New-York tribune., 1896-12-06
urR OMPLISHMENTS.
,,rprC,H GIRL COMPARED WITH
HER FOREIGN sIsThfS-lhh
cr1SuA AND HER TRAINING.


..,-oraan banking bouse or Rothscmiu mas oeeh
.-oroh, I'D as if size were des'ineu TO earn her
p'Vue oa and this. together with the prom
- achieved in the world OF letters ana or
mem. or,a,r ladies' Of title in England and on
continent appears to have given rise TO the
.s,on VI. S. that culture and accomplishments
"-' ,he rrle instead of the exception among the
s .-'- COW Of the Old World. In fact regret has
la" v -, synressed in several quarters on
49,. s,da ~ tie Atlantic that the daughters of
nm mt sbouh be inferior in instruction and at
., of one kind and another to their sis
= rur,ne There is. however. but little
Gov auv lament Of this kind and speaking
:. ,,dividual cases but of American women
roI II NAV he questioned whether they
"a class superior in brancy and in
uoo,ual equipment to the women yonder
side of the Atlantic
In England the average OF accomplishments or
A.. class known as gentewomen is not high
rhs,r education is Of singularly superficial
character. and while every girl Is supposed to
,.orr how 10 sketch and play the piano after
,,shor. these two attainments being considered
,ocessary the knowledge of foreign languages
=, modern history and of everything outside that
hod unor in the so-called ladies papers"
,s ~ the most elementary and restricted descrip-
49,. Irqsb girls are exuberant with health
..,.a,,,v and physical vigor due in the main to
.,o,r outdoor life and fondness for exercise But
4. cannot he said that they shine In any partcu-
,.r save in riding and at lawn tennis Their con-
orsation is dull and uninteresting. and when
,ce one attempts to broach any subject of gen
oral interest outside the narrow circle which con-
s,,tutes their own particular world. and beyond
which they never look. they are hopelessly at sea
ond likely TO regard their companion as either
freak or as a quiz" whose object is to make
them look foolish.
The average American girl knows all about
rurope and without moments hesitation
could rattle off the names of the various rulers
of the Old World. But it would he difficult TO
find one gentlewoman in a hundred in England
who is acquainted with the identity OF the Presi-
dent of the United States. who has the fantest
conception of the distinction between the two
great National parties here. who does not
imagine that Boston is Only few hours distance
from New-Orleans. This ignorance of the Eng
lishwoman as a class is general that when
any one Of their number can really put forward
any claim TO accomplishments that are after ALL
ordinary, she is at once considered in the light
OF a phoenix. and her name is heralded forth
in the press to such a degree a. to convey an
altogether wrong impression abroad in regard TO
the intellectual calibre Of the English woman
Were accomplishments more general among the
fair sex of Great Britain. ii is doubtful whether
we should hear much about the attainments
Of the young Duchess of Sutherland as pastry
cook Of the late Duchess Of Leinster's skill in
trimming bonnets. of Lady Warwck's knowl-
edge of horticulture of Mrs "Dodo' Asquiths
mastery of English politics. and Of Lady Reay's
acquaintance with foreign tongues and litera-
ture.
THE FRENCH GIRL.
In France the gentlewoman is equally lack
ing in accomplishments. True. there are daush-
ters of the old aristocracy who In spite OF the
aff,uence of their parents. have made a point
Of being graduated from the public schools and
of taking up the diplomas that qualify them to
earn their living either as governesses or as
teachers at the various educational institutions
OF town or State. But this is the exception
rather than the rule, and although the prac-
ticc has Teen adopted by the daughters Of some
Of these so-caed princes of finance" who are
forever crdcavOring to place themselves on the
same social footing as the old nobility yet 1t is
by no means countenanced by the average
French woman. who ia Of the opinion that blue
stockings are not the particular form Of femi-
nine hosiery that finds the most grace in the
eyes OF the stcrner sex. What the French
woman. however. lacks in the line Of accom-
rllshments she atones for in grace. elegance and
chic. to such degree that attainments of an
Intellectual order would posltvely seem ncon-
grucus and out Of place in 50 captivating an EN-
bodiment OF frivolity.
Austrian and Hungarian ladies possess much
in common with their French sisters in this re-
spect What they lack In chic and in elegance
they make up in beauty and in native grace.
In the true sense of the word. and an intellectual
Austrian or Hungarian gentlewoman seems
Just as much Of oddity as spirituele
French woman The only accomplishments
which the fairer portion Of the subjects Of En-
peror Francis Joseph may be said to possess
are those Of riding and dancing. both OF which
are inherited rather than acquired.
GERMAN WOMEN ARE DOMESTIC.
Whatever ACCOMPLISHMENTS the German gen
tlewoman can boast OF are Of the domestic or
der. She prides herself upon excelling in the
art Of gastronomy which in her case is only
the somewhat barbarous cooking Of GERMANY
ard although she makes an excellent mother
and devoted wife she is quite the reverse ot
Intellectual, and cannot be said to possess any
OF those grsces Of mind that are feminine ac-
oomplishments in the strictest sense OF the word
The range OF her mental vision rarely extends
beyond her own immediate circle and surround
ings. her views are narrow and everything out
side the borders Of Germany IS 10 her terra In
cognita
Italians and Spaniards are distinguished
above all other women In Europe by reason OF
their profound ignorance. due In the main TO
'he'r incurable Incidence They do not even
possess the art OF elegance or of dress. and
while the fair Spaniard may be said to excel IN
the mana cement Of the fan and in the wearing
OF the mantilla her Italian sister Is without a
single redeening point. save her beauty.
berhaIs he acnntuI.lis he In