The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1889-09-13
A MILITARY DUDE.
THE HERR LIEUTENANT OF THE
GERMAN ARMY.
Intelligent and Manly, With Care
fully Trimmed Moustache, He
is a Social Lion-His
Daily Life.

ever, in common with the American dude.
He Is intelligent and manly. He wears
no ultra-fashionable attire, and talks no
ultra-foreign jargon. He has no yellow
top coats, nor wide trousers, nor pot hats,
nor patent leather shoes, nor big-headed
cane. But there is a red stripe each
Of his trousers legs, q big imperial eagle
on his helmet, red straps on his heavy
ulster, spurs on his boots and at his side
q sword in n massive scabbard, which
strikes the pavement at every step. He
often wears a monocle, and always a
moustache.
A Lieutenant's moustache Is probably
the most carefully trained bit OF whiskers
in the world. Its proper development
involves more labor than the combined
moustaches of any three dudes in the
whole United States. Three times every
week the Lieutenant's barber devotes half
an hour or longer to oiling it, twisting it,
patting it and burning it into shape with
hot irons When the Lieutenant is
shaved the ends of the moustache are
done up IN tissue paper, so that the lathez
brush and the BARRIERS fingers cannot
muss it. A very fastidious Lieutenant
puts little fat wooden clamp on each end
of his moustache every night when he
goes to bed, to keep the hairs straight
and even. The result of all this training
is a noustache which all German girls
dream about, and all German men, outs,
eide of the army, ridicule. The hairs are
stiff, crinkled and spread away from the
corners Of the mouth in q fan shape.
They shine with oil and are odorous of
perfume. The Lieutenant has his hair
oiled daily, curled in front frequently and
rubbed down with German elixirs of all
colors, odors and effects.
After the Lieutenant has been refreshed
by his barber from the fatigue of early
morning drill, he goes to the most popular
cafe to show the poor humdrum chaps
without swords or spurs or trained nous
taches or curled front hair what mighty
fine fellow Lieutenant of the Guards Is.
As soon as he enters the cafe his favorite
waiter begins all sorts of feats of aero
batic politeness. He bows himself double
whenever the Lieutenant turns a hair.
He scurries around ike mad after the
military periodicals, and shouts himself
hoarse in ordering for the Herr Lieuten-
ant the very best caviar, the freshest rolls,
and the strongest coffee which the cafe
affords. He never addresses the Lieu
tenant directly as ''you." That would
be too disrespectful to a real Lieutenant,
though it is good enough for men in bob
tail coats and trousers without stripes
No, the waiter always asks: evil the
Herr Lieutenant kindly have sugar in his
coffee2" sWill the Herr Lieutenant have
a 2-cent beer or 25-cent beerl'- evil
the Herr Lieutenant have a fine domestic
cigar for 3 cents, or a superfine imported
cigar for 1 centsl" All this servility
costs the Lieutenant n cent. It would
cost an American double that amount. A
German civilian would have hard work
to getit at any price. A Frenchman
could not get it at all.
After coffee the Lieutenant takes two
little brushes from case in his pocket
and brushes his moustache. Then he
goes out to give the girls treat. In
Berlin he exhibits himself on Inter den
Linden; in Leipsic, on the Promenade;
in Dresden, on the Bruhl Terrace. He
marches along in the middle of the walk,
as erect and conscious as if he were on
dress parade. He turns neither to the
,5zsbt nor left, save for zaus- n4iieer of
higher rank. civilians make way for
i'm, for he IS a bad man to bump
gainst. He is keen to resent any inciy-
lily, and the man who shoves him
udely or gets on his toes, is apt to bring
p opposite him with swords or pistols
he next morning in the Grunewald or
ESSENTIAL. The Lieutenant on this
tIeet parade, however, is not so busy adj
hiring himself that he has no time to adj
lire all the girls, who admire him. He
giles every pretty woman through his
lonocle.
At dinner in a restaurant the Lieuten-
Mt always gets the prettiest waitress, her !
icest smiles, the latest bit Of roest I
Dose, and the biggest piece of cheese. r
lie is admitted to the theatre for al1Dszt
othing, and attracts more attention /
here than the rich banker who ms pro- t
,enium box all to himself. Between t
ne acts he brushes his moustache before I
he whole house and firts with the pref ]
est girl whose Frau mamma isn't look t
lg or whose Herr papa has gone out to e
.e man. He knows all the soubrettes. t
lis card is attached almost every evening f
, q bouquet that is handed over the B
He leads at all the dances. 4
is red and blue coat attracts more ia l
DIS than a dozen swallowtails. In the S
lmentour he is the first man on the U
Dor In fact his social domination is so P
,mplete that of late years disgruntled $
itics of German high life usually speak t
it as 4 "Lieutenant-berid society," b
The Lieutenant's social success is not v
lie entirely, however, to his fine clothes, a
srfected moustache, curled front hair.
Id good dancing. The German Lieu
nant is generally a nobleman and gen
eman. He is always well educated and !;
ell informed concerning topics of the =
y. Long after entering the army, he !,
subscribes to university lecture - =,
'urses, and appears in the lecture room =
gularly with his little leather bag full :.
notes, just as if he were an ordinary =,
ndent. He reads a great deal about =,
wi government, political economy, Bis "
arck and the Hohenzollerns. He can :.
= his Goethe backward, and can cit, .
iakespeare more appropriately thai :
ree-fourths Of the Englishmen. He can .
tote Heine with the Professors pretty -
'ughter, or Roscher and Rau with the y
'ofessor himself. He is cleyerly ven y
resome, too, and, though he may not Z
low the difference between knowledge \.
d belief, he does not avoid bouts with -
metaphysiciaDs concerning the theo- ~
$ of Kant, Hegel and Schopenhauer. -
Is so superficially omniscient and auda ~
'us, that his presence at a reception al ~
'ys ensures some one a good time. The =, =,
iterion Of the success of a German party y,
consequently the number Of Lieuten- u
is present. - -
Notwithstanding all his attractions for IL
au mammas and Fnulein daughters, a.,
Lieutenant usually terminates his Il,
umphant social career by marrying W
ry plain woman. This is the reason: ba
ie Lieutenant's life Is an expensive one, di
life in Germany goes. Three-cent I5i
'ars, wine and flowers, and actresses, i,
nal obIirofirrg .,d -