The Portland daily press., 1876-09-29
American InciYility.

We Americans are given to praising our
selves as courteous people mindful of the
little civities of social life and considerate in
our attention to the comfort of those about
US. Our periodicals are flooded with papers
contrasting the courteous American with
the surly Englishman, the boorish German,
the Frenchman with his mere varnish of DO
iteness. Of course the foreigner suffers se-
verely by the comparison. But in this as in
some other of our boasts we are both false
and silly. 1t is greatly to be doubted if the
average American is more courteous than his
brethren over the water. Indeed the suspi-
cion will sometimes intrude itself that he
possesses less genuine civility than the
Frenchman or the German whose manners
he condemns.
The true test Of civility is great crowd.
In his own drawing room the American is a
courteous gentleman, for hospitality is law
OF his nature: On the street and in other
public resorts he is usually considerate and
obliglng if clvilitY entails no inconvenience.
Where it is as easy to be polite as to be boor-
ish he prefers to be polite. But take him in
crowd where attention to the wants of 9TH
ers brings with it some sacrifice of comfort.
however slight, and he is sadly wanting in
even the rudiments of civlity. His polite
ness shows itself to be not ingrained but a
slight veneer which cracks and peels al the
first pressure, leaving revealed the native bar
barism of the man. The genuine savagery of
our people found and improved its large op-
portunity for manifestation at Philadelphia
last week where hundred thousand people
were crowded together on the exhibition
grounds. No pretense of courtesy was made
by the multitude. Rudeness was the rule,
civiity the rare exception. Women were
pushed and iosted by intrusive and impu-
dent men. At all places ofinterest the best DO
sitions for sight seeing were at once taken by
the first-comers and held for hours regardless
of those who came later and who had at least
an equal claim for space. The seats on the
grounds were taken by men who would sit
and smoke through the whole afternoon,
while group Of weary women stood about
longing for few moments rest. At the res
taurants people who were waiting their turn
were pushed aside by late corners who, hav-
ing once secured tables, loitered there long
after dining, unmindful of the waiting crowd
behind them. At the railway stations the
crowds became mobs. Children were tram
pied upon, women hustled about until they
tainted and were banded over to the nearest
policeman. No man paid the ghtest atten-
tion to his neighbor, or evinced the slightest
regard for his neighbours comfort. No man
would go step out of his way for the con-
venience of any one. The most disagreeable
feature of the scene was that the rudeness
was entirely unnecessary. There was enough
to eat. sufficient opportunity to see, ample
conveyance. Had people but shown tithe
of the consideration for each other they man
ifest on common occasions there would have
been no great discomfort anywhere and little
Inconvenience. The visitors were quite as
uncivil to the exhibitors as to each other.
The Japs and Moors were stared at as though
they were the wild men of Borneo in the side
show. Impudent and insulting questions
were asked them, and they were rudely
jeered at because they wore their native cos.
tunes or spoke imperfect English. All re.
quests were disregarded. Wares were han.
died over which hung placards expressly ask
ing that they should not be touched. The
floors of the exhibition buildings were treated
as spittoons. All iniunctions were disregard.
ed. no requests were complied with.
There were certainly exceptions. There
were people of culture on the ground, men
and women brought up in courtesy, whose
instincts would not permit them to do rude
thing: but they were few. The incivility O.
the average visitor would put to shame ''the