The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1885-12-10
Letter from London,

| ON BUS. DUDE AND HIS ORIGIN.
| Correspondence of the Journal.
| LONDON, Nov. 18th 1885. If you will allow
| me to repeat in substance what have said in
another letter | would be pleased to remark
that the English people continue to be very
pleasant surprise to me in their hospitality to-
wards strangers. When / came to London |
knew but two people in the city and they were
| Americans. | have necessarily come in con-
| tact with large number of English men and
women and so far have met with nothing but
| the most courteous treatment from them. |
cannot reconcile it with my preconceived no.
tions, but must tell the truth. Either the con-
| Ventlonal idea of this nation, socially consd-
| cred, is wrong, or | have had most remarka-
| BILE experience. and do not think the latter al
| tentative possible | have had interviews
| with several Americans whose ideas coincide
| with my own. | will say that | have seen
some of my countrymen who complain of the
| stiffness and snobbishness of Londoners, but
| without an exception | know these Americans
| to be of that class that persistently and un-
| pleasantly obtrudes Its Amercanism. If an
| EnSshman came to the States and continual
| ly ridiculed and belittled our customs, al
ways finding fault and seeing no good in
| anything. would he not be very likely to
| meet with contradiction, opposition and
| the 'tu quoque" argument? | think he
| would, and so with those who come here from
| America convinced that the United States are
in every respect superior to the 'etiete ciyiIiza-
| tlons of the Old world" as they term them. and
| ready every moment arrUganly to do battle
| for the unquestonable perfection of all our in
| stltutlons. am not becoming an Anglomaniac.
| Far from it. for can see even in this short
| time more of good in our system of government
| and Democratic equality than | was ever able
| to before and | shall think it blessed dav
| when once again am in America. But do not
| let u.s. from the writings of people of whom
we know nothing, or from isolated specimens
| of foreigners, judge whole people, give a
man (or nation) bad name anl'-you may
| hnlsh the quotation yourselves. Another thing
| you well know what a reputation the writings
| OF English travellers on America have for false
| and one sided views. Let me quote a few eX-
| tracts from a book published in London in 1884
| by an Englishman, ana say in advance that ii
| received very fine notices and words of com
mendatlon from such periodicals as the Saur-
| day Review, the Academy, the Spectator, and
| the Morning Post. In writing of Boston he
| says that an Engiishman ''is conscious that the
conditions OF life are more inspiring, that opin
ion is freer from social fettcrs, and that the iu-
teleclual air, like that of heaven itself is eris-
| per fin the capital of New than Old Eng
and' In another place he speaks of ours as
the most beneticent government which the
world has ever seen.' In still another, The
political intelligence of the people is eXtraor-
dinary! Compare the knowledge and mental
activity displayed by a New England farmer or
mechanic with that possessed and exhibited by
an Englishman of similar social station, and
the contrast would be udicrous.' At the close
OF most taterlng article concerning our COM
mon school system he remarks that ''t is con-
tributing powerfully to the development of
| nation. of which it is no tattery or eXaggera-
ton to say that it is, if not The most highly, yet
certainly the most generally educated and in
tegent people on the earth.' This does not
sound exactly like what Dickens and Mrs.
Trollope wrote of Us. does it? The author
made one serious mistake, however. He says
that the regular breakfast dish in New Eng
land IS "IritaM p"ad,ay" and he calls it
"a kind of fritter.' Now | may be wrong,
and Indian Pudding may be the correct name
for some Yankee breakfast preparation. but
the Indian Pudding have so often burned the
| inside OF my mouth with is IA totally different
sort of bird, and does not get up to breakfast
at all but remains until midday. Possibly he
meant buckwhea at cakes You do come across
people here at times who have strange ideas
| concerning the Great Republic, aud the follow
ing may do for an example An English lady
asked friend OF mine what sort of houses we
had in the States. Houses" he answered
'Oh. brick, wood. and stone" 'Stone:" she
inquired why, did not know you had stone
| in Amertca-there. forgot all about the Rocky
Mountains"
| received note from the Doctor one morn
Ing saying that he should call for me that eve
ming to 90 to the Royal Albert Hall and hear
Gounod's latest Oratoria, ''MorS ct Vita" [
was only too glad to accept such an invitation
ana IN due time we started OFT on a bus, luckily
obtaining seats beside the gentleman handling
the ribbons. As far real pleasure is con
ccrned | would not eXehange this place on Il
Londcn omnibus for chance in the finest
equipage that ever rolled down Regent street.
ou are away up above other teams and people,
you have, to certain extent, the right of way,
you go just fast enough to all there is To be
seen in the street, and the salatatons and
chatting OF the bus drivers aud conductors
is like chapter from Dickens. A large major
lty OF these drivers, fat, redfaced, and wrapped
up i'll big coats, might sit for picture of '-the
old uh AS sam Weller designated his father.
| and the way they shout ''yde Park !" '''oborn !"
"lioXford street.. is delicousiy satisfying to a
man who has read. but only half believed. such
things. This evening we ratified along through
EIccadliiy and knights bridge to kenSngton
and the Hall. There was curiou, expression
on the Doctors face as we gave IN our tickets
and entered and ut first thought he was about
to lnflict upon me one of his bad i0kes. but he
was silent. After we got inside the Hall
realized what that expression meant He wa,
anticipating my astonishment. Nv memory
| regret TO say is very treachcrous in regard to
figures and statistics in general, but ! believe
eleven hundred people can be crowded into the
Belfast Opera House. Music Hall in Boston
seats about three thousand and is considered a
large building, that you eau Get little idea
of the size OF Albert Hall by comparison when
tell you that 1t comfortably seats eight thou