Huntsville gazette., 1890-04-19
ANTI-LUxURY UNION.
A Curious German Society to Eliminat,
~ I Joy From Life.


A Curious German Society to Eliminate
~ % Joy From Life.
the latest movement of the social re-
formers in Germany has just eliminated
in the organization of the luxury
Union in Berlin. During its short ex
istence the Union has been too busy
looking up principles and manufacture
ing literature to tell the public very
much concerning its purposes. A few
mentary declarations of principles in
the columns of the Berlin dailies. The
first object of the union is to oppose all
extravagances of fashionable life. The
boundary line. between luxury and COM
fort is, they acknowledge, not very well
defined. The luxuries of life do not be-
gin. in their opinion, just where the
necessities leave of, and the AntiLuxury
Union has not yet been able to decide
altogether just what things belong in
this or that division. Nevertheless
three sets of reprehensible Injuries
have already been selected for the dis
approval Of the Unions members.
These are dinners and suppers which
have more than three courses, last
more than an hour and half, or are
served with more than one quart of wine
per plate; women's high hats, ostrich
feathers, false hair, gowns with trains
and in general every gown which costs
more than twenty-five dollars; mems
evening dress, white kid gloves and
opera hats.
Asfregards the size and furnishing of
houses, the Union is much more liberal
in its views than in the matter of food
and dress. They justify this liberality
on the ground that expenditures for
fine house and elegant furniture are
usually made once for all, and go far to-
ward advancing domestic happiness and
preventing the family from spending
money in public places of amusement.
The Union is especially bitter against
the prevalent extravagances of parents
in rearing their children. Little girls
have too many dolls; little boys too
many tops, building blocks and railway
trains. Both the boys and the girls of
overdressed, are allowed to go to too
many children's parties, and in hun
dred other ways are taught to squandsr
the money of their papa's foolishly. The
members of the Union will be expected
to abolish from their families all the
luxuries enumerated in the Union's
blacklist, to inculcate in the minds of
their children the Unions principles,
and to make propaganda for the anti
luxury movement among their friends.
Every member of the Union will wear
little tin tag on his hat, as sort of
mute apology to his acquaintances for
the plainness of his dress, house or
table.
rla- The leaders of the anti-luxury move
ment, like the true Germans that they
are, have sought to find and to enunciate
a philosophical motive for it. Dr.
Tiburtius, leading member of the
Union and a military physician of high
standing, has stated this motive" as
follows: First, the sight of the lux
uries of the rich excites the hatred and
envy of the poor; second, luxury absorbs
wealth which ought to be used to ameli-
crate the need and suffering of the un-
fortunate, and thus to diminish the dan
ger of social upheaval; third, luxury
weakens not only the strength of the
nation in general, but especially the
strength of that class to which IS given
the task to withstand, through its
weight of intelligence, all efforts Of the
discontented to break down the present
order of societY."-N. Y. Sun.