Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1868-12-18
z HONEY Observation-Disclosures,
knight Errs1try and Marrying for
Marriages De C0nyenaBee me

Knight ErrsBtry and Marrying fer
Lose-Marriaxes De Consenasse me
p Mode Wow.
? Burke, when eioquentiy mourning
the unhappy fateof Marie ANTON
cite, said; The age of chivalry IS
gone" If the announcement was
i premature then, il is not SO nov.
Who has not read with overwhelui-
ing interest of the days Of Knight
errantry so well described by Scottin
his wonderful historical romanees
Then woman was looked up to and
reFered more as pure and holy be-
ing from a higher world than as a
native of this, inheriting any of the
consequences. Of the fall of man.
Then men bore themselves CALAMITY
In the tournament for the prize they
longed to lay at the feet of her they
loved DueliBg originated in love-
That is the only circumstance that
gives the barbarous practice any
softening feature. Men fought for
the woman eff their choice; and
though it was no credit to be reck-
less OF their lives, it Was evidence
OF the devotedness OF their attach
ment. ~. -. -...r ~
This is all changed This is another
sge, a better age on the whole but
we cannot but deplore the passing
away of the ehivalrous devotion to
the fair sex that prevailed in bar
barous period With increased civ
lllzation came longing for wealth.
Everything is now sacrificed to the
universal god-gold. The noblest
fashions, the finer feelings. domestic
and social happiness, are freely laid
on the altar of mammon. This is
apparent in every day life. Men or
women in the higher circles of soei-
ETY. do not marry for love. They .
have got over that weakness. Mar
riages de cOaVeRGRce are in vogue.
A fashionable mother is blessed With
daughters. They attain to the dig
nifty OF long dresses and chignons,
and society. Whatever honorable
and natural sentiment developed it.
self in them soon withers and dies
in the unhealthy atmosphere of fash
ion. They are trOtted our for in
spection by their shrewd, caIculat-
ing mammas. Their points are
shown off and dilated upon as if
they were horses For sale" is
printed in unmistakable language on
their foreheads. They soon under
stand the part they must act. The
empty headed scion of a wealthy
shoddyite is welcomed with mods,
and becks, and wreathed smiles,
while the young man, depending for
his fortune on his own strong arm,
his intellect, his probity, his indomi-
table resolve to conquer all difficult
ties, to persevere in spite of the
world, the flesh and the devil, gets
the cold shoulder. The qualifica-
tons of a husband are perfectly I'm
derstood Marriage has been re
duced to an exact science. A brown
stone mansion, carriages, summer
residence, large bank account, and
all that it can command, with fOp or
aninRyhammer of a man thrown in,
is all that a young lady cares for
now. Future happiness is little
thought of in connection with mar
riage.
1t is this longing for wealth that
has destroyed chivaIry. A young
man cannot have a chivalrous feel
ing for his lovely partner in quad
rifle, when he knows that she is
thinking how much he is worth, or
how much his father will leave him,
and what probability there is of his
father crossing thedark river soon.
Young men have a wholesome fear
of mercenary minded women. This
fear makes many old bachelors. and
a corresponding number OF old
maids. Female extravaganza is char
acteristic Ofthe times But not in
the higher walks of life alone. for it
pervades to a certain extent, every
class, rich and poor alike, and con
sequently men remain single, like
Cowper, knowing nothing of
"-dOmestic bliss,
The only happiness that survived the fall.
Who will not, therefore, mourn
that chivalry is dead, eupids occu-
patton gone? There are, of course,
and always will be, many male for
tune hunters; but the vice, for vice
it is, has become of late years peeu-
liarly feminine weakness.