Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1876-12-12
AMERICAN SOCIAL LIFE.
what an English JOurutI Was To
Say of Onr Little FOliies, FOibies,


what an English JouEn.I Was Z"
Say OF Oar Little FOliies, FOibies,
eIe.
In an article summarizing and
commenting upon the special let
Iers to the London Times from the
Centennial, the Saturday Review
says:
Another feature Of American
character is the fussy and restless
pursuit of personal prominence or
notoriety. There being no formal /
of ranks in the repub-
lie, we see every human being
there striving as the great end Of
existence to perk his head as much |
as he can above his neighbors.
There is no country which'is so
broken up into sets and cliques,
each scheming to find something
to give it pretext for affecting an
individual superiority. Thus, it
app,ars, that among the watering
places Cape May looks down on
Atlantic City, that Cape May is
looked do yn on by Long Branch,
and that Saratoga thinks itself de-
cidedly above Long Branch, while
Newport, on the strength of its
blue blood, assumes to be an aristo-
cratic eyric perched altogether
above the rest Of the world. 1t is
much the same in ordinary society.
New York processes contempt for
Boston priggishness. Boston re-
taliates on New York with scorn
of shod1y," and twits Philadel-
phia with proyincialism. And so
it goes on through every grade and
section of community. The quiet
occupation of a settled and ac-
knowledged position with which
the occupant is content is scarcely
known in that land Of freedom
There is room for everybody to
aspire, and everybody does SO. The
easiest platform to mount upon in
such state of thingsis money or the
show of money; and thus American
ambition becomes mainly fixed on
its acquisition. Perhaps, however,
what is most wanting to the Ameri-
can character, or at least to its
peace of mind and happiness, is
self-confdence and Self-respect. 1t
may be thought, at first sight, that
the Americans are especially of a
coneeited and confident nature; but
the extreme sensitiyeness which
they display in regard to almost
every kind Of criticism shows that
they are not at heart thoroughly at
ease as to their own pretensions. 1t
is hardly possible to say anything
to Americans about their country
without jarring on some tender
point. They cannot bear to be told
of their faults, and they smart
under anything like praise as if il
were an assumption of superiority.
They are incli9ed to pride them
selves on their sense of hum9ri bnt
on this particular point their sense
of humor is very dull. The sort oi
bsBter and caricature which people
Of other nations, firm in their own
faith in themselves, only laugh at,
seems to irritate an American eX-
cessigsly, He is like a man with &
raw skin to whom . nudge is tor
ture. Even Mr.. Lowel once lashod
out IN a pamphlet son q certain
condescensien in foreigners" and
threatened England with war as ?!
punishment, not for hostile acts
but for her "airs Of patronage
toward America. Every sensible
} person recognizes that Che UnitOC
States are great people in theiI
: way, but they are not beyond thC
reach of criticism. They are wha
! the conditions Of their existenc'
have made them. They have hith
} erto enjoyed the material prosperity
+, which lay at their hands in the re
9 sources of a vast and virgin terri
tory; but they have not advances
: with equal success in other direc
+ tons, nor perhaps could it be ex
o pected that they should do so, con
d ssidering the puculiar character O
:. the population, and the work the