The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1875-02-25
Who Are the Vulgar 2

Mr.. James Parton lectured before the
Liberal Club, taking for his subject the
question "Who Are the Vulgar 70 He
gave the following illustrations:
On recent tour through Kansas, the
a young English colonist, who was
scattering a fortune in his efforts to
plow up few thousand acres of hard
prairie, and the chief delight of whose
life was to put on a dress-coat when the
days work was done, and dine at 7:30.
Woe be to him who i'll those wilds at
tempted to dress or conduct himself ac-
cording to the effete standards of the
East. Sitting at the dinner-table of a
Colorado "hotel" recently, he (he
speaker) became suddenly conscious that
his uis-a-uis, youth Of twenty two, in
the characteristic garniture of broad
brimmed hat, leather hunting jacket, and
shooting materials al Hbitu1,1, was grow
ing restive at something he (the lecturer)
was doing. The cloud on the young
mans brow deepened rapidly, and in the
space of another minute he dropped his
knife, and turning round to the rest of
the company, exclaimed: "Well, I'll
be hanged if can stand this any longer.
Why, he's eating pie with fork !"
David Crockett, after returning home
from his first trip to New York, gave his
backwoods auditors his idea of The
First Gentleman in the Metropolis
"Philip Hone is the most gentlemanly
man in New York, boys, and I'll tell you
how know it. When he asks you to
drink he don't hand you glass, he puts
the decanter on the table, and walks off
to the window and looks out until you
have finished" 1t was curious how the
popular opinion in regard to these sub
iects changed with the longitude. In
some parts of India and China the ladies
all black their teeth in much the same
fashion that we do our boots. A native
of that country, who was pointed out the
beautiful wife of an Englishman, at some
public festival, remarked: "The Eng
lish lady is not handsome; why, her teeth
are as white as n dogs teeth, and her
cheek is the color of potato-blossom. "
Much of this difference of opinion as
to the elements Of vulgarity was due to
erroneous conceptions.
A Prussian professor, who had lately
been intrusted by his government with
the duty of examining into the subject
of shell-fish and their successful propa-
CATION on the shores of the Baltic, re-
ported, after a patient examination of
the facts in the case, that shelf fish had
a deleterious and reasonable tendency,
and were for those reasons not to be en-
couraged. The evil consequences of
their free consumption were best seen,
the professor said, in America. In that
misguided country the people were in
hn Of
liter goFgng HM Sc ealpafSS u species of
clam, called the oyster, they proceeded
to talk treason, abuse thu government,
tear each others hair, and fight like
madmen. In fact, the devouring of this
ill-starred bivalve made the poor people
crazy, and, for this reason, the learned
professor deprecated its further propa-
CATION in German waters. Another fact
that challenged their attention was the
contempt with which Europeans, and
especially Englishmen, We're apt to re-
gard American customs and institutions.
Here every honest man was a gentleman,
and every honest woman lady. In
many other things-in art, science, and
i'll agriculture-the American people
were inferior, but in that one they were
superior to all the systems which the
old world could boast. The extent to
which this thoroughly American idea
was reversed in older countries cannot
well be conceived by those who have not
visited them in person. No American
knew what it meant in England to be
called "Lord." He (the speaker) had
seen gentleman of worth and position
stand absolutely spellbound in the pre-
sence of titled loafer, whose only hon
est claim to be noticed lay in the extent
and variety Of his kennels. In America,
so great, of late years, had become the
public disgust for great titles and great
fortunes, that very rich man was no
longer respected. OF what use was it
to accumulate millions by years of in
dustry and patience when political
blackleg could come along and steal
double fortune in half the time. The
American of good repute is ever growing
afraid of displays, which formerly were
thought proper enough; afraid to wear
his own honest diamonds for fear of
being taken for gambler or person
who had plastered court. house.