St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-04-01
GLASSES IN socIE TY.
A Demonstration TNat, There Are No .SucI,
Such Distractions i,s AfzeSica

Such Distinctions i3s Anaerica.
Brooklyn Eagle.l
"a very brief essay might be written, y
said my philosophical friend, con class dis
tinctions in society, after the manner OF the
historical chapter on snakes in Ireland, BY
simply saying there are no classes in Amer
lean society. = But, y answered, ssdoes not
that require some explanations Haven't we
a wealthy class and a poor class, and an edu-
ted class2;' mo- he answered, sswe have
wealthy men and learned men, and poor
men and ignorant men, but the idea of
class is symething with rigIdity fxity, pow
er to transmit itself, and of that we have
absolutely nothing in this country. Whom
would you put among the wealthy classl''
why, Astor,n replied, ssand Jay Gould
and Vanderbilt Well. he said, Jay Gould
Is simply the maker of SIS, 600, 900. He be-
gan as poor as the porest man on the streets
to-day. As for Vanderbilt---the present one
he inherited from his father who was as poor
as any othr Staten island boatman.
AS for Aston, he inherited from his grand
father, who was no better off than any other
German emigrant. So you observe the three
names that You give comprise one man who
made his money himself, one the son of a
poor man, and the third the grandson of a
poor emigrant. Now, can you honestly say
that those men make up a wealthy classs
Wouldn't it be fairer to say that they repre-
sent the poor class! One himself poor, the
other the son OF poor man, and the other
the grandson of poor man. i''Well, y I said,
somewhat startled 1--WE certainly have an
educated class composed of Longfellow,
Emerson, Hawthorne, Oliver Wendell
IFolrnac Jo,,,oo puccarf ,,r-al1 y4rfi1fa ~,
c.. Bryantl'' You have named, y he replied,
-four dead men and only two who are now
living. If they constituted a class it follows
that they would have perpetuated their talent
in the new generation. They have not done
so, except to a very limited extent in the
single cass Of Hawthorne. He doesn't make
classl Moreover, you have selected for
your represent tiyes OF a class literary work.
ers exclusively. What Go you know Of the
ancestry Of any of the men you have mem
tioned-whether theywere educated or ignor-
anti
tell you there are no classes in American
society. And hence the folly of opening the
English custom Of talking about ladies and
gentlemen. Everyone is man or awoInan
in the United States, and no title is higher
than that, The only two distinguished
Americans who are Invariably spoken Of as
simply mister are Mr.. Tiiden and MrsJeffer-
son. Yet both were governors of their ma
tive states and each, in turn, was elecued
president of the United States. We always
speak of Gov. Seymour and Gov Hoffman,
and we always spoke Of GOV. Dix; but also
we simply say, Mr.. Tilden So in the Reyol-
utionary times men talked about Gen.
Washington and President Adams and Mr.
Jefferson. When man is greater than an
office, the comforting of a title upon him
savors of an insult. While, if a man is not
as great as his Office, the comforting of q title
upon him has the flavor Of honor. Hence,
it comes about that the highest dignity we
can confer on TSlden and Jefferson is simply
to call them mister
There arc no class distinctions in Ameri-
ca For who are the lowest and most ignor-
antly vicious class in our society!n he asked.
'sThe poor whites of the South, y answered.
ssYes,H he said 'sand from that class came
two successive presidents Abraham Lincoln
aud Andrew Johnson.
Lincoln was the product of the poor whites
of Kentucky, and was reduced by poverty
below the poorest man that you win meetin
the streets of New York; while Johnson was
TIE son of a sexton OF little church in
North Carolina, aud neither Of them Lad any
opportunities lOF carry llHpIOflu5 JIG udpuA-
al destiny of his Ignorance, and yet each in
turn became cultured and cultivated states
man. Lincoln was far superior to William
II. Seward in the requisites Of his position
Yet Seward was graduated at Union College
at an early age, and went south and taught
school in Georgia. have heard Gov. Sey-
mour tell how William H. Seward. being in
Boston in 1867, and hearing there that all
the presidents were masons with the excep-
ton Of Jefferson, went and joined Mason
ic lodge. You can't imagine Lincoln doing
such q thing as that for such purpose. For
Seward owed his early distinction to his anti
masonic proclivities. Andrew Johnson also,
although at the age of % he could not write
his name, became cultured If an obstinate
man Now, neither of these men sprang
from the class that is known as the gentry,
and neither was gentleman. And yet who
was so gentle as Abraham Lincolnl No,
tell you there is no class distinction in our
society,"