New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-12-18
THE CITY OF THE SOUTH.

New Orleans at the Present DayJThe So-
cial Features and Commercial Pros.
poets.
We copy the following from The Paper,
published at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and
presume. it is from the pen of Mr.. BARLEY
T. Campbell, formerly of this city:
Whatever may be held regarding its
merits or dement's as the great metropolis
of the South, New Orleans may truly be
said to be city, in almost every sense pc
culiar to itself. Save that it presents, pos
sibly, some few Of tine characteristics OF San
Francisco, it can in no wise be ikened in its
appearance to any other Of our American
cities. Especially is this the case as COM
pared with any of the cities of the North.
To begin with, barring some few Of its
public buildings and business houses, the
very style of the architecture attracts ones
attention as essentially different from that
elsewhere seen. As a rule, it is not only of
in almost every respect. Even upon the
most popular thoroughfares one is fOrcibly
struck with the world Of psrches that the
buildings present to the eye Of the behOlder.
Especially does this popularity attract his
attention in the appearance OF the corner
buildings.
On the face of each street, and extending
around the corner, porch rises above porch,
with each successive story from the ground
ratings, and generally well-kept appear
ance Of which, with the profusion of doors
and windows fronting on the same, are, in
each building, suggestive Of q sort of upper
world Of its own. Nor, in view Of the fact
that above the ground floor the entire build
ing is almost invariably cut up into rooms
that single or en- suite are let for offices, SIN
gle, or family rooms, as the case may be, is
the suggestion as far from the reality as
rsos to sapR sts u.s. in fset one Of the
peculiarities of New Orleans. Perambulate
the streets whithersoeyer you will, be it in
the most aristOcratic, fashionable and
recherche of precincts, where wealth and ele-
gance everywhere abound; be it in the
crowded thoroughfares Of trade; be it in the
bazars of the market-place, or be it in the
lowest or filthiest neighborhoods, in some
out'of the way by-street, still one meets
these overcoming words" ROOmso to
let"
One wsuld judge that either "nobody
lived at home," but boarded, or that every
body kept bOarders. TOa very great extent
both may be said to be true. Comparatively
few families pretend to keep house at all,
that is, as compared with those of other
cities. They either hire suite of the eur
! nished rooms to let," that everywhere
abound, and have their meals sent from
some neighboring eating house, or take up
their quarters in some OF the countless
| houses that here seem to thrive and be kept
as nowhere else. While this has always
been popularity here, never, as is gener-
ally attested, has it been SO palpable as
I now. Ask the reason, and you are gener-
ally told long and narrowing tale about
| the unreliability and wOrthlessness Of ser
wants. While there may be much in this,
as compared with other days, there are, as
| is evident to even the most casual observer,
| other and far more potent reasons. These
lie in the general decay, in worldly sense,
| of the upper and middle classes Of society
| as known in olden times. With the war
| the main fabric of their wealth and support
| was stricken down at one fell swOOp.
| As a rule, their fine residences, their
buildings, to let upon the French plan, in
| apartments, with here and there business
house, and a comparatively worthless
plantation. alone remain. To live in theil
| former style Of luxury and independence is
| impossible. As consequence, the former
middling classes, in the desperate effort al
| a compromise betweenpride and necessity
are forced to hoist out the single, "Apart
ments to let" and even to strike balance
sheet with grim want by keeping ''feW
bOarders just for cOmpany's sake" as an OLD
lady expressed it to me, while the elegan,
and luxalriously furnished mansions OF thu
former upper-tendOm are rented out. ready
| furnished, to some female ''relict Of better
days" that still manage to keep mp some
thing of an appearance by keeping flash
ionable boarding house" the former propri
etor either retaining few rooms for family
use, or retiring TO some more private 10
cality, where he lives. at least, in comfort
if not elegance, in furnished rooms, from
the revenue, perchance, derived in the main
from the rent of the mansion he has given up
Chiefly from these causes there are, with
out doubt, to-day, far more of aristocrati'
and semi-aristocratic clearinghouse il
New Orleans than in any other city of lik'
| size in America.
There are, naturally, proportional
number of private families that board in
stead Of keeping house. That they find it
in the main. full as cheap, and, considering
the generally superior reputation to which
the boarding houses at New Orleans ar
justly entitled, as comfortable, / do no
doubt.
Iois from these causea too, far more,
take. it, than from commercial decay, - ,
stranger would naturally conclude, that ON
meets with 60 many comfortable residence