Year: 1878

From @ translation in the Penn Monthly.
/ have ever held that America was
| bound, sooner or later, to develop an art
| industry movement of it's own not that I
| fancied protective tariffs could operate as
| a hot bed or nursery of art, but that the
| history of nations cannot prove America
| an exception to the common rule. A young


nation is very properly likened to the
| poor boy, who, grown rich later in life by


the work of his hands or brain, rarely en-
| joys the true reward of his labor, viz: re-


fined luxury and the enjoyment of art and
| it's products, because he had no time to


spare for acquiring that education which


alone could enable BIN to appreciate re.
| fined taste. AS rule he would rest CON
| tent with the consciousness of wealth and


of the power begotten by it, and he would


value more highly the independent feeling
| of being the architect of his own fortune


than the pleasures of q connoisseur of tue
fine arts. His sons and grapdsons, rich


from their cradle, and probably very care


fully educated, will, of necessity, be very


different beings, and will appreciate the


beautiful, or, if they do not, they will at


least feel the desire or the need of it.


Given the latter, in this case of the indi-


vidual or in that of young nation, art


and industry will be sure to come for ward


with their products. For a while the in


dustry of older countries will supply this


want, but the larger the means Of crafty


ing taste the sooner an effort will be made
at home, and ere long native talent and


genius, the very existence of which was
unexpected, will be found coming to the
front as Suddenly and with as little warn
ing as mushrooms crop up over night.


America is in this position. Ever in
creasing, occasionally Incredible wealth
has existed there for several generations.
The hour of enjoyment, the need of a
higher kind of luxury and splendor has
come, although the thorough appreciation
of it is by no meane general as yet. Here
cities have catered for America, supplying
ancient Cor mock ancienD and modern
productions of Industrial art. But the
larger the demand upon Europe, the sooner
the creation of q native art industry was to
be foreseen, the more go since schools to |
time.


Oar hopes were not deceived. There is |
in the Paris fair distinct evidence of |
art-industry movement in Amer
lea, and the single example which affords |
this evidence is so brilliant and conspic-
1ous that it Is impossible to assume that
t stands alone-it must be the representa-
i've of a SCHOOL of young and vigorous
growth. But it is not solely because it
marks the beginning of an era of American
IIt industry, but also because it really
anks among the fret of it's kind in this
that We mention the gold and
work of Messrs. Tiffany &c..
# New York it is behind none of it's
European rivals work in variety and per
ection of workmanship, and it excels m oct
# the latter in originality and novelty of
.esign.


Though the Tiffanys are the only man
facturers in the United States represent
d in this fair who command our unstinted
raise, the very fact that such work as
heirs is produced in America convinces
q that there must be in that country other
ative talent, destined to give form and
hape to its art-industTy movement.


We cannot refrain from noticing the l
xtremely neat finish of some of the
.merican plated articles, but, from our T
ONT of view, neither these nor the pottery,
or the most of the smaller objects OF
'welry exhibited by other firms are much K
lore valuable than the excellent Iadies' Z
resses and delicately worked and EN-. j
roidered ladies' shoes shown in tue 9,
merican section. SI