The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-24

desire to get into a set or class supposed
! to be higher than thatiin which the ambi-
| tious ones are We should certainly
Move upwards. working out the beast
| And let the ape and tiger die"
| but It Is OF an upward social move rather
than Of a moral one that the majority are
ambitious. In the attainment of their
purpose they too often pet and pamper
the beast that is in them, and do not
| allow the ape and tiger to die of hamilton.
Whatever TIE means employed, how
ever, the desire of all sorts and conditions
! Of men, and especially of women, is to
get on. Getting on Is the god of their
idolatry though they do not always def
initely ask themselves to what they wish
to get on. They vaguely want to be some
bodies, to be distinguished. to be famous
or infamous Qt does not matter which,,
to be ''in the SWIM" to be acknowledged
by the best people-not by the morally,
but by the socially best.
When visiting the poorest people have
sometimes asked about Mrs. So-and-So
living near and have received the scorn-
fdl answer, "Oh, L don't neighbor and
don't know people of that kind" If I
suggested that there was good Samari-
tan who did ''neighbor," he was thought
no better of for so doing.
SOCIAL STANDARDS.
The lady who earns a precarious living
by occasional charring work is not with
out social ambition, and only cares to
associate with those who are a cut above
her. And If there Is honor amongst
thieves there is also social ambition. The
petty pilferer of cabbages looks forward
to being one day on an equal footing with
him who steals gold and silver, and the
latter IN turn aspires to the dizzy eleya-
ton attained by the robber Of diamonds.
In the more legitimate professions money
Is generally the standard OF sociai meas
Orement Farmers of only hundreds of
pounds a year are ambitious of attaining
to the rank of those who make thousands.
Some of the distinctions are hard to un-
derstand. Why should sellers OF hard
goods look down upon traders in SOFT or
ten-penny nails desire to be considered
pig iron? Those who brew beer, distil
whisky or help in any way to make their
fellow creatures drunk have as a rule
good position and are much envied.
Caterers for the amusement of mankind
get more pudding and praise than those
who supply what ministers to any other
part of our nature. So everyone tries to
be amusing with results that are some
times sad
One man, known to the writer, who WAS
almost millionaire, determined to get
into society literally at any cost. After
waiting a considerable time at the place
which he honored by making his home,
no one called, so he gave a series of ex-
travagantly luxurious balls and dinner
and garden parties. At that house cham
payne and other luXuries were TO be got
for the taking, and the man gained his
object.
When people leave this world they are
said to have died worth so much" esti-
similar valuation is often made Of them
before this time. They live worth so many
hundreds or thousands in the opinion Of
their neighbours But the dollar is not
almighty, and we know places where rich
vulgarians could not buy a position in
! society. Cleyerness and especially tact
/ (sevoir faire and savoir dire can do
more, but it is q social mistake to be too
learned or too clever. These qualities
make the unfortunate possessors of them
unpopular with the majority, that Is to
say with the ignorant and stupid. Those
who are socially ambitious should Guilt
Vate such parlor tricks as playing, sing
ing, fortune telling and story telling,
stopping short of anecdotage.
People who have their way to make in
society cannot afford to be badly. dressed,
| and they must be good listeners, Or If
they talk themselves, they should never
be long and never wrong. Mamma"
| asked a little girl, what Is classical
music?" "Oh don't you know? It Is the
kind you have to like whether you like
it or not" Socially ambitious people Gull
tivate this kind of pIiability. To have
taste. or will, Or soul Of ones own IL
bad form"
English people 'love a lord" so 1t is
the aim of a large percentage of them
to become acquainted with the peerage,
IN the flesh, as well as In book form, or at
least to make their friends think that
they are. I'VE must enter our AIRY for
Arrow" said a man who had more
money than his to his wife, Enter him
for Arrow and Eton both, was the re-
ply Of his congenial partner, "and we will
send him when the time comes to which
ever has most dukes
Social ambition IS always anxious to
get those who are indicated by that hor-
rible phrase smart people" to Its enter
tainments. Friends are invited. not in
friendly way, but Ito meet" Lord A, or
the Duke Of B, or some royal prfnceling
made in Germany" The phrase ito
meet" only means that guests should see
| not without envy, that the ambition of
! their hostess has been gratif1ed by the
successful catching and caging of a So
ciety lion.
THE SEX THAT SINS MOST.
We say ambition of the hostess, for,
really, in comparison to women men do
! not care much about these things. When
! they live alone or only with men they
| have very little social ambition When a
man gets knighted, or even when he has
some other higher title given to him, he
! thinks it right to say to his male friends
! with an apologize shrug Of his shoulders,
"Of course I do not care for the thing
! but then my wife does" This Is the
| old Adam coming OUTFITS woman gave
ma 7 lxyfn
! but still there Is some truth in 1t; the
| man is pleased chiefly Because his wife
! Is pleased. Sometimes, however, there Is
social ambition where we would not much
! expect 1t A railway guard told a friend
! of mine that he made more money when
/ porter, as he then got many tips"
! "Why then did you take promotion"
| queried my friend well sir" answered
! the guard, ''some of us have ambition ,"
! Very early in life the greater social
| ambition of the female sex shows itself
! A boy rather dislikes his clothes because
! he has to keep them clean, but his baby
! sister puts out her new boots to be ad-
! mired, and pouts with dIspIeasure If she
! is in company with another child better
! dressed than herself Boys take I'D with
| any good chaps" they come across. but
! even little girls choose their companions
upon the most approved system Of grown
| up snobbery. When a few years later a
| girl of this kind gives herself in marriage
! she generally does so to the best man
| she can get from the point of view OF
social ambition, and If theretbe any desire
to get on in him. she tries, to drive her
lord, la Lady Macbeth, into the highest
! place
''Hvpocrisy is homage which ,yfoa oi,,0a