Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1882-10-20

The summer pilgrim seeking retired rural
retreat, and the victim of the slack baked
bread the white doughty pie, the close room,
the feather bed, the general discomfort and
tastelessness which have characterized so
much country life, hail with delight the ad-
vent of the village improvement societies and
the sanitary associations of recent years The
general aspects of that life, however, are al
ways most gratifying 20 the observing trav-
eler. The small farms, the pretty villages
the air of general thrift and comfort, in the
older parts of the country at least imply
self-relying intelligent and efficient people of
equal condition.
The rural traveller in New England, for in
stance, sees no evidence of vast wealth by the
side of extreme poverty, no sign of classes
and ranks, no peasant and no peer but vast
industrious community OF equal citizens. He
remembers i'll picturesque and historic Europe
not only different landscape, but different
suggestion Of the landscape. Caste, rank,
class are written all over the face of Europe,
There are everywhere the castle and the cot
tage, the palace and the hut the great estate,
the grand seigneur the nobleman's seat, am.
pile parks and pleasure grounds, the vast do
main stretching from sea to sea, the lords
and the laborers, the chiefs and the Deepen
dents. 1t is still, although OF course, with
extreme amelioration, modified feudal land
hChpe JuhI Tue Traveller DenOlu5. It's SuBgeS-
tions are of rank and class of dependence,
and of vast social inequality, and from the
loyeliest Italian landscape, from the Saxon,
Switzerland or the shores of the Danube, his
memory turns proudly to the valleys of the
Connecticut and the Hudson, to the green
hills Of western Massachusetts or the golden
granary of central New York
1t is not, therefore, from any indifference
or any want of patriotic pride and apprecia.
ton that the victim of the pie and the beef
steak fried in grease, the wayfsrer along the
burning and dusty village street, the observer
who marks the ruthless cutting of the leaders
of young shade trees and the loss by mere
neglect and unimproyement, of the rich OPP
portunity of beauty which every village Of
fers, salutes the modern spirit which propos-
es to shade the street. to beautify the grounds,
to train the vines over the porch, to trim the
walks and edges of the grass to shave little
lawn, to Danish unsightly rubbish, TO level
the fences where they can be spared, to keep
walls and hedges in repair, and to develop
inexpensively the natural advantages of the
village, while within the house it gently
browns the bread and brois the steak, and
opens the blinds and windows, and airs and
suns the roons and restores the fire. place,
and secures the pretty view, and cares for
grace and taste as well as for cleanliness and
order.
This sanitary and decorative spirit has
already produced the village improvement as
soclatons, and this summer q national ALSO
citation for sanitary and rural improvement
has been formed, with an excellent list OF Of
fcers, and with capital series of papers
read at the first meeting, which was held at
Greenwood lake in New Jersery 1t is evil
dent that no point involving health, comfort,
or beauty will escape attention, from arsenic
vuall no tf, 4
proper school age OF children. Nothing could
more plainly reveal the identity of all com
mon interests than this movement for health
and beauty. The farmer who thinks that
beauty means lazy boys, and girls dawdling
in silk gowns, holds that money is the test of
value and he wants to increase the worth of
his land and to extend his market not to
bother about trimming grounds and beautify-
ing things. Now, as the man says in the
play, why, cert'nly." And how would the
farmer do it? He is as near to the city as he
will ever be, and it is by contact in some
form with the city that his lands will rise in
value If the mountain will not come to the
prophet, let him go to the mountain. II the
farmer cannot go to the city, let him draw
the city to him. And how shall he do it?
BY making his land attractive. Let him
consider. If the village near him is quiet
and pleasant il the street is well shaded
with trees, and the walks are well laid and
trimmed if the green about tho meeting
house is carefully kept, and is not a mere
bare pasture; If the houses are neatly paint
ed and the grounds are nicely kept, though
they be only grass-plot if the rooms are
airy and the plain food well cooked; if the
village shows interest and care and pride up
on the part of the villagers-does he not see
that it is the place to which tho city will come
with delight, and in which citizens who wish
to have snug and refreshing retreat for the
summer will be sure to plant themselves? 1t
is in this way that the farmer will learn the
fuses of beauty" of which Tx Marvel told
us in his charming lecture long ago. And it
is the object of the new national association
not only to show that this kind of improve
ment is desirable for every rural community,
but to point out the simple and efficaoious
methods of securing wallpapers Easy CAqir
for October.