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Yes, the Wild West was lawless, and probably quite ill-smelling and fetid in its own right. I was also surprised at the vitriol he aimed at the frontier lands. It's not like someone dropped a 21st century person down in the middle of the fetid streets of Victorian New York City, rancid with decaying meat and the aforementioned manure and the lack of proper sewage and any fresh air. While people didn't enjoy the terrible smells of the horse manure littering the busy city streets, it's what they knew and were used to. But while it's true that we shouldn't recall those more simple days with rose-colored glasses, I have a really hard time believing they were that horrible to everyone. Yes, I know the system was broken throughout much of the 19th century, with crooked politicians and doctors unaware of germ theory and kids being forced to work long hours for meager pay and food being adulterated with horrible things. However, by the time I hit the middle of the book, I felt like I was being walloped over the head with pessimism. But there are loads of illustrations, and the text is brief. It only took me a day to read, which is quite quick, even for me. I really should have picked up a copy of The House of Seven Gables itself, but I figured I'd never get around to reading it since I'm terrible about reading the classics. However, by the time I hit the middle of the book, I felt like I was being walloped o Yesterday, I picked up this book at The House of Seven Gables in Salem, Massachusetts.
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Yesterday, I picked up this book at The House of Seven Gables in Salem, Massachusetts. For anyone who thinks that those days were like the American equivalent of a Jane Austen novel, read this book. This book also explores the reality behind housing (tenements), work (child labor and sweatshops) and education (corporal punishment and very unqualified teachers). Hospitals, with non-existent standards of hygiene, were basically deathtraps. Adulteration of food was commonplace loaves of bread frequently contained ash from the baker’s oven and grit from his machinery.Īlcoholic children were not uncommon, as a result of many trips to the local bar to fill a pitcher of "beer for father." Most medical schools were run by people more interested in tuition fees than standards, thereby graduating many who knew nothing about medicine. Butter was often rancid, and contained bleach, calcium, hog fat or mashed potatoes. To improve the color of milk taken from diseased cows, dairymen frequently added chalk, molasses or plaster of Paris. Milk was diluted with water, and everyone knew it. Frequently, the snowplows became stuck in the snow, making a bad traffic problem that much worse. Keeping the streets semi-clear for horse-drawn trolleys was most important. In the winter, horse-drawn snowplows did not do much more than move the snow a few feet. People risked their lives attempting to cross major streets like Broadway, because there were no traffic laws. Western towns were dirty, with horses creating fly-infested cesspools around the hitching posts. In the rain, those garbage piles turned into slime beds. In New York City, garbage (including horse manure) was piled high on city sidewalks. This book takes a very clear-eyed look at just how "good" those days really were. "The Good Old Days" lasted from approximately 1865 to 1900. Western towns were dirty, with horses creating fly-infested cesspools around the hitching In these days of AIDS, the Internet and nuclear weapons, it is very tempting to look back to a simpler age in American history.
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In these days of AIDS, the Internet and nuclear weapons, it is very tempting to look back to a simpler age in American history.