Our (lountrij Villages 331 



The next step, after the possession of such public pleasure 

 grounds, would be the social and common enjoyment of 

 them. Upon the well-mown glades of lawn, and beneath 

 the shade of the forest trees, would be formed rustic seats. 

 Little arbors would be placed near, where in midsummer 

 evenings ices would be served to all who wished them. And, 

 lit lie by little, the musical taste of the village (with the help 

 of those good musical folks, the German emigrants) would 

 organize itself into a band, which would occasionally delight 

 the ears of all frequenters of the park with popular airs. 



Do we overrate the mental and moral influences of such a 

 common ground of entertainment as this when we say that 

 the inhabitants of such a village, enjoying in this way a 

 common interest in flowers, trees, the fresh air, and sweet 

 music daily, would have something more healthful than the 

 ordinary life of cities, and more refining and elevating than 

 the common gossip of country villages? 



"Ah! I see, Mr. Editor, you are a bit of a communist." 

 By no means. On the contrary, we believe, above all things 

 under heaven, in the power and virtue of the individual home. 

 We devote our life and humble efforts to raising its condition. 

 But people must live in towns and villages, and therefore let 

 us raise the condition of towns and villages, and especially of 

 rural towns and villages, by all possible means! 



But we are republican; and, shall we confess it, \ve are a 

 little vexed that as a people generally, we do not see how 

 much in America we lose by not using the advantages of 

 republicanism. We mean now, for refined culture, physical 

 comfort, and the like. Republican education we are now 

 beginning pretty well to understand the value of, and it 

 will not be long before it will be hard to find a native citizen 

 who cannot read and write. And this comes by making 

 every man see what a great moral and intellectual good 

 comes from cheerfully bearing a part in the burden of popu- 



are developed either as scenery or as playgrounds, not as museums. This 

 may be only a matter of fashion and not a final expression of national 

 character, but for the present it seems to represent the best taste of 

 America. F. A. W. 



