New-York tribune., 1882-08-13
ARE THE AMERICANS ENGLISHMENi

demnation which it has called forth.
ARE THE AMERICANS ENGLISHMENf
Probably the strongest of the Impressions
of the nited States which Mr.. Edward a.
Freeman records in the latest number of The
Fortni0hHy ReUieC is one of which he SAID
great deal while he was in this country, ana
upon which, we believe he has long been fond
of dwelling: we mean the essential unity Oh
the divided branches of the English people on
both sides of the ocean. When an American
gentleman, proposing the health OF the his
tOrian at college dinner, spoke OF his foreign
nationality" Mr.. Freeman begged him to with
draw that expression: " was not of a foreign
nationality" he says, 3but of tho samo nation
ality as himseIfD. . Tho answer of course was
cheered. 1t expressed sentiment which is
always well received at public dinners, both
hero and in England. But Mr.. Freeman thinks
that the sentiment is stronger, that the recog-
milton Of the Englishry" of the people of the
United States is more complete, i'll his country
that in ours. "The feeling OF unity between
the two severed branches is really present III
"the American breast, but 1t needs something
Especial to wake it up. 1t comes most naturally
u to the Englskman Of America to speak OF the
"Epglishman of Britain as a foreigner
The word is often so applied in American
"ncvspapers and American books. But when
d" the Englishman Of Britain formally rejects
the name the Englshman of America fraskiy
@and gladly accepts the rejection and well
"comes the European kinsman rs truly one OF
"his own house. Now know not how far may
@indge others by myself, but | should say that
"the feeling in England is somewhat differ
"ent. | do not think that Americans are
commonly thought of, or spoken
9of "a foreigners. The American, it
seems TO me, feels greater distinction between
shlmself and the Engishman of Britain
than the Englishman of Britain feels between
@himself and the American And Nr. Free
man adds some frank and ACME remarks upon
the circumstances of the War for lndepend-
encc, and other causes, which may explain the
difference in the mental attitude Eof the two
branches toward each other
The principal cause, it seems to us, he has
missed. If the American people do not habit
ually recognize their Engllshry 1t Is be-
cause in fact they are not English. This
country was settled as an English colony but
before the wounds of the separation had
healed the people were rapidly ceasing to be Il
distinctively English people, and becoming
what they are now, a composite race, having
strong affiliations with several nations Of
Europe and an identity with none. Even the
men of the Revelation were in large part Of
other natonalties than the English-lrish,
Scotch, Dutch, German, Swedish and French.
New York n hundred years ago was already
the home of Heterogeneous population much
| like that of the present day; the German ele-
mcnt was already conspicuous in Pennsyl-
vania; Irishmen had begun to come over in
large numbers, with the purpose of getting
| away from English rule, which they detested.
| The PENNSYLVANIA lOyallst, Galloway, assured a
| committee of the House of Commons that half
| of Washingtons soldiers were lrishmen. This
| statement was an eXaggeratiOn, bat it may
| serve to illustrate the mixed character of the
populatiUn 1t was the cor fident belief OF the
| friends of the royal government that such in
congruoas materials as the colonies contained
never could be combined even for their own
defence. Since the Revolution the influx OF
blood that is not English has gone on with a
constantly increasing speed and the weaken
ing of the original English strain has been ac-
celerated by the notorious fact that the Tor
eign element is far more prolific than the
Anplo-American. Outside of certain parts of
New England there are few families in the
United States which can show pure English
| ancestry.
The colony retained the language, the laws,
the most important political institutions and
social customs which it brought from the
mother-and, and these are the ties which really
unite the two countries. 1t did not retain the
| original character of the population. The
natural result of the mixture OF blood is to
weaken the sense Of relationship toward
all the ancestral stocks and cOntne the SYM
pathies and interests of the new
people more and more closely to the new
country with which alone they can
feel themselves truly identified. The COM
munity of literature, of customs and OF prn-
ciples together with the historical connection
of origin, will always attach America to Eng
land more intimately than to any other coun-
try but there is after all, a real difference OF
race, and it is because the English DO not
quite realize this that they are more prone
than we are to insist upon the identity OF tho
| TWO branches.
| IN EXPERIMENT.