The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-01-25

| nowadays always comes out at the lit
| tie end of the horn?" And then nt
thunders the following answer:
1T is because New York is out Of
touch with the country at large. On
/ the edge of the continent she imagines
herself the axis. She is fond of posing
as the London or Paris of the United
States, whereas she is only the Liver
pool. Her newspapers, with one eXcep-
tion in the morning and another in ...e
afternoon. treat forty four states of the
union as outlying provinces. and their
comments on public affairs happening
away from their own dunghill show a
narrowness of horizon equally amazing
and offensive, whether resulting from
ignorance or affectation. For years
one of these journals was editeu by a
man who was an English citizen who
afterward went home and entered par
lament. Another was edited by a fell
10 and who never spent an hour in the
capital of his country. although it was
only five hours away. Two are now
edited by men who spend most OF their
lives In European capitals. and one
Of them fairly detests America.
New York Is the last place in the
country to feel the pulse Of the coun-
try on any great question. The public
opinion of New York is the public opin-
ion of the clubs, the Stock Exchange
n nd tho 4 iuhf only
through published interviews with men
who hail from the west and south. 1t
is the habit Of New Workers. not to ac-
cept any but New York verdict on an
actor, an author. poet or statesman
Consequently they are generally be-
hind time. and then assume a ridiculous
air OF having discovered greatness or
success long existing or already well
established. 1t was so with Mary An
derson, Joe Jefferson, John McCul-
Tough, Mark Twain, w. u. Howells,
Henry w. Grady, Bret Harte and, with
out lengthening the catalogue un-
duly, and yet by way of climax, with
Abraham Lincoln.
1.-THE funny part of 1t is that a ma
jority of the New Workers who assume
this attitude toward the rest OF the
country come from the so-called prov
inces' and yet fall into New Yorl.
provincialism from a desire to seem to
be to the manner born. The men who
carve out the greatest successes in the
metropolis are from the west, the south
nr1 thnt,
their enterprise and their capital there
would be stagnation on Manhattan
Island. 1 like New York. / know her
WELL An eastern man myself, would
be the last to say an unkind word OF
the east. We of the west have pride in
the glory of our commercial metropolis.
That pride would be greater, however,
If New York were to give some thought
to the rest of the country and putting
aside her high and mighty airs. con-
descend to pay US little attention,
other than In a patronlzing way, not
only when an election Is to be carried
or convention is to be located, but In
ordinary times. Let her recognize, too,
that the west surpasses her In many
things and equals her in more and that
no city on this continent has a monop-
oily of civilization, culture, patriotism.
money, enterprise or brains"
There is unquestionably deal Of truth
In Brother Handy's observations. Es-
pecially is 1t true that New Workers are
often ridiculously inaccurate in their
verdicts as to literature and the arts.
This is coming to be so generally rec
ognized in connection with the drama
that few managers nowadays care to
open a season in Gotham, or, in fact,
to go there at all IL they can secure
audiences in the interior. The theat-
rical trash which the provinces reject.
New York accepts. The papers which
the provinces toss into the garbage
barrel New York takes to her bosom.
The froth and the scum Of the country
In all departments of human activity
save, perhaps, business have little diff
ficulty in getting on, in Gotham. But.
then, what else can be expected from
city which has no breathing room?
-------<o-----
Senator Wolcott has won for himself
popularity in England by
his denunciation of the Monroe doc
trine but the returns from the United
States are not SO favorable.