St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-07-11
FERTILE IN DOMESTIC 1nFE11c1r1Es.


domestic infelicities of this country than
all other things combined Society is so
artificial there that no sure Judgment of
character can be formed Those who
form companionships amid such circum-
stances go into lottery where there are
twenty blanks to one prize. In the severe
tug of life you want more than glitter and
splash. Life is not ballroom, where the
music decides the step and bow and
prance, and graceful swing of long trail
can make. up for strong common sense.
You might as well go among the gayly-
painted yachts of a summer regatta to
find war vessels as to go among the light
spray of the summer watering place to
find character that can stand the test of
the great struggle of human life. All, in
the battle of life you want stronger
weapon than lace fan or a croquet mall
let! The load of life is SO heavy that in
order to draw it you want team stronger
than one made up of masculine grass
hopper and feminine butterfly. If there
is any man in the community that excites
my contempt, and that ought to ex-
cite the contempt of every man and
woman, it is the soft handed, soft-headed
fop, who, perfumed until theair is actually
sick, spends his summer in taking killing
attitudes and waving sentimental adieus,
and talking infnitessimal nothings, and
finding his heaven in the set of lavender
kid glove; boots as tight as an inquisition;
two hours of consummate skill exhibited
in the tie of a flaming cravat; his CONVEX
sation made up of 'Ahsw and "Ohsv' and
'fHe-heesw 1t would take five hundred of
them stewed down to make a teaspoonful
of calf's-foot jelly. There is one counter
part to such man as that, and that is the
frothy young woman at the watering
place; her conversation is made up of
French moonshine; what she has on her
head only equaled by what she has on her
back; useless ever since she was born and
to be useless until she is dead; and what
they will do with her in the next world
do not know, except to set her upon the
banks of the River of Life for eternity to
look sweet! God intends US to admire
music and fair faces and graceful step;
but amid the heartlessness and the infla-
ton and the fantastic influences of our
modern watering places, beware how you
make lifelong covenants.
BANEFUL LITERATURE.
Another temptation that will hover over
the watering places is that of baneful lit
erature. Almost every one starting off for
the summer takes some reading matter.
1t is book out of the library or off the
bookstand, or bought of the boy hawking
books through the cars. really believe
there is more pestiferous trash read among
the intelligent classes in July and August
than in all the other ten months of the
year. Men and women who at home would
not be satisfied with book that was not
really sensible I found sitting on hotel
piazzas or under the trees reading books
the index of which would make them blush
il they knew that you knew what the book
was. "Oh," they say, "you must have in
telIectual recreation" Yes. There is no
need that you take along into watering
place 'Hamilton's Metaphysics" or some
thunderous discourse on the eternal de-
crees, or "Faraday's Philosophy" There
are many easy books that are good. You
might as well say: 81 propose now to give
little rest to my digestive organs, and
instead of eating heavy meat and vege-
tables [ will for a little while take
lighter food-a little strychnine and few
grains of ratsbane." Literary poison in
August is as bad as literary poison in De-
cember..f Mark that. Do not let the frogs
and the lice of a corrupt printing press
jump and crawl into your Saratoga trunk
or White Mountain valise. Would it not
be an awful thing for you to be struck
with lightning some day when you had in
your hand one Of these paper-covered ro-
mances-the hero Partisan roue, the
heroine an unprincipled firt-chapters in
the book that you would not read to your
children at the rate of hundred dollars a
line? Throw out all that stuff from your
summer baggage. Are there not good
books that are easy to read-books of en-
pertaining travel; books of congenial his
tory; books of pure fun; books of poetry,
ringing with merry canto; books of fine
engraving; books that will rest the mind
as well as purify the heart and elevate the
whole life? My hearers, there will not be
an hour between this and the day of your
death when you can afford to read book
lacking in moral principle.
INTOXICATING DRINKS.
Another temptation lowering all around
our watering places is to Intoxicating
beverages. am told that it is becoming
more and more fashionable for women to
drink care not how well woman may
dress, if she has taken enough OF wine to
flush her cheek and put glassiness on her
eye, she is intoxicated. She may be hand
ed into twenty-five hundred dollar car
riage and have diamonds enough to con-
found the Tiffany's-she is intoxicated.
She may be graduate of Packer Insti-
tute, and the daughter of some man in
danger of being nominated for the. Presi-
dency-she is drunk. You may have a
larger vocabulary than have, and you