The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-11-13
oun nvME DE. = .Ssiisal, and Geo.
,.,;,;.., u..ains1lissncs from all Parts
Of North America,
&C., &C., &c.

Of North America,
&C., &C., &c.
Our Washington Correspondence.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9, 1858.
lSammers aud Dress at the Seat of Government
Necessity of National Refnement-A Picture o
Hotel Life.
suppose may say without being accused of the
universal attery Of correspondents towards their re-
daete~r en- Chef that the HERALD may fairly be re.
garded as an index of the progress Of the country
ana of civilization If may Judge fro the master
l. articles which have recently appeared in its COL
nmps unon art il is the opinion of the editor himself
that the time has come in America to pay some at
s.,,;on IN the refnements and embellishments of
NE az we'll as to its more urgent and material neces
sities. In short, the young empire, having got
through bravely his boyhood, and entered upon the
first stage of youth it becomes the duty Of the guar
dams to attend little to his dress and Manner
to clip of the superabundance of his coat tails, to
make his waistcoats look tlife less like
those that had descended from his grandfather,
to trim his whiskers and even perhaps gently en-
courage the just sprouting meustache; to teach the
Young gentleman not 70 eat with his fingers, nor
shovel foe into his mouth with knife; nor hawk
and spit, out Of his own chamber; nor do any of
those things which make man appear only as dis
gushing and filthy animal. Having shown that he is
abundaLtly able to live, Young America ought noT
to learn little how to live. Nor is there any afec
tion or aristocracy or snobbery, in all this. The
afectation and the snobbery are in pretending to
despise those sccou pshments We do not possess,
while in our nmost heart We only hate ourselves for
cur deficiencies. The courageous and manly part is
to look needs fully in the face AID go about sup
plying them.
The present need of the United States is little
rational refinement little personal selfrespect in
the individual, and a consequent Difference in
his bearing towards others. Nothing is more dli.
cult than to specify points Of good breedsg-as is
illustrated by the laughable work On manners lately
Published by an Anticipated lady of Philadelphia.
Still, there are certain glazing crimes against good
taste-against even common decency-daiy and
hourly comm tilted by ninetenths of American gen.
tlemen, which may be easily pointed out. And as
Washington and the HERALD represent America,
with Washington, and through the HERALD, pro-
pose to proceed
Let US begin with the first thing that strikes US
hotel life. Let US imagine gentleman-a member
Of Congress, if You please-arriving at his hotel at
ak o'clock in the morning, tired sleepy, and worn
out Instead Of registering his name and going
quietly to bed for refreshing nap before breakfast,
he rushes to the barroom, spis out with revolving
washes down the remaining slime with gill of bad
brandy and water. This is the commencement of
that Odious, degrading and abominable habit pecu-
lar to America and Americans-daly tippling at the
bar / abhOr all Maine laws, and all attempts at re-
strcting the freedom Of the Individual, as much
as you can do; but / declare Interchangeable war
against the universal vice Of tip bling at the bar.
IWould to heaven that every bar in the land could
be abolished You, Mr.. Editor, who eschew these
places, can have accurate idea Of the extent to
which this vile habit is carried, Of the amount Of
liquor which an American gentleman deems it neces-
sary to drink in the course Of the day. / do not
now speak Of hard drinkers, but only of the majority
Of the men who appear here, and to whom the in
terests Of the nation are contded. Let us see q
drink before breakfast, two drinks between break
fast and eleven o'clock four to six (and often eight
and ten,) erinks all round between eleven aud
half past three, the high change" hours Of Wash.
ington, WINE az dinner Of course; then glass of
braney and water TO settle the diDuer three four
glasses between tea time and going out for the eve
ming: then probably " stag party (men thus
muddled with drink are naturally afraid of going
into the society of lsdes) and then brandy aud
water, brandy acd water, ad Lbhunl until mid
night. assure you that an average driaking man
In Washington does not consume less than from
fifteen TO twenty glasses of brandy and water, cock
tails, or what not, per day Don't start at this
enormous statistic it is below the truth.
Then the tobacco chewing, and smoking, and
the spitting-pah | am at this moment standing
ct long, high writing table, in the public room Of
irstclasss hotel where are also writing for their re
spective papers four five correspondents Of your
ultra moral, refined and Temperance smashing New
York journals At every comma, they spit when
they come 10 q semicoln, they hawk and spit-aud
at the end Of a sentence they repeat this delightful
operation with the addition Of blowing the nose with
the fingers, and spirtng fine radiatiDg streams of
mucous spray over the faces and clothes OF their
neighbors. The marble floor is slippery with dis
eol0red saliva, mixed with particles Of masticated
tobacco, elected necessarily in all directions My
boots are covered with it, and efectualy soied for
the day. am sick at the stomach
Now, do not know whether any body has ever
before drawn this disgusting picture-but know
that every body who reads is will at admit it is
strictly true.
Then at tab!e-let lis watch. Each one enters with
rush. seats himself as if he mad the toothache and
had at last in desperation fed to the dentists chair
makes dssh and g0bble at the soup, declines hsh,
piles up roast beef swimming in gravy, potatoes pick
les, Lima BEANS beetroot, turnips, maccaroni-any
thipg, everytbing-upon his plate, mixes them all up
with knife and fork inserts the point OF the knife under
the revolving mass, heaps it up with the fork and
then carries it with jerk into the open cavity OF his
mouth inserting the horid knife two three inches
down the throat closing the lips tightly over it, and
drawing il out clearly wiped, for the first time that
daythe ncipent oxide created by the action OF the
acids upon the iron appearing at the corners OF the
mouth. II he drink caret he curdles it with ice,
Ignorant that ice utterly spois caret, burgundy
and champagne,) and when the dessert is pumped
upon the table, tthe whole operation of dining not
having lasted above fifteen minutes,) he takes a
spoonful Of jelly, slice of half baked pie ice cream
padding, all on the same plate, and pours them
down his throat as if it canal for the trans
pOrtation of groceries aud provisions, Instead of 3
delicate and exquisitely sensitive channel Of com
munication between the viands provided for mans
subsistence and the great vital organ which suJains
and renews the glowing flame of life.
But this is enough for the first lesson.
QuEvEDo.
Our Albany Correspondence.