The Craze For Old Furniture

The New York correspondent of the Louisville Courier-Journal writes:
Of course it is well known that there is a great rage here for old-fashioned furniture. An old sideboard is almost as valuable as an "old master." A very quaint old one, with hideous brass ornaments, stands in William Beard's studio, a thing which he picked up years ago among some old stranded furniture with the aid of a ten-dollar bill. A gentleman from Syracuse, perhaps Antipholus, offered the artist a fifty-dollar bill for it. "I am not dealing in old furniture," was the gentle William's notice of the offer, "but if I were I should hardly take $50 from you when I refused $450 for it last week." The merchant of Syracuse sighed deeply, and meekly said, "When you make up your mind to part with it let me know the price." See the power of this fantastic will, termed fashion. This coveted article, only a few years ago, was literally kicked out of decent society.