Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1853-03-26

neiS' !, you are longing to stop at home ar
reao ln@caulay, you must give up all an
And 1t is not to one party or two, but to nj
most all. You must go to the Gravel Pits, 9th
erwise the Grandmother will cut the children on
OF her will, and leave her property to her othe
grand children. If you refuse Islngton an
accept Iyburn Gardens, you sneer at poor re
latlon, and acknowledge rich one readily enongl
IL you decline Tyburn Gardens, you fling ava,
the chances OF the poor dear children in life, AM
the hopes of the cadetship for little Jacky. I
you go to Hampstead, having declined Bedford
Place, 1T is because you refuse an invitation
to hampstead, where they make much of you
ana MISS Mara is pretty, las you think, though
your wife doesn't and do not care for the Doc.
tor in Bedford Place. And if you accept Bed.
lord Place, you dare not refuse Upper Baker
street. because there is a GOODNESS between the
two families, and you must on no account seem
to take part with one Or the other.
In this way many man besides myself, dare
say, finds himself miserably tied down, and a
helpless prisoner, like CULVER in the hands of
the Liliputians. Let US just enumerate few of
the mlseries of the pitiable parental slave.
In tine hrst place examine the question in n
pecunlary point of view. The expenses of chill
dren s toilets at this present time are perfectly
| frightful. FJ
My eldest boy, Gustavus, at home from DR..
Blrchs Academy, Rodwel Regis, wears tur-
quoise studs, fine linen shirts, white waisteoats.
ana shlny boots and, when [ proposed that he
should go to party in Berlin gloves, ask ed me
II l wished that he should be mistaken for foot
man!
MY second, Augustus, grumbes about getting
MS eluer brothers clothes, could he be
Drought to accommodate himself to Gustayuss
waistcoats at all, had not his mother coaxed him
by the loan of her chain and watch, which latter
the cmld broke, after many desperate attempts
to wind it up. W g
AS for the little fellow, Adolphus, his mother
mas him attired in a costume partly Scotch, part
y hungarian, mostly buttons, and with Louis
Quaterze hat and scarlet feather, and she curls
this chld's hair with her own blessed tones every
night. sa 49, @, -
:. wish she would do as much for the girls,
though: but no, Monsieur Floridor must do thai
and accordingly, every day this season, that
abonnable little Frenchman, who is, l have no
doubt, Red Republican, and smells of cigars
and hair oil, comes over, and at a cost of eigh--
iteenPence par tete, figs out my little creatures
heads with fxature, bandoline, crnolne-the
deuce knows what.
The bill for silk stockings, sashes, white
frocks, is so enormous, that have not been able
to pay my own tailor these three years.
The bill for fys to 'Amstid and back, to Hiz-
clinton and take up &C., is fearful. The drivers,
in this extra weather, must be paid extra, and
they drink extra. Having to 60 to Hackney in
the snow, on the night of the 9Th of January, our
man was SO hopelessly inebriated, that was
compelled to get out and drive myself; and am
now, on what is called Twelfth Day with, of
course, another child's party before me for the
evening", writing this from my bed, Sir, with q
severe cold, violent toothache, and most
acute rheumatism.
AS hear the knock of our medical man, whom
an anxious wife has called in, close this letter;
asking leave, however, if survive to return to
this painful subject next week. And wishing
you merry New Year, have the honor to
be, dear Mr.. Punch,
Your constant reader, SPEC.
conceive, Sir, that in spite of my warning and
entreaty we were invited to no less than three
Chlld's Parties last Tuesday; to two of which
lady IN this house, who shall DO nameloss, de-
sired that her children should be taken. On
Wednesday we had DR.. Lens's microscope; and
on Thursday you were good enough to send me
your box for the Haymarket Theatre; and of
course Mrs. S. and the children are extremely
obliged to you for the attention. did not mind
the theatre so much. safe in the back of the
box, and fell asleep. l wish there was room
with easy chairs and silence enjoined, whittier
parents might retire, in the houses where Chill
dren's Parties are given. But not would be of
no use: the fddling and piano forte playing and
scutfiing and laughing of the children would keep
you awake. Hr
am looking out in the papers for some elig-
BILE schools where there shall be no vacations-I
can't bear those festivities much longer begin
to hate children IN their evening dresses when
children are attired in those absurd best clothes,
what can you expect from them but affectation
and airs of fashion One day last year, Sir
having to conduct the two young ladies who then
frequented juvenile parties, found them, upon
entering the fly, into which they had preceded
me under convoy of their maid--l found them
in what condition, think you 2 Why, with the
skirts of their stiff muslin frocks actually thrown
over their heads, so that they should not crumplc
in the carriage! A child who cannot go into So
ciety but with muslin frock in this position,
say, had best stay in the nursery in her pinafore
If you are not able to enter the world with your
dress in its proper place, say stay at home l
blushed, Sir, to see that Mrs. S. didn't blush
when informed her of this incident, but only
laughed in strange indecorous manner, and
said that the girls must keep their dresses neat.
Neatness as much as you please, but l should
have thought Neatness would wear her frock in
the natural way.
And look at the children when they arrive at
their place Of destination; what processes of Co
quetry they are made to go through They are
first carried into room where there are pins,
combs, looking glasses, and lady 's-maids, who
shake the children's ringets out, spread abroad
their great immense sashes and ribbons, and fin
ally send them full sail into the dancing room
With what ia monstrous precocity they ogle their
own faces in the looking glasses! | have seen
my boys Gustavus and Adolphus, grin into the
glass, and arrange their curls or the ties of their
necklcoths with as much eagerness as any grown
up man could show, who was going to pay visit
to the lady of his heart. With what an abomina-
BILE complacency they get out their little gloves,
and examine their silk stockings How can they
be natural or unaffected when they are so pre-
posterously conceited about their fine clothes g
The other day we met one of Gus's schoolfel-
lows, Master Charters, at party, who entered
the room with a little gibus hat under his arm,
and to be sure made his bow with the aylom6 of
dancing master of sixty; and my boys, who l
suspect envied their comrade the gibus hat, be
gan to plgge and Sneer at him. and further In