The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1872-07-03
The Sins Of American Good Nature

gardel rs tho moSt prominent char
actcrstic of tho people of the coun.
try. He replied: The Americans
are tho best naturcd people on the
face of tho earth" His judgment
was entirely just. There is no other
people, of anything like equal intel
! fligence. that 20 absolutely refuses to
be irri,ated bv the inposi,ions and
annoyanccs of life. If an American
is cheated in y shop, ho simply re.
frains from entering the shop again.
Instead Of returning and demanding
his rights, he pockvtcd his bad bar
gain because he does not like = quar-
rel, and cannot afford to take the
trouble of it. After paying for IL
horse-car, the American holds hlWselt
ready to yield his right t. any lady
that enters, and to continue yielding
his right until he is packed, sta 'ding
like Il bullock in 4 cattle train, with
fifty others, one half of whom, in
England or France, never would have
been permitted to step foot upon the
platform. The American consents
that there shall be no such word as
''cor,pIe" attached to any public con.
vcyance. If . railway conductor, or
u hotel clerk, or shorkecpcr's clerk,
or any person whose business tits to
be courteous to tho public. puts on
airs and snubs the American cuslo-
mcr, it is the ordinary habit OF that
customer to stand it" rather. than
protest and insist on tho treatment
which he ought to receive. Rogues
get into office. and, with big hands in
tho public purse, help themselves to
it's contents. and continue to do this
year otter year. tho owners Of the
purse all the time knowing the fact.
yet being TOO easy and good:natured
to make even an outcry. Everybody
is busy, nearly cveryhody is bnsy,
nearly everybody is prosperous. and
30 the evils that would stir the blood
of and Englishman to boiling. ana
aronso all his combativcucss, are
quietly ignored. or carefully Stunned.
1t is not y pleasant thing to eay, or
torehect upon, but the plain truth is
that there is something cowardly and
unmanIy in all this. We have no spe-
cial admiration of the loneliness of
an Englishman regarding the sacred
rights of his personality. The hedge
hoy is not an :lgrceablc bird, and we
nuyo no wish TO sec it substituted for
the American eagle; but bundle Of
qnills is Better calculated to command
respect than a ball of pntty. The
man wto stands .tiffly in his tracks
and says, 'touch me not!" presents a
very much more respectable appear
ancc than the man who lodges him
and even other ubs,ac!es which he
encounters in tis way. We arc all
very much afraid Of hurting the
feelings Of somebody, when We know,
or ought to know, t at someIod dy's
feelings ought to be hurt, and that
nothing would do somebody 80 much
good as to have his feelings hurt. We
forget that there arc things Of i'fin-
itcly greater Importance than bad
people Il feelings things to which We
owe infinitely higher duty A man
has no moral right to permit himself
to be r"bhed or cheated If he tame
|y submits to such q crime he becomes
accessory to it, and encourages the
rascal ut whose hand he has suffeaed
TO make Il victim Of the next unsus-
pecting customer.
The characteristic American good
nature not only encourages and con-
ftrs impunity upon all sorts of. wrong,
but it seriously reacts upon American
charac cr. 1t begcts ol.ration of
every kind of moral evil that brings
ut last inseusibiIily to it. There cam
not be very wide moral difference
between the man who commits the
crime and the man who weakly toler-
a:es it. The active sinner is, if any
thing. the hravcr and tho noblcr Of
the two. Ilc ut leasts maniicsts u
courage which the other does not.
There is no hing that America needs
more than tho bold and persistent as
scr,ion, in every practical way, Of its
sense of what is fair and honest. an"
right aud proper aud courteous, be.
tween man and man. If every good
man would stand squarely by this,
even al the sacrifice Of his reputation
for gooL-nature, no would find him
self growing better day by day; he
would find that he good clements of
society were rapidly gaining infln-
ence, and that roynes were growing
careful and getting scarce.
Corporations like those which man
aye our railroads will impose upon
the public just as long as the popular
good-nature will permit them to do.
Their primary object is to make
money. This will furnish to tho pub
lie just such accommodations as the
public will be content with, and those
accommodation will be insufficient
and mean unless the public demand
moro and letter.
There arc more evils than wo can
count that grow directly or Indirect
ly ont of national good-ture Our
hearts need hardening, and our backs
need stitfening. We ought TO possess
more manlinrss, and we ought to cx-
ercise it. To insist upon our rights
in II manly and temperate way, is TO
give lesson in Christian civilization.
1t makes US stronger and more self.
respectful, and restraints the spirit of
! /, ~ lrsyu.ss nrnund us One Drlrtn j.