The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-04-11
which the American does not recipro-

which the American does not recipro-
cate.
What do we give in return? If Amer
lean conSuls are to be believed the
most offensive display of boOrishness
that is possible in a people not wholly
uncivilized. A senator who has been
across several times said recently:
Where do all the nice Americans go in
summer? You never meet them traV-
cling"
The truth is. we are a great deal
worse abroad than we are at home
Secretary John Sherman, when he was
senator, made two trips across the
water He tells Of meeting on one of
these trips two nice American men of
good breeding and refined tastes who
attracted unpleasant attention in the
smoking room Of hotel by Boosting
| loudly about their country and abus-
ing every other country and it's people
They finally found themselves alone,
and then they grew hilarious over their
success in cleaning out the place They
had made themselves disa agreeable pur-
pOsely so as to drive away some Eng
lishmen who were occupying the best
places in the room.
Another gentleman, a Well-known
newspaper editor, told me Of a meet
ing with a fellow cOuntryman in
Paris hotel. The man approached a
party of Americans. You're from the
United States" he said. 80 am J.
haven't any cards with me, but that's
my name" And he drew out a ma
tional bank note and placed his thumb
nail on the signature of the president
of the bank. He wanted his fellow
countrymen to know how important
person he was at home. Doubtless he
had done the same bOastful, silly thing
with strangers from other countries. 1t
is the way Of too many American tour
tote
They carry the American eagle on their
shoulders and shove it under the nose
of every one they meet
But there are many kinds of Ameri-
cans just as there are many kinds or
Englishmen. We make the same mis-
take in judging the Chinese. In every
city but Washington the cody labOrer
or laundryman is taken as the typical
Chinaman, while the people here who
have met the nOblemen Of the Chinese
legation know that they are of quite
another class. Missionaries who have
visited China will tell you that we
get the very scum of her population.
But we differ from China and from
England and from every other great
nation in this-we do not send repre-
sentative Americans always to repre-
sent US officially at foreign capitals.
We have been peculiarly fortunate III
our ministers and ambassadors at Lon
don, Paris and Vienna. But many OF
our ministers at other capitals have
been mere politicians, and our cOnsuls
general and consuls have been, If any
thing, worse. / don't mean to sheer at
the politician if he is anything else.
But we should not send abroad men
who are politicians only, men who lack
business and social standing, educa-
ton and refinement. The English gov
eminent would never send a farmer to
act as consul general al New York.
1t might give him a special mission
to examine our agricultural resources
and honor him in other appropriate
ways. But a consul general would be
selected from the list Of men with
business experience on the rolls Of the
foreign office.
Secretary Sherman, when he was q
senator, told me he thought no man
ought to go abroad for our government
who did not speak the language of the
country in which he was stationed. II
is unfortunate that Mr.. Sherman did
not make that inviOlable rule Of his
department when he took charge Of If.
Mr. Sherman, by the way, was pre-
sented to the emperor Of France at an
official reception when he was in Paris,
and he wore knee breeches, silk stock
ings and low shoes for the occasion.
This was the costume worn by EN-
bassador Breckenridge at the corona
ton Of the car. The story about Ii
made much merriment for Mr.. Brek-
inridge's friends and for newspaper
readers generally In the United States.
Knee breeches are worn by many or
our diplomats ON state occasions. Gen. |