Page 2 University Daily Kansan Friday. March 26.1954
'Era of Bad Taste' Describes 19th Century Home Furnishings
By NANCY NEVILLE
Today with the "stream-lined one-story houses featuring picture windows, flat and over-hanging roofs, and contour furniture, we often forget the contrast that existed in the early American homes. The 19th century house was a far-cry from the ranch home of today.
The 19th century is sometimes called the era of bad taste. The causes for the ugliness of many of its products were the manufacture by machinery, the confusing variety of styles, and the lack of taste of newly rich classes.
American furnishings were very much like the massive European styles, although somewhat lighter in weight, smaller, and simpler.
Though the furniture was well made, it was too ornate. Short, broad legs, and massiveness were typical of wall pieces, such as sideboards and bureaus.
Rocking chairs, mirrors, side chairs, and sofas showed strong curves, but lacked fine proportions.
Furniture was made from rosewood, mahogany and walnut. Papier-mache was common, with accessories painted black or dark green, and decorated with colorful flower and fruit designs. Black walnut and horsehair were featured, and needle work was popular for chair, cushions and foot-stool covers.
Layers of draperies and overdraperies of heavy damasks, velvets, and satins gave a restless, romantic and too-elaborate effect. Draperies were voluminous and complicated. The fashionable colors in fabrics were purple, pink, blue, dark green, brown, crimson, and gold. Patterns were large, contrasting, and freely used.
Carpeting was usually from wall to wall with plain dark-colored broadloom. Large floral and scroll patterns were in style.
Our great - grandparents would find the modern house strange indeed. The lack of ornateness and heaviness is very evident today. They would probably wonder about the shapeless masses used for chairs and ornaments, and the "flowing" design of the house.
Approximately 80 students and their advisers from six high schools attended a "Be a Teacher" program here yesterday.
Teaching Career Is Program Topic
The students were from Baldwin, Shawne Mission, Atchison. Leavenworth, Bonner Springs, and Lawrence High schools.
Talks on the career aspects of teaching were made by William D. Wolfe, superintendent of Lawrence schools; Dr. J. W. Twente, professor of education, and H. E. Chandler, associate professor of education.
A panel on "Why Be a Teacher?" was given by Robert W. Ridgway, instructor of education; Mrs. Jo-Anna Hoglund and William H. Cohrane of the Lawrence schools, and LaVonne Godwin and James A. Phillips, both education seniors.
The program concluded with the prospective teachers conferring with faculty representing 11 different specialties.
The Know-Nothing party-anti-Catholic, anti-foreigner—became a political force in the election of 1854.
Social Affairs Were Spice Of Pioneer Life
Bv AMY DE YONG
The busy life of the pioneer days in Kansas was spiced with many interesting social gatherings, some of which still thrive in modern communities.
Despite the hard work and long hours of time-consuming labor, early Kansas settlers found time for such events as taffy pulls, granger parties, surprise parties, and quilting and sewing bees. Even in the deep snows, the settlers fashioned sleighs and drove them to neighboring homesteads for get-to-geathers.
Dancing to violin music was not considered Christian in the 1850s, but accordions were not thought to be so much "instruments of the devil" and so achieved wide popularity. Our modern square dances, now so very much in demand, were special treats for the first Kansans.
Refreshments were usually simple and inexpensive, though some fried cakes, and occasionally pie or cake, were served. One surprise party featured corn bread and black coffee. Religious meetings were a frequent form of entertainment and included visiting, singing, and braver.
Faro was one of the many card games which drew a large percentage of the men to the saloons and gambling dens. Games of chance were particularly appealing to the pioneers and the saloons thrived in the early towns.
Even while the pioneers were on the trail, they gathered around the campfires in the evening for stories, songs, and a few dances. Old land-marks were often the scenes of weddings and dances.
Hoe-digs were one of the most popular honky-tonk dances of which we find accurate description. This was "an approved, yet awkward, country style" of dance in which a cowboy's partner was often swung completely off the floor. The dance commonly ended with a "waltz to the bar" and a round of drinks.
Burchard to Give KLWN Talk
Dr. Waldo Burchard, instructor in sociology, will be Sunday's Sociology on the Air speaker over KLWN with the second in a series of broadcasts based on his doctoral thesis. His talk, entitled "A Study in Role Conflict," will be heard at 3 p.m. Dr. Burchard, who earned his advanced degree at the University of California at Berkeley, taught at the University of Denver before joining the faculty here in the fall of 1953.
Samuel F. B. Morse's telegraph was successfully introduced in 1844. A seemingly unimportant invention of 1849 was the modern-day safety pin, invented by Walter Hunt.
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