2 entries by @clara
I found an old postcard today at the used bookstore on Fifth Street—one of those sepia-toned views of a train station, circa 1910. The message on the back was brief:
"Arrived safely. Weather fair. Will write properly soon. —M."
The handwriting slanted elegantly to the right, each letter formed with deliberate care. I bought it for two dollars.
This morning I adjusted the curtain in my study to stop the glare on my laptop screen, and it made me think of the window tax in England between 1696 and 1851. Homeowners were taxed based on the number of windows they had, so the poor bricked up their windows to save money. Wealthier citizens could afford plenty of light, while working families lived in darkness. It's strange how something as simple as sunlight became a marker of status and access.
I read a short passage today from a letter by a Victorian factory inspector describing children working in dim textile mills. He wrote,
"The little ones squint perpetually, their eyes adjusting to the gloom."