The Portland daily press., 1878-04-17
A Boston Letter.
Creckery and Other Amusemenfs-The
Common-Someihing about the Museum
of Fine Arts.

Three things are noticeable to the Boston
visitor just now, the beer shops, the crockerv
shops, and the crowds about the savings banks
There are other sights that can be seen for the
searching, but these obtrude themselves upon
the attention. Boston's idols are formed of
burnt clay, and so convinced is she of the
worth of crockery that even Wedgewood's fail
ures ara initiated and sat in her windows az
works of high art; they can be seen in shop
on Washington street side by side with the lit
tie images of her gods. After much wander.
ing she has come back to the worship of one
OF her older divinities, Webster. Statuettes of
him are com mon. One in the same window
with the Wedgewood failures represents him
astippiug quite back like Thor before the walls
OF Jotunheim-apparently modelled during
the delivery of the Rochester speech. They
point to him with the pride of a olitical con-
vention recalling the records of its party.
IT o1e gets tired Of looking at Crockery and
Webster aud of hearing that Boston does
more in crockery than any other city in the
country" (for "a sure as he halts to gaze into q
window some Bostonian will come along and
inform him of that fact) he csn turn about and
gaze at the pretty faces on the street. Some
prefer them to Palissy's fishes Or he may go
and look at the new Herald building. That
is worth his pains, for it is one of the hand
soonest and best equipped newspaper offices in
country. tits put to good use, too; the Herald
is edited by set of bright young fellows who
gather in all the news and have very honest
and direct way of giving their opinion Of
'men and things" The Herald is doing even
more and better work than usual, for its new
and dangerous competitor, the Globe, has put
it on its mettle. Under its present manager,
Brown, the Globe is showing great industry
and enterprise and has done some smart things
especially in the way of local news. II it only
has staying power it will win for itself place
well to the front in the race between the Bos-
ton newspapers.
Boston has been indul2ing itself in opera for
the last week or two, in opera and crockery.
The Strakosch troupe has met with deserved
favor, but, for all the newspapers say, has only
drawn large houses on the nights when the
three prime donne kellogg, Cary and Roze,
have appeared. MILE Roze, who, though a
brilliantly beautiful woman, does not approach
the others as singer, has been great attrac-
tion. Oaher amusements have been rather
dull TIE revival of "The Eachanted Beauty
at the Museum is not altogether success.
The extravaganza is not so well done as when
it was first brought out "Our Boarding
House" at the Globe has been a disappoint.
ment Much of the "business' was funny, but
the company went through it In mechanical
and Indifferent sort of way, making it seem like
puppet show. On the whole there is more
amusement outside of the theatres than in.
The best way in which the visitor with leisure
can pass his time is to spend it in the new Mu-
scum of Fine Arts On his way there he may
pass through the Common, refreshing his eyes,
weary Of the dreary brown of Name land
scapes, with the grass green as in June, and
listening to the twitter of the noisy sparrows.
Perhaps he will stay little to look at the sol-
diers' monument, so fine In its details and so
unsatisfactory and unimpressive as whole.
But he will lose nothing by fastening on to the
Museum. There, if he has taste for that sort
of thing, (if he hasn't he had better acquire it)
he can spend some delightful hours Many of
the collections are very fine and full of interest
The Museum so far as completed is admirably
arranged and in some of its departments will
compare not uufavorably with the Metropoli-
tan. 1t is especially rich in casts from the
antique. The Museum holds the chief part Of
the pictures and statues belonging to the
Athenaum, the Gray collection Of Harvard,
and number Of other loan collections of no
inconsiderabe value. Besides these it has
many objects of art and archaeology which 1t
owns. The most interesting among these Is
perhaps the Hay collection of Egyptian an
tiquities, an important If not ample illustration
Of Egyptian civilization. "Its chief strength"
the catalogue informs US, is its mummies, and