The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-08-24
Boston and its Morality, as Bayard
Taylor Views 1t.

From Bayard Taylors Letters to the N. Y. Tribune.
The general impression which Boston and
its environs made upon my friends was that
of substantial prosperity and comfort. They
also noticed its prim, proper English air, so
strongly contrasted with the semi Partisan
vivaclty of New York. Boston, in fact,
prides itself on its department; it is moth
ing if not proper. All the ridicule which
other cities are heaping upon it does not
seem to disturb its equanimity in the least.
do not remember to have seen the Boston
papers greatly enraged by an hostile asser-
tiOn, except that the harbor sometimes
freezes over then they cry out in Indignant
wrath.
| must say | rather admire this stOlid,
self>reliance and Novangelican assumption
If for nothing else, at least because it
shows thicker cuticle than we eXctable
New Workers possess, whose nerves are
exposed to the atmosphere, or that of the
morbidly sensitive Phiidel phians, who ram
sack the Union for derogatory remarks,
and exalt one horn while depressing the
other, to gore all who doubt their greatness.
The genuine Bostonian is the most compla>
cent of mortals. With his clean shirt on,
and his umbrella under his arm, he sits up
on his PEDESTAL of Quincy granite and read
his mild, unexceptionable newspaper. He
believes in Judge Story and Daniel Web>
ster, reads the poems of Hannah Gould and
George Lunt, votes for Bell and Everett,
and hopes that he will go to Paris when he
dies.
With me, however, who have been
knocked about the world too much to have
any special veneration for any particular
class OF men, excessive proprety is always
a suspicious circumstance. | would sooner
trust the ragged Christian who sits in the
hndmost pew, than the smoothly. .shaven
deacon whose nasal trumpet leads the
hymn. | have sometimes wondered wheth-
er all the Bostonians postpone their Paris
ian delights until after death. Is there
nothing volcanic under this cold lava? No
indulgence in imprOpreties, all the more
attractive, because secret? My friend re.
lated to me this morning an experience
which he had made. "What a curious city
this is !" he exclaimed last night while l
was walking out alone, it occurred to me
that glass of beer would be good thing
for my thirst So | looked here, and looked
there, going through many streets, but ev-
cry house was closed only the churches
were open. At last [ stopped man in the
street, and said to him, in my imperfect
English, is it possible in this great city, l
cannot get one small glass of beer Hush!
said the man come with me and will
show you So we went through many
streets, until he stopped at little dark
door and said, go up Then he went
away: l went up one a ght of steps; it
was dark. Then went up another flight,
and saw lighted glass door with the word
Serenity upon it. Inside were many men
drinking beer. l also drank glass, but
was oblidged to pay double price for it; and
the beer was very bad"
laughed heartily over my friends adven-
ture, the explanation of which led me into
statement of the various phases of the
Temperance reform. In Germany, where a
Liquor Law would be not only an impossi-
bility, but an incredtbllity, such claudestiue
dodges are unknown, and l am afraid nv
friends respect tor the administration of the
laws in this country was somewhat lessened
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