New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1857-02-16

p0or-a gentleman out at elbows s8tts
Il He gazed steadily into the fire, studying its red
core Of heat. but his mind seemed fur away There
recognition of the present in his vacant eyes,
"Of what is be thinking n thought, of the past,
or the future What pictures rise up before him?
what shapes long since dead ~ ss .a
3 / was drifting of into sea Of reverie when he
aroused himself relighted his cigar which had gone
out, and began to sip his punch. -. s.'4I 7.
While had been watching Mr.. Wilmot the fine art
disquisiton had somehow shifted from the picture at
criticsing them
have seen women of all ranks in each; but have
seen none to compare with the women of America
in fondness for dress. Perhaps 1 am too sweeping
when say, the women of America let me correct
myself and say. the women of American cities. There
is still little simplicity left in the country Miss is
not wholly a peacock there, unless she has been
spoiled by winter in town. But her more polished
city sisters the beautiful but souiless creatures who
faunt in Broadway daily, dressed in the most expen
sve and least durable dresses, which they trail and
drag through dust and mud, splendid alike in sun
shine and in STORM have not words to express my
contempt for them. God help their fathers and hus
bands!'
protested on behalf of the ladies' as gallant man
should do, and charged my friend with being sour
and crusty bachelor = ... IN
" have a strange fancy" said Mr.. Wilmot, taking
his cigar from his mouth and joining in the conversa
ton for the first time; ian absurd idea, for which
you sir" turning to my friend !" are partly answera
BE. What you said about the dress Of our American
women set me thinking, and dream, which was al
ready half formed in my mind, begotten saamander-
like, in the glowing Goals, took definite form and
meaning, imagined man with an expensive wife
There is no novelty in that you say. Iagree with
You there is But there is novelty in the char
acter Of the man-as conceive it. t9'@'
shall not begin with my hero's birth and parent
age, neither shall end with his death and burial.
The most that shall attempt will be to sketch an ep
isode of his life 1t will be the merest outne-a sug
gesti6n and nothing more. A.a gTl[
" At the beginning Of my dream he is rich-rich in
his own inheritance, richer still in expectations. His
parents belonged to the old KniekerbocEer race the
first families and wealthy citizens of forty years ago
He was educated after the fashion of the day. His
father sent him to college, gave him course Of travel
on the continent and then took him into the count
ing house and made him partner. He had fine
head for business and had he been born poor he might
easily have become rich but being rich already, the
chances were in favor Of his becoming poor Like the
sons of most rich men, he had no incentive to exer.
ton. Why should he exert himself when he had
money enough and his position in life was certain?
He sat down and folded his hands, and let the days
and years slip away. His tastes and habits were ex
pensve but he could afford to crafty them so they
injured no one His money was his own, he reasoned
and he had right to spend it as he pleased Admit
ting the force Of this argument-the usual plea of
spendthrfts-there is still higher law to which we
must all submit, the good sense of mankind! We
must answer for our foies before that tribunal as
well as to our own consciences. l may know myself
to be fool, but.l can not afford to have the world
think me one.
"My dreanl-hero lived in an establishment of his
own, bachelors snuggery, at quiet out-ofthe-way
hotel. He had a suit of parlors fitted up in superb
style, and stud Of blood horses. He was capital
our-n-hand and every summer afternoon he might
have been seen driving out of town into the direction
of Catos, passing every thing the road. He gave
magnificent snppefs at hsl rooms, petite soupers la
ResenG, which the envy of all the young bucks
about town. They drank deeply, and played heavily
winning and losing thousands of dollars at sitting
a thpra 10 NO Inr,6t
of that; but there was vein of shrewdness in him.
as there often is in FOOLS which would have saved him
in the end Only one thing prevented it-he mar
ried an expensive wife,"
Here Mr.. Wmot paused, and gazed into the fire, |
as if he had lost the thread of his fantasy, and was
waiting for moment of inspiration in which to
finish it. He pulled his cigar vigorously, and was
soon wrapt in a cloud Of smoke The light of the
fire passed from his face, and danced away on the
wall behind him. ..
