The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1879-08-29
DEGENERATE MAsSlIEI,Rps.

| .5 DEtENEkATE MANNERSe
The cold school of manners has fa,,
en- into disrepute. Sir Charles Grandi
son is comical rather than courtl,
| figure to this generation; and, The mar
whose manners may be described n,
Grandisonian is usually called a nom.
pous and grandiloquentold old prie. Ger.
tainly the elaborately dressed gentle.
man .speakingito a lady only with mol.
ished courtesy of phrase, and avoidino
in her presence all coarse words and
acts, handing her in the minuet with
inexpressible grace and Difference. and
showing an exquisite homage IN ,evcry
motion, was very different figure from
tne gentleman In a shooting-iacket or
morning sack chatting" a lady with
the freshest slang and smoking in her
face. They are undeniably different.
ana the later figure is wholly free from
Grandisonian elegance and elaboration,
But is he much more truly a gentle
manf Is he our Sidney, our Cbevalier
Bayard, our Admirable Cricbton3 Is
That refined consideration and gentle
difference, which is the flower of conrS
tesy; an oldifashioned folly?
The overwrought politeness ia made
very ridiculous upon the stage. md
Richardson is undoubtedly hard read
ing for the general consumer of novels
| IL is true, also, that fine morals do not
always go with fine manners. and tho,
Lovelace had fascination of oddrnas
which John Knox lacked Tbc choe "Ss q
ana sang oil The Bayard of toJday arc
at least decent, and his morals probably
purer tilar those of the courtly and
Punctillous old Sir Roger de CoyerIys.
nossiDly; but It has been wisely said
tnat hypocrisy is the homage paid by
vice 10 virtue. The good manners of a
Dad man are o rich dress upon a dis
eased body. They are the o,arefnl
form OF vase full of dirty water. The
iiquid may be poisonous but tbe vessel
is beautiful. Some of the worst 7, ,otha.
rlos IN the world have a personal charm
winch IS irresistible. MANY n stately
compllment was paid by a orariously
Dowlng satyr in laced velvet coat md
perlwlg, at the court of I,ouis tbe (1rest
ahd PAID for the basest purpose: bnt the
grace and the courtesy were borrowed
IKE piumage of living hues to deck car,
ron. Ihey were not n mart NJ tbe
baseness, and you do not escape dirtv
water by breaking the vase. Iffbe old
er morals were worse than tho now
ana the older manners were better can
not we who live to-day, and who NAV
nave everything, combine the new NOR
ais and the old manners?
we can spare some elaboration of
lorm, Dut we cannot safely spare the
substance OF refined Difference. IF Ro-
,neo De permitted to treat Juliet as
hostlers are supposed to treat bar-moids
and as the heroes of Fielding and SmoI,
lett treat Abigails upon jonrnev- tbev
will both lose self-respect and mrtn q,
respect. 1t was q wise fatbar ,,hn col
to his son: "Beware of tha ,ro,r ~,
VINO Arrows you to kiss her." The wo-
man VINO ooes not require of man the
iorm OF respect, invites him to discard
tne substance. And there is one viola
tion OF the form which is recent and
gross, and might well be cited as a
striking illustration of the decay of
manners. 1t is the practice of SMOKING
IN the society of ladies in public places,
whether driving or walking, or sailing.
or situng; There are p,-ear checdiiers
VINO would be honestly amazed If tbey
were told they did not behave like gen
tlemen, who, sitting with a lady on a
motel piazza, or strolling on public
PARK, whip out cigarette, light It. and
pun as TRANQUILITY as if they were alone
In their rooms. Or young man comes,
alone upon the deck of a steamer. where
throngs of ladies are sitting and blows
clouds of tobacco smoke in their faces
without even remarking that tobacco
IS dlsagreeable to some people. This is
not, indeed, one of the seven deadly
sins, but a man who unconcernedly
sings false betrays that he has no ear for
music, and the man who smokes I'm this
way shows that he is not quito a gen
tleman. .. ~. -
But some latlies smoke? Yes, some
ladies drink liquor. Does that mcnd
the matter? A lady has been seen nj
the head of her own table smoking a
fine cigar. Yon will see a great many
highly dressed women in Paris SMOKING
cigarettes. Does all this change tLe
situation?' Does this make il more oen-
ticmanly to smoke with lady beside
you IN carriage, or upon bench on
the piazza! But some ladies like the
odor OF cigarP Not many; and the
taste OF those who sincerely. do SO can
not justify the habit of .promiscuous
pufiing in their presence. The intima-
cy OF domesticity is governed by other
rules; but gentleman smoking would
hardly enter his own drawing-room,
where other ladies sat with bis wife,
without a word of apology. The Easy
Chair is no King James, and is more
likely to issue blasts of tobacco than
blasts against II. But King James, be-
ionged TO q very selfish sex-a sex
winch seems often to suppose that its |
indnlgences and habits are to be tender
ly tolerated, for no other reason than
that they are its habits. Therefore the |
young woman mnst defend herself by |
showing plainly that she prohibits the |
intrusion of which, if suffered. she is |
really the victim. In other times the |
Easy Chair has seen the. lovely Laura |
MATILDA unwilling to refuse to dance |
with the partner who had bespoken her |
hand for the German, although when |
he presented himself he was plainly
nown with wine. The Easy Chair has
seen the hapless, foolish maid encircled |
oy tnose Bacchic arms, and then head
long whnl and dash down the room,
ending in the promiscuous overthrow |
and downfall of maid, Bacchus and mu-
sicians. |
Ifin the Grandisonian day the morals
were wanting, it was something to have |
the manners. They at least were TO the |
imagination memory and prophecy. !
They recalled the idyllic age when fine
manners expressed fine feelings, aud
they foretold the return of Astr@a TO |
her ancient hapnts. Here is young |
Adonis dreaming ofa four-iu-hand and |
. yacnt, lko amy other gentleman. Let |
us hope that he knows the test of the |
gentleman not tc be tho ownership of
blood horses and a unique drag, but |
perfect courtesy founded upon fine hu-
man feeling-thst rare and indescriba. |
Bile gentlepess and consideration which |
rests upon manner as lightly as the |
bloom upon IA fruit. IL may be imita- |
ted, as gold and diamonds are. But no
counterfeit can harm IL; and, Adonis,
.a III. a. -. :