Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1890-03-01
STUDIES IN EUROPE.
Reflections OF Prof. Richard Ely, OF Johns
Hopkins University.


Hopkins University.
1t is my purpose to speak chiefly Of
those things in which Europeans excel
US, for it is in contemplating the excel
lencies of others that we are most like
ly to gain profit. The most marked
weakness, perhaps, of Americans is a
boastfulness which is far enough re-
moved from true patriotism, and it is
undoubtedly a characteristic of ours
which does more than any thing to re-
tard our progress. The spirit of true
patriotism as indicated by these words
of DR.. Thomas Arnold: my love for
any person or place or institut ton is ex-
actly the measure of my desire to re-
form them" and, as he says, it ought
not to be difficult for any one more than
six years old to understand this. 1t
must have often been observed that
those who most loudly praise every
thing as it is in America are precisely
those who grow fat on American abuses.
1 remember once member of our worst
class of rich men on landing in New
York was loud in his praise of America,
and pronounced to all the world his in
tention to live in America, and make all
his investments in America. "No won
DER" I thought, ''you say there is no
country like America. 1t is true. In
any other civilized country you would
have been safely lodged in the peniten-
tiary long ago."
The reason why it is both privilege
and delight to live in the United States
is because, as has been well said,
America is only another name for
opportunity" No country on the face
of the earth has ever been granted such
boundless opportunities as the United
States, and it is our mission to develop
here glorious civilizations; but, on the
things which make up a high civiliza-
ton, as science, art, literature, we are not
equal to Europe. We simply make our
selves laughable when we assert such
thing, and in many of the things which
it was specially my province to observe
l think we are fifty years behind Europe.
think that in all that goes to make up
what we call municipal government we
are fully fifty years behind England
and Germany. We are perhaps not so
far behind in education, but in every
branch of education, from common
school to university, we are still far be-
hind the best which Europe offers. Our
universities are lessening the differ
ences between themselves and Euro
pean universities, but 1 think the
distance between our CONN on
schools and European common
schools is now continually increasing
on account of the rapid progress which
Is being made on the other side of the
Atlantic. Reflections like these are
among the first which occurred to me,
because do not find this spirit of boast
fulness so abnormally developed, nor so
diseased a sensitiveness to criticism on
the part of Europeans of the better
class, nor even among the masses. A
German, or more especially an English
man, can indulge before audiences of
his countrymen in criticism of their
own institutions which would blast for
ever the fortunes Of an American politi-
clan who should indulge in such criti-
clsm with us; ana yet 1t IS this which is
keeping the grand old countries of Eu-
rope, like England and Germany, full
OF life and vigor and solid progress. We
Americans are a gifted and ambitious
people, and If we can be brought to rec
ognize the superiority Of other coun-
tries in many respects, it is quite GER
tain that we will make determined ef-
fort to correct our shortcomings He is
an enemy TO his country who would
keep his country in ignorance Of the
achievements of humanity in other
lands.