The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1859-07-07
Essentials of q Pleasant Village
Buildings.
No. III.


than BY any other nation under heav-
en-. There is more lovliness in the
rudest cottage in the Tyrol; yes, there
is more unique beauty in many of the
cheap dwellings of the West India
negroes, than can be found in most of
our dwellings which have cost thou
sands Of dollars. There is no reason
why cheap and convenient house may
not be beautiful-why it may not please
the eye, as well as answer the ends of
economy and comfort. There are in
stances of comfortable and economical
dwellings, which it is a pleasure to
see; and though these instances are,
unfortunately, rare, they are enough to
practically demonstrate that beauty
and convenience are not necessarily
antipodes in architecture. Some au-
thor has said that mans house is the
expression of his thought; admitting
this to be true, and it must also be ev-
ident that, in many cases there is sad
state of mental cultivation.
In village, it is q matter of the
first Importance that all the buildings
stand upon the same line, at any rate,
that none iut ont bold in front and
nearer the street than the rest. But
from some instances we see, it would
appear that this rule was entirely for
gotten, and that love of variety had
led men to erect their houses so as to
recognize every point of the compass.
Uniformity in the size, shape and
color of buildings should rather be
avoided than sought after, its effect
being to tire the eye and cause many
fine points in the surroundings to be
entirely lost sight of. BY attending to
this, you must lose those advantages
which may pertain to your situation.
A dwelling which looks beautiful in
one situation, will not appear so in an
other. Upon an elevation, large dwell
ings finished in heavy style of archi-
lecture may be erected, but there needs
to be porches, verandas and shade
trees, to relieve what otherwise would
produce the impression of strength
alone. In gentle vale, or at the base
of slight elevation, cottages in the
Tudor style appear finely. Gothic ed
ifices produce the finest effect where
the situation is uneven; in a grove, oil
where the background is a steep, rocky
ascent, and should never be painted
white. The plain Grecian cottage
which should always be painted white
is pretty style for level village
street. 1t is so true that the beauty o.
a building depends upon the immediate
surroundings, and that we are willing
to pay large premium to the individ
uals who will have too nice flower
garden or too many shade trees in hi:
yard.
We have no occasion for stating the
truth, that great deal is contingent
upon the more public buildings, sucl
as stores, halls, hotels and churches
Western villages are noted for the het
erogeneous character of their stores
They look as though they might have
been made by denizens in the differen
quarters of the globe and placed where
they are by some mighty CONFUSION o
nature. We never expect, and W.
never want to see perfect uniformit!
in these buildings. But they should b.
built to appear more beautiful and mor'
substantial. Goods will sell bette
from a nice and handsome store thai
from a mean one. Any salesman will
verify this statement. And then the,
add to the pleasantness of the place
by producing the impression of solidi
ty. And they also do much to give i
a good name. And the shops of me
chanics can very easily be made boil
convenient and beautiful. We hav
seen a blacksmith's shop-which ord
narily is the least attractive object in
llendscape-so embowered in shad
trees and covered with ivy, as to max
it an attractive and pleasing object il
village, everywhere noted for its Low
illness.
If these thoughts-which have bee
very hastily penned-shall stimulat
any one in the right direction, we sha
be more than paid by the increase
beauty of our village, in which W
have deep interest and desire moth
ing so much as it's prosperity.
JUSTINIUS.
Dowagiac, July 5th, 1859.
PALUDAL MIAsM.-The Chemist
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