The New York herald., 1879-01-01
The New Year and Its Hopes.

| new year." with many returns of$he day.
1t would be churlish to say that these pro-
fuse expressions, SO lightly and gayly ut
tered, are thoughtless or unmeaning. They
have as much sincerity as most social
the year with universal exchange
Of good wishes. The many returns
Of the day which oil hope for
themselves and profess to desire fpr
others with whom they exchange these
greetings depend on Higher Power, and
that '''blindness to the future kindly
| given" which conceals the events Of the
future permits many to pass this day with
hilarity whose hearts would sink within
them if they knew what the next twelve
months will bring forth. But for major
ity the hopes of the day will be fulfilled,
and it is not wise for any to anticipate
| troubles which may never come.
We cordially wish q happy new year to
all betrothed young people who expect to
stand before the altar before q return of the
day. OF all classes this is the one to which
the new year is most likely to prove really
happy. We wish happy new year to all
brides and bridegrooms recently married.
for whom the eldest born of their children
| will make the year m memorable. Next to the
gayeties of a wedding the most joyous
event in human life is the first christening
which occurs in new family. We wish q
happy new year to the fathers and mothers
who will see the last Of their children set
tied in life, and will thereafter ride calmly
at anchor in the placid waters Of approach
ing old age. We wish happy new year to
all beautiful young ladies who arc to be first
presented in society. and whose hearts will
be SO occupied with the futter of fashion
that they will think of beaux. as they
do of their own elegant fripperies, only as
necessary appendages of what is called
| society. We wish happy new year to
ladies who are enjoying their second or
| thi1 season, for whom society has lost the
| fascination and lustre of ofnovelty, and whose
prudent mammas are adroitly trying to
| teach them to set their caps for a husband.
We wish happy new year to all young
men who are expecting to be graduated
from institutions Of learning to oil who
are just entering upon professions, to all
new poets and young authors to the un-
fedged politicians who are about to make
their debut in the various State legislatures.
| public life We wish happy new year
to all confirmed old bachelors and all
spinsters Of m uncertain age, and advise
them to seek their happiness in giving to
| institutions Of benevolence the attention
and support which are less easy to people
encumbered with domestic cares.
If the foregoing enumeration seems to
| indicate q tone of levity and disposition
| to trifle we desire to say that we were never
more serious. The impression which we
desire to convey is that the happiness or
unhappiness of the year is to depend moro
on what happens in private life than upon
public events, The time will never come
in human experience when marriages
and births, the success of sons in their
business or professions and the enjoyment
by daughters of their domestic relations will
not contribute more to the satisfaction of life
than all the events which take place in camps
and courts and cabinets and parliamentary
bodies. which occupy SO large O share of
public attention five are chargeable with
levity it is in selecting our illustrations
from fashionable life. We have referred to
this because it is more. conspicuous,
and therefore furnished readiS5 materials
for o contrast. The happiness of
| private life, even in circles which admit
osteneation and display, is great deal
| more important than the hustle of political
| activity which fills SO much space in the
public press. The life of the masses-which
is more strictly private, which admits of no
social display, which is confined by limited
means within very narrow and obscure
channels-is the chief seat Of happiness or
misery in the aggregate of human life.
The fippant and thoughtless wishes of q
happy new year which are SO profusely
and gayly interchanged among the prosper
Gus classes would have more serious
meaning if given in sincerity and true kind
ness to the humble toilers who form ma
jority of the community. To them a happy
new year would not mean snowy entertain
ments, brilliant weddings, elegant apparel
and a round Of social gayeties, but health.
constant employment, good wages, clean
apartments, decent clothing for children at
tending schools, amodest provision for quiet
marriages and inexpensive seats in places
of public worship. In wishing q happy
new year to these deserving classes we de-
sire for them those solid and modest advan-
tages. and in a spirit of the most earnest
sincerity we tender to them the ordi-
! nary formula of the season. We desire
to record our belief that public affairs are
mismanaged when government does not
secure these simple blessings; that oil poll
tics are an insulting farce which do not
tend to secure employment and comfort to
the obscure masses of the community; that