Any retrogression from the standard of living which we are accustomed to regard as worthy in this respect is felt to be a grievous violation of our human dignity.

So, also, for the last dozen years candles have been a more pleasing source of light at dinner than any other.

Candlelight is now softer, less distressing to well-bred eyes, than oil, gas, or electric light.

The same could not have been said thirty years ago, when candles were, or recently had been, the cheapest available light for domestic use.

Nor are candles even now found to give an acceptable or effective light for any other than a ceremonial illumination.
A political sage still living has summed up the conclusion of this whole matter in the dictum: "A cheap coat makes a cheap man," and there is probably no one who does not feel the convincing force of the maxim.
The habit of looking for the marks of superfluous expensiveness in goods, and of requiring that all goods should afford some utility of the indirect or invidious sort, leads to a change in the standards by which the utility of goods is gauged.