Weekly American. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1858-1858, 1858-01-23
CALICO DRESS sOIREE.

A number of officers Of the Seventy First
regiment, and other gentlemen, have made ar
rangements for calico dress soires, to be given
at the New York Academy of Music, on the
evening the 4th of February next, for chart
table purposes The calico dresses worn by
the ladies at the soree are to be left at the close
Of the evening" or afterwards sent in, and dis
tributed among various societies for the relief
OF poor women, and the money received for
tickets is to be appropriated for the distribu-
ton of loaves of breadamong the poor, through
the agency of the Hunter Woods Benevolent
Society" tof
This is all CANNON, and amounts to nothing.
There is no patriotism in it, and no benevo-
lence. Those who attend this soiree in their
calico dresses, do SO to crafty their pride, van
ity and selfshness just as much as II were
fancy dress party, as in fact IL is.
If these and other American ladies-Ameii
can women-wish to show their patriotism,
and do all that in them lies to bring the coun-
try back to its former simplicity and frugalty
Of dress, If they would discountenance the fear
fully demoralizing extravaganza of dress,
passion for which has seized upon the women
of our country, and bereft them of their good
sense, and with it their regard for the true in
terests Of their husbands, brothers, sons, and
fathers-if they would take an active and eff.
Gent part in restoring prosperity to the coun-
try and stimulating the already paralyzed arm
Of industry, let them resolve that they will ha-
bitnattywear fabricks of our own manufacture.
and those only. Let silks and laces, of which
so many millions Of dollars worth are now an
nually imported, to the great injury Of every
branch Of American labor, be tabooed by every
fashionable woman whose pride Il is to be an
american. Let our women cease 10 patronize
and give employment to foreign manufacturers
to the great encouragement injury, and even
ruin Of our own, and resolve that their gar
ments hereafter shall be made only Of material
the product Of our own fields, looms and facto-
ries Let this be done, and our country would
bound forward In career Of prosperity hereto
fore unprecedented, and our women would de-
serve, and would receive the plaudits Of the
whole American people.
We can well recollect when chintzes and
prints, such as we can now manufacture for
ourselves, and out Of our own cotton, consti-
tuted the best dresses Of fashionable ladies', rs
a general thing Most ladies' in easy circum-
stances had at least one silk dress, but that
was kept for extraordinary occasions, bat now
we have got to such pass that women, in
even Strengthened circumstances, think they
cannot appear in the street in any other than
a silk dress Such predisposition to extrav-
agance has most demoralizing tendency, and
no nation can long pursue the career we have
been pursuing, without utterly losing all those
high notions Of honor, integrity, patriotism
and virtue which only characterize truly pa
triotic and elevated people Let the American
people look TO IL in season, before II is too late
sensuality and looseness Of mbrals have ever
been and ever will be concomitants of idle
ness, frivolity Of manners and extravaganza in
dress; and all these are diseases which event
ually destroy all manliness, public virtue, pa
triotism-everything that is noble and gener-
GUS in man and lovely in woman. No people
who have become luxurious and effeminate,
absorbed by the love Of money and the love Of
ease, sloth, and selfindulgence, ever long re-
tsined their liberties or the respect of other ma
lions. qu ISL eHe tlfaH37 ea tsf1
4 - N. .