Connecticut western news., 1872-11-29
LOUIS BALLOON,

|
 LOUIS BALLOON.
 I was sitting quietly in my room one morn ing, when 8 note from my old friend Lou Livermore, was brought in. I was very fond of Lou, as, indeed, all her friends are though she still remains, like Hokmes's aunt,-. ''The sole ungathered rose On her ancestral tree."
 She lives far up in the country, but occa- sionally comes to Boston on visit. Her note was as follows :-
 | DEAR HEPsY.-Here l am at the Hub at the west end of it is that the hubbiest part l wonder? I am coming over to see you on Thursday. Imeant to go to-day ; but can't I'm all used up,-" clear tuckered out" as Aunt Polly used to say. "What has done it ?" Why, my new dress and such a dress It will give you fits to see how my back is butched up and puffed out. I m regular balloon fashion-plate a anything that is huge and hideous,-a camel or dromedary for example only they poor things we're born with humps on their backs, and wash t. ' How came it so deformed ?' In an evil hour I listened to the voice of the tempter. and put myself into the hands of city dress maker.
 "She's very stylish," quoth the tempter. Little wrecked in my ignorance what that meant ; and I went to her rooms in sweet, confding simplicity, bearing in an innocent looking dress pattern under my arm I had three seances with Mrs. Cuttit, a most impos. ing parsonage, of whom I stood in moral terror and at length emerged, transformed. I went in slim I came out stout went in plain l came out hump-backed went in with forty dollars in my purse came out with just enough to pay my fare home on the street-car,-the collapse having been trans ferred from my person to my purse with in | credible celerity and ease.
 Verify, fashion "doth make towards of us all ;" yea, and puff. balls also I wish I had l the courage to go through the world in a gored gown without pinch or puff or pucker l on it but haven't so am balloon, that | by some incomprehensible machinery is raised into mountainous ridges. Surmounting these ridges, at right angles to my body-if there | be body inside this corrugated globe, o1 which am in serious doubt, to say nothing of an immortal soul-projects fan-shaped be-fringed, be-puckered basque, looking, fo1 all the world. like spread turkey-tail. On | the top of this projection good sized trunk ,ould be comfortably seated only it might fall in wonder if a pappoose couldn't be | inserted somewhere I do so long to blend | the useful with the ornamental
 Now, Hepsibah, you are sensible married woman, competent to give good advice and I ask you, what am l to do? Go round the world in this harlequin guise, or give the whole thing great smash! I should be glad to preserve modicum of self-respect but how can I, inside of a balloon?
 l shall appear in full spread on Thursday to spend the day. I can't sit down but should like the loan of bed-post and cord might go up, you know Till then, ir every fibre of my stitching. Yours truly, HE GREAT EXPANDED sat laughing over this when in walked Hester Graywood, another old friend Afte1 the first salutation, she slowly twirled hersel round, and sank into chair exclaiming Behold the woman who dares !'
 | An I saw; she, too, had on new dress It was of silvery- gray silk, made with ons skirt, without particle of trimming on it and 8 sacque just bound with bias fold o the same. Yes, she had dared. Itwas really 8 refreshing sight and she looked perfectly bewitching in the quaker-like costume. But then, Hester GrayWood is such pretty littl creature, she can't help looking lovely il anything and she knows it, so it does no require so great courage in her to dare. Yes she looked charming. Yet, on a secont glance, there seemed kind of baroness abou her, as if something were wanting. Was thi because I had looked SO long on mountain l been corrupted?. Ten years ago we all wor such plain, single skirtc, and considered our selves elegantly dressed why should the look mean and skinny now :?
 | l read Lou's note to Hester, and she prom ised to join us at dinner on Thursday
 "Extremes should meet" she said
 She stayed on awhile, and we had littl talk on dress, and the bondage fashion i'm poses ; or how the taste of the community corrupted by the overloaded, ungraceful style in vogue now, and on many other thing
 such as sensible women do talk about whe
 they get together.
 One of the greatest evils of this absur
 overlooking" said Hester, '' is that it
 feerfully oVerworks women. We hear gres
 deal about the hardships of the poor shir
 makers in our cities; and they are to | pitied, know. But there are other wome to be pltied too. Look, for example, at m
 neighbor, Mrs. T. She is a fair representativ
 of large class, and not an exaggerated cas,
 Her husband is a hard working mechani,
 who earns good living, and ought to la up something for wet day; but he can
 support wife and six children in luxur, especially as four of them are girls. Mrs. Is an ambitious woman, and says she wi have her children decently dressed ; ths means fashionably dressed. She can't affor to hire her sewing done; 50, in addition t
 all her houseWork, she makes their dresses and if you have seen Oracle, the eldest on.
 you can judge what that implies
 "She's very stylish-looking girl," I saie
 !" Yes and her mother is very proud 3 her, as is natural. She is just seventeen and what wonderful costumes she does blool
 out in They are all aaoat with puffs an
 ruffles, quills and frills, till there's scarce a
 inch of untrimmed space about her. An
 Clara and Nellie go by to school every mor1
 ing, each with another set of furbelowe
 upper skirts and under skirts, basques an
 sacks, while baby Belle-bless her dear litt
 heart lis all afoat, too, with tiny ruffles o
 her tiny skirt.'
 " Ism t she darling?" cried.
 "Yes, lovely, with her blue eyes and al
 ple-blossom cheeks but wouldn't she |
 just as pretty in plain white dress with
 bit of edging round the neck and sleeves,
 it were the fashion? And the pretty Grac
 Is the charm in her, her lovely complexio ! and fine expression, or in her furbelows an | frs