The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1879-06-20
What cold Times" Meant.

A half century ago large part of the peo-
pie of the United States lived in houses I'M
painted, upholstered and utterly devoid of
adornment A well fed fire in the yawning
chasm of huge chimney gave partial warmth
to single room, and it was a common remark
that the inmates were roasting one side while
| freezing the other; in contrast, q majority of
the people of the older States now live in
houses that are clapboarded, painted, blinded
and comfortably warmed. Then, the house
hold furniture consisted of few plain chairs,
plain table, bedstead made by the village
carpenter. Carpets there were none. To-day,
| few are the homes, in city or country, that do
not contain carpet of some sort, while the
| average laborer by weeks work may earn
| enough to enable him to repose at night upon
| q spring bed.
Fifty years ago the kitchen "dressers" were
set forth with a shining row of pewter plates
The farmers ate with a buck handled knife
and an iron or pewter spoon, but the advanc-
ing civilization has sent the plate and spoons
to the melting pot, while knives and forks
have given place to nickle or silver-plated
cutlery.
In those days the utensils for cooking were
u dinner-pot, tea-kettle, skillet, Dutch oven
| and fryng-pan; to-day there is no end of kit
chen furniture.
The people of 1880 sat in the evening in
the glowing light of Il pitch-knot fire, or read
their weekly newspapers by the Pickering
light Of a "tallow Dip" now, in city and vii
lage, their apartments are bright with the
flame of the gas-jet or the softer radiance of
kerosene. Then if the fire went out upon the
hearth it was rckindled by coal from neigh
boring hearth, or by flint, steel and tinder-
Those who INDUCED in pipes and cigars could
light them only by some hearthstone; to-day
we light fire and pipes by the dormant fire.
works in the match safe, at a cost of onc-hun-
dredth of cent.
In those days we guessed the hour of noon,
or ascertained it by the creeping of the sun
light up to the noon-mark" drawn upon the
floor; only the well-to-d could afford clock
To-day who does not carry awatch? And as
for clocks, you may purchase them at whole
sale, by the cart-load, at siXty-two cents
apiece.
Fifty years ago how many dwellings were
adorned with pictures? How many are there
now that do not display print, engraving,
chrome or Autograph? How many pianos or
parlor organs were then. Reed organs were
not invented till 1910, and now they are in
every village.
Some who may read this article will remem-
Der that in 1880 the Bible, the almanac and the
few textbooks used in schools were almost
the only volumes of the household The die
tionary was a volume four inches square and
an inch and half in thickness. In some of
the country villages few public-spirited men
had gathered libraries containing from three
to five hundred volumes; in contrast, the
public libraries of the present, containing
more than ten thousand volumes, have an ag-
gregatc of 10,950,000 volumes, not including
the Sunday-school and private libraries of the
country. 1t is estimated that altogether the
number of volumes accessible to the public is
not less than 20,000,000! OF Webster's and
Worcester's dictionaries, it may be said that
enough have been published to supply one to
every one hundred inhabitants of the United
Stntnc - dHlllti. IEnifhLL