The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-05-22
THE DUDE DEPENDED.

Evenvif no II Effe,mtnate He IL StiA Sery
A clever Now York writer has been saying
The American, and I allude only TO tho
malo, Ia iamontnbly untidy-I hesatAts W
say unclean, but ] do not hesisats TO essef'
and to asssrt IL vehemently. that the nfs'
clause 10 true OF u men Of oil classes
stations. vocations and degrees of wealth.
It's evidences parade themselves IN our
palaces, whore a lack of means oAnAot Ok.
~Uulpats. In fact, cleanliness, neatness anu
money have nothine whatever TO 40 visa
each other. Animals oan teach men lia-
portant lessons in self.resp sct. An Ameri-
can lady residing In London o pact OF sacn
year, when asked suddenly what ospeoial
superiority she found in the British over
her own people. replied naively, 'un.
their mon are so elean!" The shruss vs.
ns unconscious a. IL was unstudied. 10
were we'll for our men 10 accept ~ as
such. Take one Of our morning tralns
and ferries carrying an average American
crowd to the city of a morning. mere we
have o fairly representative variety OF
tyees and of classes. and = sorry enough
spectacle il ia which presents itself to our
view, even al this early hour. 81 o1eu
clothes, unbrushed shoulders, frowsy hair
and frayed shirt cuffs are noS
When this hord returns at five O'clock after
the struggle OF the day, we WAL draw the
veil. IL i meet q mar in the late afternoon
with uncertain finger nails, depressed COL
lar and soiied cravat. and he labo!iously
explains to me that he takes his cold water
bath every morning at six and q sea uip
upon his return to his country home Pc
fore his late dinner, / refuse to be I'M
pressed. His assurances carry no convle-
ton. even though l do not for an in
staEt doubt their veraoity. do not care
a. ~ fo--, nd fhok bn u a n1nQn Anrlv Anu
will be clean again anon. bis present. as
pect is none the less revolving. desire
him TO be clean now. while l am IN the way
with him, and not poison my day with nis
present forlorn performance. Inc aVeraRe
American. He shutiles with his feet. His
head is sunk and held low bstween ms
shoulders. His arms are carried llke the
grocer boys busy in his conscientious de-
livery of the brown paper parcel. IL ne
bow TO YOU, he will either give you a grim
and an impercep.ible nod. or shove his
headrear back and forth on his head with
out dignity. Nothing less impressive ana
distinguished than an Americana salute.
There has been II good deal OF righteous
wrath covering the ill-concealed pin
prioks of foolish jealousy III
TIE Trades Of our countrymen
against the American woman's pre-
objection for foreign lovers and husbands.
PRAY remsmber, my indignant gentlemen.
InAv1 oAli uV -
bv exteruals. The male bird found it out
long ago, if you did not. Nor have I al
WAYS discovered it . certain assurance OF
mental brilliancy and moral recbitude that
the poor body should be neglected. This.
however. 10 the prevalent opinion. md 1t
seems hard 10 persuade our countryDien
that il ia an error. 1t may be said that our
women. on the whole. are extremely clean
in their persons, their clothes and their
houses. They are even dainty. Probably
no establishments are more ~sscrupulously
vel! kept. and this under that peculiar re-
striotion as to a prope: number of domes-
tics which remains a tradition even IN
our upper classes. and whloh SO greatly
increases the difficulties Of housekeeping.
This is q depression. II the American
woman be a martinez in the ordering of
her home and so careful In matter OF her
costume, is il not a lack of respect for her
fastidiousness that her husband, father
and brother should. as they must do, SO
constantly shock her delioacy? There is a
much abused creature going about in our
streets and drawinR-rooms, hooted. jeered
Mt, made the laughing stock Of the club
aud the scapegoat of the theater, a harm
less, mild creature enough as to retaliation
possibly because he is SO perfectly self
satisfied-the dude. Now the dude has
done for US n great deal moro than we de-
serve, for all the abuse that is heaped on
his ~good-humored Inconsistencies The
dude has helped to institute out-of-door life
among us, which ia excellent. and over
and beyond this the DUDE keeps himself
clean. All honor, therefore, TO the dude,
nav