The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-12-27
QUEER THINGS IN ENGLAND.
Little Matters That Bewildcr an
American ON His First Visit.
From the New York Tribune.


The books that are written about for
eign countries are most unsatisfactory.
This is just as true in the case of such an
easy country to write about as England
as it is in the case of Central Africa. The
books tell the poor Americans who have
not been there a good deal about West
minister Abbey and the tower of London
and the houses of parliament bat they do
not disclose the little things in which Eng
lish life differs from American life. the
little things which, after all. make up life.
the things which an American, on his first
English visit, finds almost as dlvertiug
and surprising as palaces and cathedrals
and galleries. Jacob Abbott had some
thing of the right plan when he wrote
The zen volumes of "RoHo's Tour in Eu-
rope and made them so delightful TO the
children Of thirty years ago. He told
about Westminster Abbey, but he tod
about hanson cabs, too and they We're
quite unknown in America in those days,
and most interesting
1t is these little differences that go far
TO make the first journey in England a
round of amusement, If the traveller is In
good health and has a youthful interest
IN all that he sees. Sometimes the things
that are surprises at first arc really only
the steps IN the Socratic method and the
keen observer finds that he knew them be-
lore, from books of pictures; only he did
not believe them.
The very first experience OF the present
writer and wise companion of his in Lon-
don was of this sort They got into the
cao at the station and gave the cabman
the address Of the house where they were
TO stay. When they were set down at the
door they saw beside IL a bell handle and
beside II the words. Ring also" No such
words as these had they ever seen on
door before. and they stopped and studied
them, while the cabman wondered what
they We're waiting for What could this
strange request ring also" mean9 Did 1t
mean, Ring thou also. others having
rung,' or did it mean, "Oh, thou who has
done something else ring als0?" And il
so, what else? Then the companion, wise
in the Socratic method, remembered. In
pretty little edition of ThaclSeray's "The
Rose and the Ring he had once seen a
picture of a door with Il knocker aud a
bell and the words. knock and rig"
This door had a knocber, too and ring
also" must be a shorter way of saying
KNOCK and ring" He knocked with the
knocker and rang with the bell, and that
proved to be the right thing to do.
There is quite as much strangeness in
the things that are missed as in the things
that are seen. Probably the most terrible
atfiicton for Americans in England Is the
want Of ice. 1t takes time 60 learn 10
drink warm water, if the silly and I'M Eng
fish American viii insist on drinking wa
ter at ALL and it is just as bad TO drink
warm beer. Perhaps Il is IN part the nor
rlbe tepidness of the alleged cold drinks
that drives the English themselves 10
drink so much tea and so much spirits.
On account of some climatic differences il
is possible TO drink a good deal more alco-
hol in England and in Europe generally,
than In America, with the same or less ef-
feet, but that is another subject.
Ice Is not wholly unknown. Now and
then a barroom has II for luxurious Gus
toners who demand it, and in that case
the fact is announced 10 an amazed pop
| ulace by a placard with the word Ice in
the front window Some hotels have 1t,
too, and guard it as a treasure, handing It
around in dishes OF the sixe of sugar ba-
sins Nor is the Englishman himself,
when properly educated, blind to its use
fulness. A man who looked like the sort
that would pride himself on knowing all
the latest things was recently ordering
lemon squash. A lemon squash Is weak
soda lemonade usually without ice. "Will
you have ice in it?'' the barmald asked.
Yes" said the Engllshman, the ice Is
| the best part of It." This he said with
quiet an air Of announcing a discovery
This simple incident proves several
things namely, that they do sometimes
/ have ice; that they do not put it into
cold drink as a matter OF course. that an
Englishman who has discovered ice feels
that he has a right to be proud OF him
self and that English bars are tended by
women. The barmaid is another Of the
surprises for the American. lie knew
| that she existed. of curse, yet II Is a shock
TO see her for the first time. 1t is a shock,
too, at first to see women customers
standing or sitting about in barrooms, even
i'm comparatively respectable ones. But
this did not set out TO be an essay on bar
rooms or drinking habits; 1t Is hard to
keep away from the one or the other in
! England
TO make a long jump, there is the matter
! of candy, or sweets" as they would call
| themselves over there Many Englishwo-
men VINO make short visits to these Unit
| ed States go home with pale faces and
J faded constitutions because Of the too sud-
/ den revelation TO them of American cam
| dies ASgir who likes sweets-that IS to
! say, a girl-should accustom herself to
| the American grades from childhood, to
| avoid the temptation to get drunk on them
| at a later period. But up to a short time
/ ago-and probably it Is 50 still-there was
/ only one shop in all London that could
! supply candies OF the quality to be found
al forty shops in New York. This shop
was making a fortune in candy. and waA
] also doing a land-oflice business in ice
! cream soda and yet such Is the conserva.
| tism of the Briton. il ran for years with
! out an imitator. Full credit was given to
| lis origin, and it was known as the Amer
! lean candy shop.
There are confectioners' shops, Of course,
! but these are chiefly devoted 10 cakes ana
! pastry-windows full of tartlets with
| Strawberries in them cooked ana sugared
| 90 look like cleaning rubies of the size
| of English walnuts-and they sell soDe
| kinds of candles. too. And there are
! little shops for the sale of taffy-British
''toffy'-and horrid red ana yellow poisons
! for the children who Ike their sugar 70
be of brilliant dyes. But good, Wholesome
| comparatively, artistic ad ingenious
| American candies have never been thor
oughly introduced.
Englshmen seem much given TO shaving
themselves as It appears to the American
in search of a barber shop. And he is
stricken with new sense Of wonder when
he finds a barber's shop called a toilet
] club Sometimes American barber shops
are advertised and then he can commit
his fate to one and take his chances
The things that are advertised as Ameri-
can are sometimes diverting, 100 Ameri-
can dentists are expected to announce