The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1879-06-25

II was near Q touch, CapsAln,
observed ore of the men to me; '.snd
| should not have liked the coffin al
all.n
But it was the coffin that saved ny
life.
Americas Character.
Ii is at this season, when an ex
traordinary number Of Americans ar,
abroad, tha: Europeans, notably Eng
lishmen, are mildly concerned as to
what constitutes American charsc
ter.
They have long regarded us as q
very peculiar people, unlike any 9th.
er people 10 some respects, and not
Rithstanding they have had ample
opportunities to observe and study
Us on their own soil, their acquaint
snce with us does not seem to i'm.
prove Their general impression sp
pears to be that we are a nation oI
eccentrics and humorists, whose &c.
centricities and humors all betrsy a
strong family likeness. In our nov.
els. many OF which have been repub.
lished ana translated in the old
World, the transatlantic critics have
speealated and are still specializing
about The representative quality OF
the literary personsges. Ii they en-.
counter o character which fails to
agree with their preeonception, they
Inter that it must have been designed
By the author for an ideal American
Ii they become interested in the de-
lineaiion Of fine. cultured, eosmo.
politsD, cbivalrous citizen Of the Re.
public. whom thsy imagine. in conse-
quence, to be something like them
selves. they then dismiss the subject
By pronouneing him an impossible
American
This is q very easy, ssRough mot .
very just. way Of dealing with race
who, within hundred years, have
grown to be q great nation, and who
have worked out countless social and
political theorems with which for.
eigners bad for ages grappled in vain
To the average European, Americans
are nearly sll alike. They closely
resemble one another in body and 10
mind; they hold substantially the
same opinions, and act verv much the
same at ell times and in ali places.
They are thin, tall, angular, sallow,
awkward, nervous, anxious, but
capable on emergency Of extraordina.
ry coolness; egotistic, boastful, swsg.
gering. fond of money and any form
of excitement, prodigal, reckless, fan
tastie, aud, on the whole. unique.
The American who is not ell or most
of these is presumed TO be of some
other nationality. so that the opinion
of the average European gets con-
tinaal corroboraiion through his igno-
rance, through the false basic on
which 1t rests.
There are. probably, thousands Of
our people, of the most intelligent,
self.coniained, self-disciplined sort, in
different parts of Europe to-day who
are rarely imagined to belong to tb Q
Uniied States They are neither
nor pallid : they do not
have a nasal accent /, they are not
ob,rusiEe they do not scatter money
on every hand; they do not expecto-
rate With anerrisg aim /; they do not
use bowie-knife as tooth pick /;
they have not been seen to shoot any.
BODY Therefore, they are not Ameri-
cans. Doing none Of those things,
thsy csnnot be Of our blood that is
Unques,ionably. there is 9 type Of
The national character, as there Is .
type of English, French, German,
Italian, Spanish. 0rieH,si character /:
Du, there are diEersat types and va
rieties of ts2 same type here-nany
ncrs .san shrosd-owing TO the ex-
ient Of country. complexity Of line
age. diversity of climate. dissimilsri-
y Of influence II is easy to tell
some Americans 9, = glance, and i'm
possible 20 tell others after consider
ahis acquaintance with them. The
iOrmer are typical; the latter nom
.yoieal. as type is ordinarily consid-
sred. and yet both are truly na-
.ional.
There sre Englishmen essentially
,n-English, Frenehmen who never
suggest France, Germans entirely
Italians who recall
italy only BY contrast All educated
Europeans are aware Of this, aod
'till they seem TO cling to the notion,
hat We are AL formed on the same
model, cut after the same pa.ter1.
Perhaps, they think that the and Of
yesterday has bad aa line 70 make
iiference aa5 diversity. Bot its
rerv nevnsss, It's freedom from trsdi-
jon. It's disregard of. authority, IT.
Indifference TO form, its lack of GEN.
.raIizaiion breed individuality, ss old
civilizations aad sge-tashioned Gus
toms have . tendeacy to repress it,
In no other country can there Be, for
reasons, so mach inIidn-
aliIy snd such variety o. characters
as there are j. tsis y Europeans
could s,9ep. this fact. their specula-
tons, personal and professional. upon
the elenents which 60 toward max
ing up .represeL:aiise Americanism
would Be greatly simpliked. if ncs
greatly diminished
The best illustrations osshs marked
individuality and large variety ol
eharscter always to be found in the
Republic might be drawn from
Americans, dead and living, credit
able snd discreditahle, Who, in Thu
generarisn, have achieved nnsnvisbis
noscriesy n konoynhle dictinef;on