, 1886-04-16
PICTURE OF AN IDEAL CITY.


The Houses Of = city Beautifuir-A
Higher Mode of Observation-Disclosures.
ut is a very pleasant picture" I re-
marked as my guide paused; -butI am
surprised to see no grand private man
sions. Where do your wealthy IRE
side 2"
What matters it where they reside 2
answered my guide; "are not the wealthy
sumptuously housed in all cities and in
all lands7 | am not asking you to look
at ostentation and splendor. for these
things are everywhere. but on h beauty
that may come to the poor mans door
and be enjoyed by every citizen, however
little he may be endowed with riches"
Now look and tell me what you see,-
said my guide, pausing on oncofthe wide
avenues of the city. POI.
"A long stretch OF embowered cot
tages,r | answered. an what do they
differ | asked, from similar homes in
all our American citiesl" OIa
"In little replied my guide, except
that in our City Beautiful these charm
ing homes are not in one aTenu alone,
for the occupancy Of afortunnte few, but
they are everywhere. some less spacious
than others, but always there is a neat.
tasteful, healthy and charming cottage
for every man who is not an idler and a
vagabond. There are nc slums in our
city. There is no squalor.
The aspects Of our city encourage a
higher mode of living. and by requiring
that the poorest mans house shall have
requisite space, that he shall have ar
abundance OF fresh air and pure water,
and by insisting that his public acts
shall be Clearly and with a regard TO
decency and the rights Of others, we set
him, as it were, on the road to self
respect and seemly living.
you will observe said my guide,
that the architecture Of these long
rows OF cottages and villas is almost Sc
we're. The lines are very good, the pro-
portions harmonious, the colors agreea-
BILE, and the general effect eminently
pleasing; but mere o-rnamentation is ex-
Guided almost altogether. The charac-
~teristic OF most modern houses, especially
of suburban houses, is a great deal of
cheap and vulgar ostentation. Filligree
work is the rule of these houses. The
cornices are supported by fancy scroll
work brackets, the roofs of the piazzas
and the porches are decorated with
scalloped attachments, and wherever
there is an opportunity some cheap de-
vice Of the carver is nailed on. There is
no beauty in pretense of any kind. and
when the pretense is t~ransparently false,
when it consists Of meaningless and vul-
gar display, it excites simply feelings OF
repulsion.
1t has been necessary to persistently
enforce this elementary principle upon
our people, and now it is rarely that one
sees those displays of LIGHTHOUSE architect
ures that are TO be found elsewhere in
our country. Look at those chimneys,
single or in clusters, that stretch far down
the vista: each of them is of brick md
stone, gracefully broken by skillful and
artistic uses of their material They are
ornamental, but the ornament is a
durable part Of themselves and the
effect is good. Look at the pointed
gables, at the charmingly curved roof
lines. We have not imported hideous
limitations OF the mansard roof. and we
know very well that a long row Of fiat
roofs, with a straight. unbroken oornice
line, is a m%onstrosity that could only
have birth in a mind whose Opaque dark
ness no ray Of artistic light had we
entered--o. B. Bunce in Chicago Times.