St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-12-25
He Would Not, Like Americans, Put
Up with Little lmpOsitiOns.

Matthew Arnold found fault with Ameri-
cans because they were too Indifferent, he
thought, To the thousand and one little i'm
positions-wrongs. / believe he called them,
so frequently p-aeticed by those in author
ity, writes q correspondent OF the New York
Tribune. An Englishman, indeed lmost
any other foreigner. he said, would, for the
sake Of maintaining a principle, suffer
personal Inconvenience and go to
untold trouble rather than submit
samely aud without protest to petty exaetious
and anuoyances which Americans, he
thought. took altogether too lightly He re-
ierred more particularly to those trivial
vexations and mild attempts at extortion
which one is called upon to endure in ones
own home, perhaps, or in hotels, or while
travelling; but he also pointed out that the
nabit of overlooking them was fraught with
danger, inasmuch as it must ultimately lead
and in fact think be limited as delicately
as guest could possibly do, without giving
uffense, at certain municipal abuses COM
p.ained Of in the very city he was then Wis
iting-to indifference to, and lack of interest
in. good government. The amiable critic
was probably right, but the maintenance of a
principle, however pleasant and congenial a
task It may proyeto the one chiefly concerned
in it, is often productive Of much annoyance
TO others.
An instance Of this kind came under nv
notice the other day, and. as foreigner was
the chief actor, Mr.. Matthew Arnold may be
supposed to approve the course taken by this
gentleman, and to wish Americans to imi-
tate his example. 1t was on the 'Iimited
express" which runs between New York aud
Washington. AS / entered the car noticed
commotion in one Of the corners A d.
minutiye and highly excited Frenchman was
the center Of group Of porters aud attend
ants Gesticulating wildly aud addressing
first this man, then that, without ever await
ing an answer, he kept exclaming in shrill
and penetrating voice: 81 have been swim
died; am always swindled; the company is
swindling me every time. C'est afreux
ah, in France you would sufferr'
The colored porters tried to appease the
wrath Of the little gentleman. but In vain
at this critical juncture a lady, well known
in Washington society, passed through the
car The poor gentleman, who, by that time
mad worked himself into q dangerous lit of
passion, where he might have committed
any kind Of foolishness almost, was known
to her. sab, madame" he exclaimed, as
sOon MS he caught sight of her, bowling
politely aud rasing his hat, but scarcely sue
ceed ding in controlling HIS wrath, sic suis-I
am swindled; l am always swindled; the
company" ETC., etc. Tue lady was kind
enough to inquire what the trouble
was. With a good many words
and many more gestures she was
told that be had purchased a ticket, which he
supposed entitled him to certain chair in
the parlor car; that no such chair as that
designated upon the ticket was or ever had
been in the car, aud that he considered the
whole conduct of the company as outrageous,
infame, and | don't know what else. In
view of the fact that the train was beginning
to start, and that there were still number of
chairs remaining vacant into which he might
have dropped without making as much
noise as he did, the conduct Of the little
Frenchman and his indignation will be ad-
mitted by everybody 10 have been
rather out of place. He continued
Tuning and fretting until any
sympathy which his fellow passen-
gers might have had for him at first was
turned into disgust. 1t was not until be had
thrown himself into chair and buried his
face behind yellOw-eovered novel with a
dubious French title that he regsined his out
ward eomposure.
Would any American have acted as fool
ishly as did Monsieur De - Would he
not have put up with the little imposition -
purely accidental and not premeditated, 1
am sure practieed by the agent of the com
pany or ticket seller, instead of making a
spectacle of himself, and a very ridiculous
one at thatl But where would have been Mr..
Matthew Arnold's theory thenl And did not
the little FreHchman ''kick' and pootest as
Justify as the English critic might have
demanded against being imposed upona