 | Letters of Mrs. Adams, |  |
TO MISS LUCY CRANCH.
Your kind letter, my dear niece, was received
with much pleasure. These tokens of love and regard
which I know flow from the heart, always find
their way to mine, and give me a satisfaction and
pleasure beyond any thing which the ceremony and
pomp of courts and kingdoms can afford. The social
affections are and may be made the truest
channels for our pleasures and comforts to flow
through. Heaven formed us not for ourselves but
others,
Perhaps there is no country where there is a
fuller exercise of those virtues than ours at present
exhibits, which is in a great measure owing to the
equal distribution of property, the small number of
inhabitants in proportion to its territory, the equal
distribution of justice to the poor as well as the
rich, to a government founded in justice and exercised
with impartiality, and to a religion which
teaches peace and good will to man; to knowledge
and learning being so easily acquired and so universally
distributed; and to that sense of moral obligation
which generally inclines our countrymen to
do to others as they would that others should do to
them. Perhaps you will think that I allow to them
am only speaking comparatively. Human nature is
much the same in all countries, but it is the government,
the laws, and religion, which form the character
of a nation. Wherever luxury abounds, there
you will find corruption and degeneracy of manners.
Wretches that we are, thus to misuse the bounties of
Providence, to forget the hand that blesses us, and
even deny the source from whence we derived our
being.
But I grow too serious. To amuse you, then, my
dear niece, I will give you an account of the dress
of the ladies at the ball of the Comte d'Adhmar;
as your cousin tells me that she some time ago gave
you a history of the birth-day and ball at Court, this
may serve as a counterpart. Though, should I attempt
to compare the apartments, St. James's would
fall as much short of the French Ambassador's, as
the Court of his Britannic Majesty does of the splendor
and magnificence of that of his Most Christian
Majesty. I am sure I never saw an assembly room
in America, which did not exceed that at St.
James's in point of elegance and decoration; and,
as to its fair visiters, not all their blaze of diamonds
set off with Parisian rouge, can match the blooming
health, the sparkling eye, and modest deportment of
the dear girls of my native land. As to the dancing,
the space they had to move in gave them no opportunity
to display the grace of a minuet, and the
full dress of long court-trains and enormous hoops,
you well know were not favorable for country
so the other evening. They were much more properly
clad;—silk waists, gauze or white or painted
tiffany coats decorated with ribbon, beads or flowers,
as fancy directed, were chiefly worn by the young
ladies. Hats turned up at the sides with diamond
loops and buttons of steel, large bows of ribbons
and wreaths of flowers, displayed themselves to
much advantage upon the heads of some of the
prettiest girls England can boast. The light from
the lustres is more favorable to beauty than daylight,
and the color acquired by dancing, more becoming
than rouge, as fancy dresses are more favorable to
youth than the formality of a uniform. There was
as great a variety of pretty dresses, borrowed wholly
from France, as I have ever seen; and amongst the
rest, some with sapphire-blue satin waists, spangled
with silver, and laced down the back and seams with
silver stripes; white satin petticoats trimmed with
black and blue velvet ribbon; an odd kind of headdress,
which they term the "helmet of Minerva." I
did not observe the bird of wisdom, however, nor do
I know whether those who wore the dress had suitable
pretensions to it. "And pray," say you, "how
were my aunt and cousin dressed?" If it will gratify
you to know, you shall hear. Your aunt, then, wore
a full-dress court cap without the lappets, in which
was a wreath of white flowers, and blue sheafs, two
black and blue flat feathers (which cost her half a
guinea a-piece, but that you need not tell of), three
pearl pins, bought for Court, and a pair of pearl earrings,
diamonds, however. A sapphire blue demi-saison
with a satin stripe, sack and petticoat trimmed with
a broad black lace; crape flounce, &c.; leaves
made of blue ribbon, and trimmed with white floss;
wreaths of black velvet ribbon spotted with steel
beads, which are much in fashion, and brought to
such perfection as to resemble diamonds; white
ribbon also in the Vandyke style, made up of the
trimming, which looked very elegant; a full dress
handkerchief, and a bouquet of roses. "Full gay, I
think, for my aunt." That is true, Lucy, but nobody
is old in Europe. I was seated next the Duchess of
Bedford, who had a scarlet satin sack and coat, with
a cushion full of diamonds, for hair she has none,
and is but seventy-six, neither. Well, now for your
cousin; a small, white Leghorn hat, bound with
pink satin ribbon; a steel buckle and band which
turned up at the side, and confined a large pink bow;
large bow of the same kind of ribbon behind; a
wreath of full-blown roses round the crown, and
another of buds and roses withinside the hat, which
being placed at the back of the hair, brought the roses
to the edge; you see it clearly; one red and black
feather, with two white ones, completed the headdress.
A gown and coat of Chambéri gauze, with
a red satin stripe over a pink waist, and coat flounced
with crape, trimmed with broad point and pink ribbon;
wreaths of roses across the coat; gauze sleeves
and ruffles. But the poor girl was so sick with a
cold, that she could not enjoy herself, and we retired
which you have lost half a sheet of paper, I dare
say; but I cannot close without describing to you
Lady N—and her daughter. She is as large as
Captain C—'s wife, and much such a made woman,
with a much fuller face, of the color and complexion
of Mrs. G—, who formerly lived with your
uncle Palmer, and looks as if porter and beef stood
no chance before her; add to this, that it is covered
with large red pimples, over which, to help the natural
redness, a coat of rouge is spread; and, to
assist her shape, she was dressed in white satin,
trimmed with scarlet ribbon. Miss N—is not so
large, nor quite so red, but has a very small eye with
the most impudent face you can possibly form an
idea of, joined to manners so masculine, that I was
obliged frequently to recollect that line of Dr.
Young's,
to persuade myself that I was not mistaken.
Thus, my dear girl, you have an account which
perhaps may amuse you a little. You must excuse
my not copying; I fear, now, I shall not get nearly
all my letters ready,—my pen very bad, as you see;
and I am engaged three days this week,—to a rout
at the Baroness de Nolken's, the Swedish minister's,
to a ball on Thursday evening, and to a dinner on
Saturday. Do not fear that your aunt will become
dissipated, or in love with European manners; but,
as opportunity offers, I wish to see this European
still moralize with Yorick, or with one more experienced,
and say "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity."
| Letters of Mrs. Adams, | |