The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1879-04-19
SELECT LITERATURE.
ASPECTS OF AMERICAN LIFE.

BY CHARLES DUDLEY WARMER
From the .iflaRiic N0Iiiy.
1t is Il good thing for Il country to b., rcl
if there is any thin. like Il fair distribution
of wealth: il is Il bid thing if the wealth i.
maSSed in Il few hands. In the one cas-,
there is the comfort of all: in tn" other ther,
is luxury Tor the few. and misery for the
many. 1t is a good thing for the country IL
be rich if til" wealth is PIT To noble uses: il
isa disaster if il is devoted to luxury. These
are the truiSmS of history. And in th"ii
light the coming great material development
of this country is full of anxiety.
The traveller from Philadelphia down tn,
Delaware is impressed with the magnificent
opportunities OF this region. He is in tn,
heart of the greatest possibilities. Nothing
is wanting to the necessities of a dense and
thriving population, and an unrqualed va
rety of industries: Il fat soil and Il smiling
land: Il climate without great extremes: in
eNhauStiblc stores of iron and coal: forest,
within easy reach: and Il superb river, broad
ening into an arm of the sea, destined ere
long to he lined with >hip-yarls, become
IN improved MerSey and Il greater Clyde.
This is not an unfair type of the varied ca
paritieS of the whole country. Wealth is
thrust upon us. How shall we use It >
What will he the effect upon IL. upon the
American people. of tn" era oI material
prosperity? We know, historically. what
is the result t" 4 people who give themselves
up t" the temptation OF wealth. Is there
any thing in our character, our situation.
or the forces of religion and education. Sut-
fcicnt tn save lis from Il like fate We shall
apprehend the danger 10y considering what
is untavoral lr.
As To character, We have spoken of our
wa>teiul and spendthriit propensirics: OF our
"agerneSS to get money. nnaccompanird by
economy; of our tendency to display for the
sake of position, partly growing ont of our
theory of equality: nj the consequent liza
bility to luxury and >rlt-indulgcnce. In
respect of indulgence, our very seriousness
is somewhat against It's The American is
sober. tacitlru, intent i'll Il grave way
Travellers think us Il serious minded uncom-
municative people. We lack vivacity OF
MANNER have little gayctY of temperament:
little capacity to enjoy ourselves without
excess: hot a habit of getting pleasure, like
the Italians. the French, the Arabs even,
out of simple things. We should hardly
think ourselves launched upon Il festive
evening at 4 cutc when we had ordered Il
lucifrr match. We want protll>ion and we
want things strong. We carry into our
pleasures the same serious energy, with no
relaxation i'll il. that we use 10 build Il rail
way. There is an anec,lotc of a volunteer
soldier who turned upin New York recently
to receive the back pensions of thirteen
wears 1t was little fortune for Il prudent
man. The next day he landed in the sta
tion-houSc. without Il cent in his pocket.
He had compressed the delayed enjoyment
of thirteen years into one royal night.
There is u notion. prevalent i'll and out of
Congress. that we are somehow Il peculiar
people, and that our condition, our govern
mcnt our isolation, exempt It's not only
from the universal laws of political econ
nrnv, but from the rules that other nations.
by long experience, have found necessary 10
healthful life: that there is an = American
way for every thing, and that it is the best
way Intrcnchrd III this conrcit, we are
diSinclned to learn any thing, simply be-
cause it is not American, from the English
in civil service, from the Ger
man organization of education, from the
French household economy. The orator
always carries his audience with him when
he SAYS OF any thing. " 1t is not suited To
the genius of orr people" as if We had i'll
vented :, new kind of intellect, and patented
Il new order of life We used To hear, wears
ago Il great deal about an American school
of landscape painting. Wedon't know what
has become of it now: perhaps it disappeared
at the Paris Exhibition of 1861. 1t should
he said, however. that we make one eNcep-
ton in our incluSivcneSS: we take the for
cirn fashions. without regard either to our
climate or means.
One result of this conceit.-that we have
not the common liabilities Of other peoples,
Joined to an ignorance of the history of
other nations has led us into the most fam
tastic and crude experiments. We suppose
il is confidence in the purity of human ma
turc that is reducing or army to the Shaker
standard But il is in the regions of finance
that We have specially distinguished our
SelvrS.-in the adoption of theories and ex-
pedicnts that, over and over again, have
brought disaster to other peoples. We dc
not doubt that many people think it is an
American invention that you can MAKE a
dollar by stamping piece OF metal, lone
dollar: in God We trust" that is, that You
can induce people to give dollars worth OF
cloth for if: much as the Christian Commits
sion sought to convert the army Of the Poto-
mae by sending the soldiers little huScnit>
stamped with texts of Scripture. The sol
tlierS took the biscuits willingly: not, how
ever, for the value of the stamp, but accord
ing to the grains of fine flour they contained.
If one were asked to name :: "haracteriS-
tic of American life which i, Very promi-
nent, he might say it Is the desire to get
something rather than To h. something
This desire is not by any means confined I,
Americans, but il is more marked here than
elsew here because Of the absence of tradi
items. and because of oar flexible social con
dition. 1t constitutes a special danger IL
view of the coming struggle for mattria
advantage and prosperity. II is deir'
which cannot be too seriously considered by
those who are getting the elements Of thcil
education and preparing for their careers
for il ueglectS thoroughueSS in education
and preparatjon for the career. This desire
which is more than II tendency, may b" tie
scribei as a disposition To get place AM
rank, with little regard To fitness for them
Ii reverse, the natural order, and prc5up
poses that success in life is not due 10 train
ing and discipline so much rs II Is to oppn:
tunity. Hence our many failures OF III
sorts. the direct result of our eager iSSilmp
ton OF office of business. of trades, with
ont adequate preparation. Til" ambitious
thought stirring in most young minds l.
what carecr they shall choose: not how the,
shall train themselves for career. 1t i
the ambition tn Il" something rather than t,
learn how to do sonnet hing; as we said, tn
eag.rness to get Il place rather than to train
Il &. ~. Il,
unnecessary I" say how opposite this Is +
tn" method which has made the German
strong in every department of human en-