Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-01-14
ENGLISH RESERVE.
They do Not Vet Understand the Csmrucr
NIKhta Of Humanity,


New York, January 12.--An article
! from the London GiObc says Johnson
gave AZ reason for the reserve haDit-
iaI among Englisbmen that I'VE 90
not "A yet understand The common
rights OF humanity infcrring thereby
that time would come when, by the
better understanding OF those rights,
this characteristic would be cfIaced.
This was spoken ~ years ago, but II
cannot be conceded that tho wished.
for contamination has been attained.
In fact, IL may he said that
with our more frequent and in
innate acquaintance with foreign
ers our suspicion Of them has been In
tensifed. But our insular reserve Ii
quite as remarkable among ourselves
"a In our intercourse with strangers.
As French writer remarked, we sur
round ourselves with "a seemingly inn
pcnctrablc wall of lee, but that the
wall being once penetrated absolute
capitulation follows: and even Gold
smiths Citizen Of the World, In sum
ming up the national character, de-
clared that he would have men of any
other nation as acquaintance, but
Engllshmen AZ friends. We carry this
love OF privacy into every walk Of life,
and under all circumstances. An
Englishman entering q train ut u
terminus may be observed invariably
10 choose an unoccupied compartment.
and by his looks almost resents ~ in
trusion the entrance Of any one else.
Two Englishmcn may he the sole
guests nj u foreign table d'hote, may be
seated within few inches Of one am
other, yet the mcdalwil progress from
soup To desert without the exchange of
"A word between them. 1t has, In fact,
become almost a standard rule of pro-
priety among us that strangers should
not address one another without hav-
ing undergone the formal process Of
introduction, and we are all familiar
with the story Of Frenchman whom
an Englishman had saved from drown
ing, and who embraced his benefactor
with all the ciiilsion Of his race, but
was met with the remark, almost as
chilly M had been his bath, "Sir, |
have not the honor Of your acquaint-
ancc.n
Hence the almost.,u nbroken silence
which prevails whenever party Of
Engllshmcn strange TO each other are
gathered tOgtber In the crowded
troins which 20 In and out Of the cap
iinl every morning any evening, IL Is
quite unusual to hear u remark made
not 80 much brcnusc the occupants are
engaged with their newspapers IA be-
cause there Is nothing In common be-
tween them; and ifby chance word
should he spoken, 1t Is almost ludi-
crous to notice the absorbing interest
which IL creates In the hearts of the
other passengers, That the character
istic of reserve IL deeply impIan-
ted in the English nature il
sufficiently proved by the familiar
fact that, however thoroughly at home
and Tree and easy people may become
IN the course of an evening, repent
ancc comes next morning, and the
meeting In the streets during the day
IL marked by all the old stand-onis6-
ness aud formality. Every English
man . house IL his castle, and In moth
ing h The English love OF privacy bet
ter exempliiled than In tho change
which comes over man when once
he has crossed his own threshhold.
He breathes freely, and the outer man
by which he Is known TO the world is
east oil rs nm actor doils his stage cos
tune.
And yet not even the privacy Of
home is always able to Danish the
itnglishman's reserve. The habit he.
got OF constant assumption in the
outer world too often he
comes second nature, and
IL carried into the family
circle; hence the awe with which Pa |
tertanlilias Is often regarded by his /
owe branches. No man IL u herr to |
MS own valet, but the English father
~ very often heing another world |
IN the eyes of his offspring, and al !
though we may ridicule the way In |
winch hirsute foreign gentlemen of |
mature age embrace and cuddlc one |
another after the absen 8 of few
hours, IL IL, perhaps, regretable that
we 90 not see little more of the Eng |
|ish father leaning on his sons arm. |
while az to such childish freak us nm |
'Xchange of kisses, Young Hopeful
,'tcr his first term Mt "A public school
ecls himself very much above TINT.
Much of our character abroad for
pompons pride IL trace
'ble to our habitual reserve. and
he foreigner cannot be taught To [
,elieve That in nine cases out of ton
MS N SIMPLY the result of shynpss
iany an lsngllshman will rather than
SIX y stranger for light for his cigar,
eprive. himselfo of u smoke. He may
e longing To sean the contents of
ewspapcr lying idle on Il railway eur.
Iage seat, but because il Is the prom.
lty OF q stranger he will continue his
lnrney unsatisllcd. Even Scotchmen
re more soeiablc and communicative
nam Englishmen. Scotch,nen nro
rothers all the world over, as any
nsident in the East, or Australia or
anada, can testify, But Englishmen
~ strangers TO one another. AZ n
lnoh they will put their shoulders rs
rnly aud solidly together as any
'eni hut the pinch over and the crisis
ast they are once ngala strangers
nj cease ~ have the smallest Interest
one anothcr's affairs.