Page:Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal, Volume 1, 1869.djvu/917

 18G9.J Descriptions. 745 DESCEIPTIONS. BOSTON BUILDING. Suburban Yilla in the French Style. BOSTON has a peculiarity or two in its domestic buildings, that we think might be judiciously adopted else- where ; for, desirable improvements should be shared in by the nation at large ; as such are not or ought not to be the exclusive right, of anyone locality. In this respect Architecture is pre- eminently in advance of all the arts and sciences ; for, although the architect is ever and always inventing something to add to the stability, comfort, appear- ance, or economy of his compositions, yet he does not dream of selfishly securing his, frequently very valuable, ideas to himself. No, they are open to all, to be copied as widely as their intrinsic worth will warrant. This liberality is credi- table to the profession everywhere, but nowhere more so than in this country, where every inventor or discoverer of the most unimportant trifle rushes eagerly to the protection of the Patent Office, lest any one else may hit upon the same happy thought, or maybe steal his, and wrong him of his darling prop- erty. Every city has some certain charcteristiccharacteristic [sic] features of architecture which ap- pear to have sprung into existence in it and been there matured. An inter- change of such characteristics would be advisable and desirable amongst the cities of our Union, and this is one of the various uses to which the Archi-