St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-08-25
THIS COUNTRY FIRST .

t1me ana a portion OF their savings
!. to vacation travel. The idea of
a brief rest for workers during the
summer season has become fixed in
the national mind. From the richest
to those whose wage receipts are
only little above the margin of a
bare subsistence, all look forward to
such a respite from labor. The
summer jaunt, whether it be of five
miles or of five thousand in length,
is an expected accompaniment Of
American life. The time was when
the first ambition of all those who
planned to travel was to see their
own country first. Impressed with
the magnitude and magnificence of
the scenic attractions of America,
they had neither thought nor desire
to visit another continent until they
had carried their explorations far
into this. One can easily remember
when Niagara Falls was the focal
point not only of the bridal tour, but
of the Woodworking man or woman's
first visit away from home. 1t would
have been deemed a lack of proper
patriotism to travel elsewhere until
the great waterfall of this continent
had been visited
The building of new railroads, and
especially of transcontinental lines,
expanded vastly the area of the
strange and the beautiful that at
tract the tourist. For the summer
season there are the wonders of the
Yellowstone Park, the splendors of
the Rocky mountain region, the at
fractions of the Pacific coast and the
singular caverns of the Appalachian
region. For the winter there are the
orange groves of Florida, the natural
curiosities of Arizona and New Mex
leo, the Yosemite valley and the
beautiful resorts of Southern Cali
fornia. A man may travel many
thousand miles through ever chang
ing scenes without exhausting the
sights which his own country can
supply; and these should be the OBJ
jeet of his first desire. To the STU
dent of art, particularly, and to the
critic of civilization, there are SUI
perior attractions that draw him
across the sea. The old world is rich
in the treasures of painting and
sculpture and architecture which
many. generations have accumulated.
Its political rulers and it's reformers
are dealing with problems similar to
our own, so that as part of am edu-
cation a journey abroad is invalua-
BILE. When it comes to mere sight
seeing, however, which is the main
point of nine summer tourists out of
every ten, there is nothing in the
beaten paths of Europe, aside from
Switzerland, which can compare with
picturesque America. Nor can any
American consider himself we'll fur
nished in experience, nor ought he to
confess it without shame, if he has
taken a hurried run across the Att
lantic and spent a few weeks rush
ing from place to place in Great
Britain or on the continent, while
his acquaintance with the country
of his birth and allegiance is limited
to the. city or the state, or, at most,
the section of the United States in
which he lives.
Such, however, has become the pre-
vailing mania We cannot apply any
less positive term than that to the
regular summer movement Of Amer
leans abroad which this year has
reached proportions never known
before. The small army of Ameri-
cans Who have summered in Europe
is now encamped in London, owing
to the inability of the steamship
companies to bring them all home
again. For three months it is esti-
mated that $500 tourists per week
were carried from this country 20
Europe. It is said that there are
not less than 10000 persons desiring
to return in September who are I'M
able to obtain passage. This is an
occasion of real discomfort to thou
sands Of people who are unable to
afford either the extra time or the
extra money involved. The aggre-
gate of expenditure OF these travel
ers is something almost inconcefvaaa
BILE; upwards of SIS, 600, 900, according
to the estimate, having been sbent
in London alone this season by.y
Americans. Now only a small Rar IT,
of this tourist army consists of hig.hld
ly educated persons who are maxine
the European tour in it's regularsorIi
der as an element in instruction and !
culture. Among these annual mi
orators are people Of limited inferA
nation and small resources; pebble
who have saved for years that taseybi
may be able to take a holiday; peo-
pie who know little concerning fhea
resources or attractions of the Intro
ed States, but who prefer to exhaust
the only opportunity Of a lifetime
on six weeks trip to Europe end
return. This was formerly the fash
ion of the rich. It has now become
craze among those of limited re-
sources. Everybody who can secure
a vacation and mas little money
to spend looks only to Europe as the
goal of delight. 1t has come to pass
that this annual exodus is actually !
q source of economic disturbance, and 1
an immense drain upon our national
resources.
OF course, people have a right to
spend their savings as they please, /