsome adu-
lation not founded upon real worth. Women are
mortals, and as such notwithstanding their g silks
and satins fine are wrapped up in imperfection,
even as we are Sometimes they are styled " frail
tv: but this too is unjust and ilnatured, for fra
as they are, they embody good deal of all the ex-
celence that human nature can lay claim to. But
they are not perfect, no more than we and to make
"golden calves of them were absurd. Let them
stand upon their own essential merits, without any
extra appliances y and even then the foundation
of their influence would stand sure and mistaken
True. fondness for admiration is one of the
reigning traits of womans nature-lt comes as
natural to them as for men to use tobacco 1t was
the besetting sin of Mrs. Butterfly, as we have
already taken occasion to advert to- certainly,
Mrs. B. was pretty woman; divers OF her friends
have insinuated as much the gaZes OF men have
more than half assured her of the fact, and her
looking glass-'ts fiattering glass, that OF hers
has completed the deusion We say deluslon for
ANYTHING that makes rely upon mere looks to
the exclusion of other matters-such as the cult
walton of mind, and the fulflment of sphere of
domestic duty-is delusion, and one of the saddest
kind. True. as we have said before, Mrs, Giddy-
CAV Butterfly was pretty woman but if she was,
that was no reason why she should make nlnny
of herself. by leaving undone things that ought to
be done.
And pray, what does she leave undone Don't
she dress like an angel and ir about like seraph
These things she certainly does but as we have
before limited. there were beneath the family roof
certain little ones,'' to brighten the SOULS affec
tons and kindle aresh the joys that cluster about
sshome., Brighten the affections, indeed! We
must tell the truth if it kills Mrs. Butterfly was
" a stranger in strange land" so far as her own
domestic hearth was concerned. She had a rest
ing-place there-a sort of local habitation--but,
beneath her patronage and care, it was no home"
to call SUCH Other thoughts, other feelings pos
sessed her breast, and there was no room for any
thing so homely as home. All when we think of
these poor, little, motherless Butterflies, we begin
to realize some glimmerings of what the Scripture
calls 'sowing with the wind and reaplng the
whirlwindi"
There are some people in this world of inhabited
creation that suppose-vany suppose-that II
children-little mmortals in jackets and troWsers-
only have plenty of bread and meat wherewlth
to cram their stomachs, and trifie OF clothing
wtha, that the grand totaity OF parental Duty III
all its length and breadth and Importance is apuh-
dainty fulfilled As for the rest-why, the streets
and the highways can open wide their arms and
III