New-York tribune., 1919-04-20

Z-M pSyCuOlUSy VI SOAO1O III llo 4Sic-
- A- ton to room decorations is Of
fered under the title Of ''Some
Novel Ideas About Color" in "Gas
Logic" Beginning, the writer says:
"It Is difficult to think of President Will
son being restfully comfortable in room
the prevailing tone Of which Is baby pink.
And a room full of warm reds and rich
colors would probably make him just as
unhappy But it is simple to picture such
man as the late Colonel Roosevelt in the
warm red room with cheerful, deep bright
spots and glowing corners. Why? Because
of the difference of their temperaments.
"The President is a restrained man; he
withholds his emotions, seeming at times
unaffected, cold. On the other hand, Colonel
Roosevelt was q man of more explosive
temperament-a man who expressed his
emotions as he felt them, man of little
restraint, if any. 1nstinctively one asso-
ciates a cold color, blue, with Mr.. Wilson,
and warm color, red with Mr.. Roosevelt.
"The old theory of color, that room to
be restful to an individual must contain
those factors which are missing in his tenn
permanent, is strongly denounced by Henry
J. Dawson, Manhattan interior decorator
with decidedly original viewpoint. His
idea is that the room should be an express
sion of the individuals likes and disposi-
ton.
"President Wilson, because he is re-
strained man, feels a deeper emotion when
moved than the man who always is aroused
and explosively inclined In the course of
days work he restrains himself so much
that by nighttime he has lost a fundamental
part Of his energy. Therefore to regain that
lost energy he must be surrounded with the
qualities which make for his temperament,
namely, quiet and sombreness. But the man
like MIR. Roosevelt loses just as much of
his energy in excitement and, when night
comes, he in turn must regain what he has
lost. Restfulness to him Is implied in
cheerfulness, warmth and color.
"ln other words, explains Mr.. Dawson,
restfulness is subjective; it may not mean
the same thing to any two persons. The
other day the decorator finished room for
one of his friends. Although his client in
sisted upon placing in her main living room
certain furniture which difficult to
place, Mr.. Dawson prided himself that des-
pite the general crowdedness he had ar
ranged everything so that one corner re-
mained bare, with rich shadows brought
out by a dash Of color. To him. this was
perfect spot Of restfulness. But, no sooner
had the woman the empty corner than
she exclaimed: Dear me, look at that
frightful empty hole. l shall have to buy
something for that tomorrow And the
decorator knew she would not be happy un-
til that spot was filled to her, restfulness
meant a lot of furniture. Space worried her
Mr.. Dawson is essentially a believer in
color. Color to him is life. He believes the
only reason persons are satisfied to have
their homes, chiefly apartments, one color
throughout, is because they hold that it is
better to be safe than sorry. Of course, it is
true that light walls, hangngs and wood
work make for lighter rooms and lower gas
bills, but Mr.. Dawson believes we do not
need so much light as we think we do.
"Perhaps it was this belief that
prompted him, thirty-fve years ago, long
before most other persons thought of it, to