, 1873-01-26
The Galaxy, Harper's Magazine,
North American Review, and
Catholic World.
Impo1iteness as a National In
stitution---Women as
Companions.
South African Diamond-Fields---
The Mont dc Piete---Life
of Eastern Women.

fshment-..The Causes Of the Com
mune -. Who Made Our
LaWs2---ctc., etc.
THE GALAXY.
:'Csrl Benson,n in his % Casual Cogitations, ii
In tho Galazy for February, talks in his pleasant
WY about
nPoLIrESEss AS NATIONAL INSTITUTION.
He does not agree with English critics, !" one Of
whom has recently asserted that any inciyiGty
observed or suffered by q tourist in America is
provoked by an assumption Of superiority in
the wording Of the strangers address. How
ever polite bis manner, tho zoords have implied
that ho was in q social position above that Of
the native; hence the 1atter's 'self-assertion,
ss one of cur own writer's ouphcmizeB it." Nor
does be coincide with what he calls the Trollo-
pian theory. that the democracy, being told
they are equal to all men. and finding by ex-
perience that they are inferior in many respects
OF culture and refinement, try to reassert them
selves by being brutal to every ono apparently
richer or better educated or behaved than
themselves:
The Trolopian theory equally fails to account for
the Jack-n-offce nuisance,-a nuisance, we uay re-
marx, common to all OF nearly all civilized countries,
I'D 10 4 CfllalI pQlut, DuL WHICH ua6 1HSum6U mQSt
stupandous and au-perynding proportions on our
The ovsrbea1ing tnsolenco Of the 9ack,in-oface,
through ali his varieties, from the hotel bootback to
tesque pitch TINT the sufferer even II blessed
humor aad pe Is ofen tspesd
By the absurdity Of the annoyanco to overlook
number Of these persous-cersain1y majority Of them
u.s. TINT their dignity requires them to 1na1ead, snub,
disobdge, or in some petty WY annoy every person Of
rc5na
with them Ihave heard hotelcerk utter three plump
1sehoods in order to escape the humiliation Of being
which indeed he could not have refused or avoided
cspt ut the risk Of lawsuit. have heard express
clerk Lie with equal cooneas solely the purpose Of
giving unnecessary trouble.
'Carl Benson" gives explanations OF his own
for American incivility. First is the constant
hurry of the American; then, tho foreign ele-
meut:
Thero are other causes,-son:e general, appic-
able to particular classes Thus, our Jack-in-otace
combination Of influences At a not very distant
period al the country in tho condition which We
suu hod it's Western Territories, where the lack Of
public accommodation Ia such that every man who
setres the public really confers favor on it. Thus
The landlord driver transpo1tskon agent ets, &C.
the progress Of civilization and competition had
broken up his monopoly. A foreign diplomatic friend
New Eog1and State bordering on Canada. This
State enjoys great ~ reputation for virtue
Rnd puritan tIadlC0uA. Line tnlaDlf1Qt8 are SAID
70 be nearly all aquartans, and to have no pub
Lie anuse1nents except unlimited lectures and an oc
casionh horse-troi. Nevertheless, suspect II is
very disagreeabe place Of residence. Ny friend D.
found it so. The hotel clerk began "trying 1t on
him (as ia usual in the case Of newcomer), By CIV
abie and uncomfortable seat in the dining room
aotted to him, and After several passages Of
@ bstte' for san m ebsnats s man and apt to
fight 1t out that ne he thought that the situation
might perhaps be simplhsd By an explanation, and
Hirn1 ha add I'd rark
should like to understand position Arc yon here
for my pleasure and Satisfaction, Or am here for
country, don't object to it, only in that case It
but fair you should pay me instead Of my paying
D-was made comparatively comfortable during the
rest Of his sotourn-
This prestige Of tho Jackn~ofce waa sustained and
furthered BY particular rEut Of democracy. {Eere
we have found paco where the democratic does Be-
tua1ly though indirectly ten) The point has been
repeating, it shows how the public tnvoluntarily
contributes to It's oppression Whenever an in
dyidua is bold enough to complain Of resist In
science or e1tortion the mass OF bis fellow-suerers
instead Of backing up the who has taken the first
step for them AL are rather inclined to in his
duct m aectanon Of superiority. If cen bear it,
wEy can't harris their thought; and thus they aid !
tbs common enemy, in negative way, BY not support
tons common to the same class al over chrisendon
snd We may almost wonder that our Jack-n-of1ce s
run him very hard. The ParisiAn concierge is nearly
u2 to the level Of the Washington express clerk.
After all. he says
Tho reader may ask, 'sNhnt's the Of discussing
hot are they c: institutions belonging to the eeie
eooaehes Of the Old World rs 1Es stowe feci:ously
Reader at the ak Of boring you further, must say
that Jou greau mistaken you think the subject
q no consequence. True, the attempt to make man
ners supply the pla:e Of morals always has been, and
b. failure; but 1t is just ~ true that manners
ale mixing themselves up With morals aye
sad With politics, too. Take this Woman Question: for
intoit. Nwil find one of the chief REASONS why so
many educated and refined women shrink from the
+ they 1ay> tie Inst stronghold Of good manners
among us- Beat that down, and We shall ali be vu1-
Ht break down this respect, and therefore oppose
T. Here is obvious instance time and space
Unlimited, could produce many more. I
With all his pleas for better manners, there is
one kind OF civi1ity ~ Carl Benson" will none
Of. It is that false po1teness-
which, from moral cowarlce, lazy good nnture, or
Eant Of capacity to fix moral responsibility, or all
1aese auses together receives backguarR and nAves
With the welcome iue to honest gentlemen. Ihnvo
eashtened etzens than s ever ns id @ aong % ths
saete & Scoetreaches: And The dslepgtablo Persons
gated you and ae your e reoon as and femoe apd
eascnated fasehooda about you By the yard without
esen NE shallow pal1iaon Of partisan necessity, but
paragraph he runs against you some semi-public
Occasion, ,shere the company is tribe mixed, md
|
him thinks, indeed that he is rather doing you m
1onor By Offering to mike your acquaintance. When !
come across such Creatures my back on them
promptly. and don't care what Tom, Dick, or Harry
may ss3.
He illustrates this sort OF thing by very
clever parable, with which his article ends:
The records OF travel tel us that m adventurous !
Englishman in the interior Of Africa suddenly found
himself confronted by the chief Of the region which
he traye1sing Eng Quashee, in all his cxubez-
snce of grease and scantiness Of draper, walked up
% The stranger andspt full IN his face. The Brton's
drst impulse to hit out straight from tha shoulder,
hut prudential considerations restrained him, and by
happy inspiration, which he could never quite e1-
p.n himself, he returned the salute tn Kind 1mme-
dsely he received with open arns as tho ch1cf'a
friend and equal supplied with whatever he wAnted,
nd forwarded safely on his journey. That English
man Waa wise in his generation; still fancy he was
not soy to take leave Of Hing Qnashee, and, for my
owa part do not fancy such society. don't choose
my friends among people who begin by Epitting in |
your face,
Jnnius Henri Browne is Us entertaining Us
usual in his essay on 4