The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1880-02-07

Our BrOadbrim Letters.

Our BrOadbrim Letters.
Americans Aping Abominable Foreign
Styles Of Dress-Y Youthful Criminals
Ecclesiastical Backs1iders The De.
ceptiye Stock Market.
NEW YORK, Jan. "a, 1880.
EDITOR CHIEF:
Fifty years ago it; was the boast ot
the people of the United States that
they had a character distinctiv.ly
American, and now it appears to be a
matter Of pride with most of the ris-
ing generation, and not few of the
men who should be old enough to
know better, to convince the world in
general, and their friends n particu-
lar, that they have no character at
all. Take a walk down Broadw i, or
any of the great Avenues, of an after
noon, and among the thousands who
pass you, it is only here and there
that you meet a man who you wonld
be willing to swear was an American.
Go to Paris, and after you had been
there week you might safely make
an affidavit that seven at least, out of
every ten men you meet, are French
men. If yon are in Berlin, you can
pick the Germans ont every time. In
Edinburgh or Glasgow you can always
tell Scotchman, and in Belfast or
Dublin you could recognize Paddy
among a million-bnt it is not so in
New York. Every other man you
meet might be any thing, or come from
anywhere-as we'll as from any por-
ton If the United States-and yet the
majority of them are Americans, and
except when they are abroad one
would think they were ashamed of
their nationality. The death of Gepio
G.. Scott, a short time since, whose
literary estate was put under the ham
ner this week, reminds me of the
great change which has taken place in
our fashions. Scott, yon remember,
nsed to publish those admirable fash
ion plates, which were the delight of
tn11.>rfc hon r.
years-and what fashion plates they
were! In a beautiful landscape, sur
rounded by trees and flowers and
waterfalls, you could see Daniel Web
ster, in a blue swallow-tail and buff
vest--and Henry Clay, done up in a
nice frock coat and pants that fitted
him, looking just like the orator that
he was, man for people to admire.
How wonld he look now, in one of
those horrible States prison ulsters,
with striped pants and speckled
vest, red neck tie and Derby hat.
with rim about half an inch wide,
which makes mans head look like
an ill-made pudding that had burst
the bagf l never walk down Broad
way of an afternoon but | think of
that magnificent chorus iD Pinafore.
" For he is an Englishman; tits great
" to his credit that he is an English
man." All of our youth appear to
think so, at least, for niue out of ten
OF them look as if they might have
been born within the sound of Bow
Bells. The present style of dress is
simply abominable; it has neither
taste nor beauty, nor any thing else,
except convenience, to recommend it:
and If that he the standard of dress.
we might as we'll go back to the orr
glnal sack, with hole cut in one end.
or an apron Of fig leaves would he
quite as effective, aud mucl. more or
namental.
ln every thing that pertains to lux
ury we are advancing, the genius
which devotes itself to the creation of
beautiful things seems almost upiyer
sal. | don't know if it is traceable TO
the frequently recurring Worlds Fairs
or not, tut notwithstanding the abom-
Unable taste of our men in dress. there
never was time in our national ex-
lstence when we were surrounded
with as many beautiful things as we
have now; whether it be in the stvles
OF woven goods, in Keramics. in
bronzes, in furniture, and, in fact, in
almost every thing that makes up our
everyday life, the last ten years have
made marked and startling innova-
ton, and now the question il forced
upon us, if this style of things has
added any thing to our national char
acter. 1t costs as much to keep up
the house of respectable mechanic
in New York to-day, as supported a
man OF liberal fortune fifty years ago.
That puts me in mind that a man of
liberal fortune at that time, in any of
the New England or Western States.
was worth from twenty to thirty thou
sand dollars, and that paltry sum
would not make him respectable de-
faulter 10 the year of our Lord 1880.
Ii any one doubts whether we are i'm