"'What will keep one, y" he resumed q will keep
two So runs the old saw. 1t may be true of the
poor but it is false of the rich. Given the waste of
one prodigal, no proofs Of mental arithmetic can
work out the waste of two, particularly when the
second is lady My friend gave up his bachelors
snnggery, bought fine house, or what was at that
time considered fine house, in fashionable part of
the town. | think it was in Blocker street, Were
relating story OF today, should locate him in
the Fifth Avenue but as make him flourish thirty
or forty years age conne myself to probabilities
and stick to Blocker street. He had noble Old
mansion in the noble old knickerbocker style. None
Of your brownstone gmcracks, sixteen feet broad
and six stories high but substantial old brick
house, with a tall stoop, long piazza and dormer-
windows the roof 1t was fitted up in the grandest
way. The furniture was imported from Paris, the
carpets from Turkey and Persia; while the pic
lures, of which there was gallery, by the best
living artists, with here and there genuine old
master. There were cabinets of rare china-Sevres
and Dresden vases uncouth teapots and saucers of
the Tang dynasty; a marvellous ugly tureen of
Palsy ware, and the deuce knows what besides.
The china was not pretty. but it cost hear. of
money, the nursery noveliss say. This and other
household extravagances the fulllength mirrors in
every room, the stately marble buss the beautiful
Paran satuettes, the massive gold and silver plate
ruined my friend. Nor his stud of blooded horses,
nor Madame his wfe's coach with outsiders in livery.
No, it was Madames round of balls parties and din
ners-her numberless new dresses, her pearls and |
diamonds. her summers at the watering-places, her
daily and hourly profusion and waste-in short,
Madame herself!
a. We must retrench my DEAR said the husband
to his wife one day. have failed
t'' But have not failed she answered, and | \
will not retrench.
g But she had to retrench in spite of herself For
when she ordered her carriage TO go a-shopping the
coachman refused to harness the horses until his six
months wages were paid She called hack and
was driven to the Stewards of that time-I forget
who it was--hut his clerks refused to cut the five
yards OF point lace that she wanted lit was only one
hundred dollars yard y until it was paid for She
bowed and smiled, and riding away in her hack gave
rival house, where they were not so particular the
preference.
'sShe patronized all the trades people who would
trust her, and fourished for short time longer. But
she had to come down at last. Certain ruthless men
called creditors, engaged certain other ruthless men
called sherhs, and armed them with certain deadly
weapons called writs. They attacked the house in
posse, and compelled the garrison to surrender The
garrison marched out, not with flying colors and the
honors Of war, but basely and ANONYMOUSLY and
sanguinary flag was displayed over the door The
house was sacked by General Auctioneer. Their
mirrors and carpets were knocked down to an amb
tious andlady, willy pcture.cleaner took their Old
Masters while the rare old china went to all sorts of
people at their own prices. A newly-married Irish
woman bid Off the tureen Of Palsy ware for pickle
dish
"The gentleman went into business again, as soon
as he had passed through his bankruptcy. He was
not successful. How indeed could he be successful
with such an expensive wife?
g You will say he might have talked to her and
reasoned with her. So he might, and so he did but
in vain. She would not be reasoned with. She was
proud and imperios, and ,roid have what she want
ed in spite of the cost. OF course he failed again.
The path of such man can but he downward. He
went through sliding scale of failures, and ended
as q clerk or booh-keeper, OF some mental of the
sort. have not quite made up my mind what prac-
tical justice to intiict upon him.
Here Mr. Wilmot paused again, and drank the rem
nant Of his punch. The Light of the fire returned to
his face ckered moment on his thin sarcastic lips
and then dropped down to his feet
My dream breaks here" he said at last. ! glow.
er into the Goals for the rest Of it, but it refuses to