The Iowa transcript. (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1858-1866, 1860-04-19

The following Is an extract from a
letter written by Theodore Parker, Feb.
.6,lsG0
.le Is curious to see how long il takes
mankiud TO respect the Industry which
feeds a3d clothes. houses and comforts
thr amman race The work Of ruling IT
fighting, of Saving the soul by some
sort Of hocus pocns, this is thought de
cent aud respectable Lut farm work
woods work shop work, that is mean and
dehasing Such is the notion that pre-
walls ID the classic writer's Of Greece and
Rome, and with the "gentlemen and
"ladies" Of New England to day-I
mean with the ornamental males and
females. Slavery is only supported by
the profound contempt fer productive
industry which marks the South ; and it
has its support at the North chiefly in
the same contempt Miss Diddlediddlc-
diddle is descended from blacksmith
at Beverly or Marblehcad; he was grand
father to this foolish thing; she is
ashamed Of her origin ,ahd never sees an
anvil withouta blush Of mortified vanity
Now, if had son, | should rather he
would be great engineer,a great mason,
carpenter or railroad builder, than a
great painter, sculptor or fiddler; and
certainly should rather my son we're
an ordinary third rate tailor,s shoe maker,
brazier, than an ordinary third rate
sculptor, to spoil marble aud waste the
time of men he strove to make statues Of
How much better to be Il common house
painter than stupid dauber Of canvas !?
In 4 America-I mean in the free States
the mass Of the people, in their col,
lective action, work right in respect to
this, though uncounted individuals make
the greatest mistakes but here it is the
community as whole that falls into the
error. Alas for them! the miserable
rags which are the clothing Of the peo
pie, aud the wrctchcd food they eat, are
consequences Of the fatal blunder, aud
the hagsard, melancholy faces Of the
common people, i'll housed, i'll clad, i'll
fed, are the protest Of nature against the
Worship Of beauty and the scoru Of use
Think Of a city exporting one million
dollars worth Of trinkcts, while she has
not saw mill nor q power loom. We
manage this matter better in New En-
gland. There were seven paper mills In
Massachusetts, foundry at Sausus and
Saw mills more han | can recoI'ect, be
fore a picture he'd ever been painted IN
al New England, or a statue made
Joaathan had many a useful notion be
tore he made him a fiddle.
In Europs, You see many things w.,ich
seems strange t. IN American Take
III, use Of wine II | am right, the
Europeans consume abou, $500, ,U0O. 900
gallons Of wine. In France, leave ouf
1t account the pasture land which is not
p!owcd, and the forests, Of the actual
arabic land, one third is devoted to the
culture Of the grape. Yet there arc i'm
4 4
raised at all | see it stated that the
government returns make it appear that
the people Of France drink 5000, 900
gallons of wine, and the calculation is
that the amount is not much less than
| 900, ,OOO,O 900! Yet I don't believe, in
the year 1859, there was so much drunk
cnness among the 80, 600, 900 people of
France as among the 5000, 900 Yankees
Of New England! I have been four
months in Rome, there are wine shops
everywhere am out doors from three
to six hours day, and | have never yet
seen man drunk now and then one is
merry, never intoxicated. Tho Romans,
Italians. French &c. are quite tenn perate !;
they drink their weak wine with water
and when they take liquors, it is only a
little glassful at time, (Which does not
make spoonfnl) | don't believe tbors
II tt.}sis