The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1878-12-21

z Yankee has become synonym for shrewdnes,
=. the world over, but the ca'e with which Tia,
modern American tourist is ilaltcrcd and gull
cd 10y those who tolerate him only for his shop
e png and purchasing capacity, gives color tC
1.-THE opinion thar rhc more sensible Americans
are staying at home.
The cause Of the unpopularity OF the travel
ing American i, h,, impolIcncSs. He (and
she too is rude. awkward, obtruSIvc; doing
! those things that good taste would have him
: avoid, and emitting the thousand and one mi,
= mute civiitics which are the oil of the little
plnionS as well aS of the great gudgcOns of the
cosmosocial machine. The American abroad
is distinguished above nearly all other people
: for LlatcaiSf hOHtc, for want of urbunity. II
would be tedious to tell all his social sins Of
Omission and COmmssiOn-how he Oiicnds
good taste in the house at the table on the
street, in the cars, with his eyes, and nose, and
mouth, ana arms and legs. 1t would seem "A
very trivial catalogue 10 our people who plque
themselves on sterling rather than shining viz
tues; but among the superficial people of the
from superficial appearances, and maybe have
neither time, inclination, nor capacity to see
deeper, it is sufficient to confirm the impress
sion which our ,co -raphicdl position suggests
to them that we are uncultiyalcd frontiers
men. II Is not pleasant to write this; it would
be more agreeable to tell IL ilalcring tale of the
esteem in which our countrymcn are held
abroad on account of their gentle manners and
superior breeding, but that would not be the
way to tell the truth or to EFFECT reform within
The patty There is already an excess of lrca-
! Gle literature from gushing tourists. and from
the regulation female orrcSpondcnts at Wash
ington, who make dcmigodesscS of beauty,
form and fashion, Of the homcy common
place Out very csimabIc To he surr) wives and
daughters of Presidents and Cabinet ministers
One Of the fayOrlle ways ofAmcIicanS abroad
for manitcslng i'll breeding Is in rudencss to
servants. They seldom speak kindly to th,
class or thank them for ANY service, but will
say take that dish away or have you moth.
ing better than thls?' with voice and manner
that have never been smoohcd 10y atrItion
with the pulic world. 1t is too true that
American, have sufficient cause for disgust and
| Ill humor at the table on the continent. The
deCcittul, meagrc shams that are placed before
| him for dinner aud so unlike the cXuher.
encc he is accustomed To at home, that his
stomach feels dcfiaudcd and his pocket out
ragged, but there Is no reason why he should
| hurl his Indignation at servants, who are not
accountable for the table, who are much supe-
ror to the same class in America, and who are
accustomed to consideratc polteness from all
save American tourists.
There is something wanting in the early
training Of Americans who 20 abroad which
makes them appear not only in all social rela.
tons, but in every situation where bearing,
manners, and address tell, will not say inic.
rior to all other peoples, but certainly inferior
to the French, llaIlars, Spanlards, and Bel
gians i'll the same sphere life. have thought
that this defect Of our counlrymcn might in
part be accounted for by the absence OF mill
tary training, which, directly or indirectly,
| through It's influence and spirit, no doubt ha,
an effect upon the life and manners OF all class
cs in Europe, inpariing graceful carriage,
easy dlgniiicd bearing, dctcrcnlial address,
and through the incubation of habits of ODE.
dicncc, order, and Notwithstanding
them from the loose staggering gucrllas OF
the Western world.
There is another reason why Americans ap-
pear to disadvantage abroad. They must be com.
pared Wilha travelling class socially financially,
and Internationally superior to themselves Amer
leans are no doubt the most cXravagant travel.
erS IN the world; that is, they go farther beyond
their meanst to see the wonders OF the world than
any other people. Surely it is IA laudable desire
to goabroad and seek that experience, and
breadth of premise in ideas, Which travel will
surely help to bring to the mind capable of re-.
ceiving 1t, But no Frenchman, German, or En-.
| glishmen, would think of spending all the saw
ings OF years for jaunt among the art galleries,
cathcdrals and museums of Europe, without
knowing in advance any thing OF art, architcc-
turc or archaeology.
| 1t may be said that no Europeans travel un.
less they can afford it, 1t seems now to he the
fashion and the passion Of Americans to start
abroad on the only five hundred or thousand
dollars they have ever had, or have reasonable
expectation of having and no matter what
may be the elevation of thcir moral character
and the worIhincss of their lives they must
appear to disadvantage when compared super.
/ fif allV with thnsa IA, Ii. 1
the habits of refined society have given Gle.
gancc, grace, and simplicity of MANNERS
In one of Burke'S letters he says: Manners
are OF more Importance than laws Upon them
IN great measure the laws depend, The law
teaches Us but here and there Manners are
what veX or soothc, corrupt or purify, cXalt or
dcbasc, barbarize or refine lis, by constant,
steady, uniform, insensibe operation, like that
! of the air we breathe in. They rive their