New-York tribune., 1882-08-15

who had the misfortuns to be born IN hheilca :.
n definition which has found much favor-anu lo
one can spend half AN hour with him without uis-
co, cring that he is an Englishman III 'nannene ~
thoughts and synpaihes; and that 'nc nni",I,, arsu
blance to the Prince OF aos sts o, 10 basis Of
temparamept Now, however nucn theso 'u"fs %
NAV be to Mr. James's personal auvahtase, ~ 10
av;lcnt that they do not fit him to be sympa-
thov; Jcnicter of American society, an inference
which turns to fact in the mind OIL anyone "Io'
unlike Mr.. Arnold, is familiar WIN % posn Ip A@ain
MIR Arnod's praise Of The hcr- York Ndnoh Is
uchlv merited: but how should he KNOW. noV
having been IN America that TINS admlrapIe des
naprr has several remarkable and bitter preudlces'
and that among these are devotion 10 many LIE @
lish customs. and n corresponding hatreu ol VP %
posed American ones "a fact well known 10 3 ~
native readers. Consequently, he swallows wltnouV
an effort the astounding statement OF inc Ha"v" I'
that in America mot one man IN nunule e M T a
sand has either the manners or the cuitvatoI oa " "
gentleman or changes his shirt more tnan o,i VI a.
week, or eats with fork" The population W. ~
United States is about fifty millions; acc1ruis Ian ~
the above proportions therefore, there are Ied
the Atlantic and the Pacific inst hVe nunjI,v nnIost
happy individuals up to Tho Nat,onS TeiS TSower "a
standard! Setting aside thls re.or'' 20 the editor
with the editorial comment. when mas J"st ST. 'i
peared in The Nation confirms our pG pIgEW Wr arnoId
ment and shows upon what frail stan MI Ai"'''
has been leaning:
"s1n. Ihav. friend who IS in the habit OF saving
thai when Tie Nation Las exhausted every other Ior o
9vsGve & ends nG by secunf T Mahew Arnold ea for this
ist resort by way OF clstgaton, when he takes ins
Sot;on,s statememt that not one man in hundred
fnonssnd i'm Amerca changes his shirt more than once
week or with fork, as piece 9 s',rtic,l
Ne think he does. The statement was hyperDohcal
illustration, APP licabe to England as America
Again. a slight acquaintance with America
would have saved Mr.. Arnold from prOmuigatihg
the following piece of nonsense: " An American OF
reputation as a man of science tells me that he
lives in q town of hundred thousand people OF
whom there are not tif,y who do not imagine tne
tol,o of In bp
statement is par with Mr.. Hussey VIVIAN
delightful prescription of Sovereign oil the bttlsh
type and House of Lords, as the TWO thlhSS heeu-
full to make America perfect.
The unfaiIness of which we have spoken is ex-
hibitod by Mr.. Arnold's dexterous adoption OF a
double position,-that of the familiar Mr.. Facing
both-ways HIS whole article Is in spirit an lIIi-
parchment of American civilization-he pOkes iun
at it, he scolds it, he dent unces 1t; vet all the
while he keeps assuring us that he Is not really
assailing the civilization of America but Is merely
holding "A friendly conversation with AMERICAN
lovers of the humane life" So on the one hahd,
he quotes a Boston newspaper, ne Aew- orr or
Nation The atlantic Monthly and MI Lowell; {;
while on the other hand. he takes his description
of American home life from town somew mere IN
the Far West not far from Denver" IN order, as
he tells us, that it might be evident was not
meaning to describe American CIVILIZATION ana that
Americans might at once be able to say with per
feet truth that American civilization Is something
totally different" and for description OF an IN
dividual whom he has chosen as typical OF certain
features OF American Ife ne copies disgusting
passage from the Australian Bathurst Sentinel.
This we venture to submit, Is hardly an lngeruouS
proceeding. MIR Arnold is either bringing forward
certain charges against American society," or lie is
not. If he is, the most ordinary fairness requires
him to take his examples from the clvllZed part OF
America, chiefly the Eastern States and not from
the outskirts of the Union. If he Is not why
should he write this wore" OF sixteen pages win
all these quotations calculated TO throw dlscredlt
nnou American life? We have a sincere admirI-
tun for Mr. ArnOlds scholarship and profound re-
spect for his taste and we thankfully acknowledge
the many good influences which he has brought TO
bear upon the thoughtful people OF our age; put 70
see him i'll this role of MIR. Facing-both- ways tends
TO convince us OF the truth OF remark made Dy
Emerson several years ago, viz, that Mr.. Arnold
was growing too discursve, and that his sweetness
and light were becoming heavy as lead. He has
now furnished another example OF Emerson's Sar.
castle statement that when he speaks directly of
the Americans, the islander fOrgets his philosophy,
aud remembers his disparaging anecdotes"
The very clever aud successful novel, Denoc-
racy is an unfaii book, not because II gives fase
descriptions OF American politics, but because IL
implies that there is no other politics IN America
than that described in its pages. Amid all the
struggle for offices with their accompanying Spolis,
there are many upright and courageous men, as well
as many who do not hesitate to play pranks with
the interests of forty millions of people" The
American record testifies to much hlgh-mlnded
legislation, as well as to much intrigue and knav-
cry. There is something to be said IN mltga-
tiOn of the horrors of the Guiteau trial. American
| law has been denounced and rldlculed Tor the
lengths to which it permitted the discussion OF the
question of GuiteauS insanity 10 he carried, yet,
| on the testimony OF Dr. Maudsiey, it from
America that the first examples of rational treat
nent of the legal aspects of insanity have come
The other attacks upon American society are Ike
those with which we have grown familiar. We are
told that it is " a community which can barely
spare time for sleep aud meals and that It's men
bers have their hats tipped at every angle except
the right one, and their feet anywhere but on the
llOcr." The present writer has probably suffered
more than most people from the unpleasant habits
of American society its slang and its pompousness
its twang and its tObaccO-Iulce. lie has sat lor
half an hour with the President of the United
States during which time that august parsonage
was chiefly occupied III scrutlnlzing his own boots !;
he well remembers being invited to attend church
with Cabinet Minister, and on leaving the house
finding the young son of the latter playing in the
gutter. and hearing him salute his mother with the
playful title of old stIck-ln-the-mud ~; 10 say
nothing of the fact that entering the church the
Cabinet Minister and his family filed into their pew
and left their guest standing III the aisle. But, on
the other hand, he remembers, typical incidents
OF his American life that a busy stranger stopped
| in the street to draw plan on the back OF an
| envelope to guide him through an awkward town :;
that when he left his purse at home, the first
stranger he asked lent him money; that he has
seen more drunkards in London in SIX days than IN
America in six years and that 1t is next to llnpos
sbe TO distinguish all American gentleman from an
English gentleman. So. Notwithstanding a large
experience of Its unpleasant side. the writer is con
fident that America exhibits greater general kind
and risks discomfort for others, greater regard Tor
the feelings and rights of Others,-ln short more
OF the old homo spirit, than any OF the three
greatest countries of Europe. And what is this
after all, but hunanizston"g
1t is human to fall short OF PERFECTION and we
know what would happen to us if every man had
his deserts With regard TO America. what is
required of us all. from Mr. Matthew Arnold down
TO the most insignificant TdcOnfeur, Is to dlsc1mI-
nate, to have some experience before speaking to
remember our phllOsOphy-especialy our philosophy
OF hstory-and to forget our disparaging anecdotes
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