The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1899-08-24

man should get his living at a cheaper
rate than has prevailed for some time.
America and Germany.
A prominent German writer Hugo
Munsterburg, in the September Allan
tic gives clear and clever critlque
on the present situation between Amer
lea and Germany, which, If read and
accepted by the right people, would
have n good effect. Like most of the
preaching in this world, it is heard
by those who are already converted.
Herr Munstcrberg deplores the frictio on
which apparently exists, ana attri-
butes it largely to a definite misun-
derstanding, regarding which he says:
"No sincere observer can deny that
the two peoples do not like each other.
1t is not real hate, or even alimOsity
which separates them; it is kind Of
antipathy, half-ethical, hlit aes-
thetic aversion 1t would be super
fetal and wrong to deny this feeling,
and to maintain that their dislike
means commercial rivalry; both are
too fair and broad minded. too ideal
istic-to dislike each other on ac-
count of wheat and sugar and pork.
They might struggle about the tariff,
but tariff struggles become noisy and
undignincd affairs only because the
masses lack mutual respect. They do
not like each other because they do
not regard each other as gentlemen;
the American thinks the German SER
vile and reactionary, narrow minded
and narrow hearted; the German
thinks the American greedy and vul-
gar, brutal and corrupt. AS long as
the people feel like that, all the diplo-
macy of the two governments can
merely apply plasters to the wounds,
but can never thoroughly heal them.
Only one course is open for an or
ganic Improvement: The two nations
must learn to understand each other
and to feel the inner accord of their
real natures, or at least to overcome
hostile prejudices."
He then proceeds to describe the
many misapprehension which exist
on both sides and gives a graphic pic
ture of the ludicrous blunders which
are made. He asserts that the cmi-
grants who bring so much thrift ami
industry to our shores are not the
ones to dsabuse the American mind
of the popular delusions and hints
that the American tourist who is
L Ia, A ton, &c,
ually the loud-voiced, Objectionable one
whose gives color to the trans Atlantic
prejudices The American who truly
represents our nation is so unobtru-
sive and quiet and bent on gaining
as much culture from his foreign tour
as to be indistinguishable from any
other well-bred traveller.
Not a small part of the mistaken
ideas, he declares, are to be attributed
to our yellow journalism and Incl
dental to this he speaks of the wide
spread falsity of the portraits given
of Emperor William, and in this con-
nection says that there is one living
American whose personality most
closely resembles the German emperor
and that is the brilliant young COVER
nor of New York, whom many Ameri-
cans hail as the future president"
AS to the idea Of American freedom,
Herr Munsterberg insists that while
he loves and admires America, yet
with a president who has such an
unlimited power, with such domina-
ton of party bosses, city administra-
tions under the whip of spoilsmen, the
economy and tyranny of trusts and all
under the autOcracy of yellow jour-
nalism, Germany, to him, seems freer
adding significantly that Alger could
not have stayed as chief minister in
Germany one year in face of the pro-
tests of the people. In summing up
the writer suggests that the chief
misunderstanding among Germans
abroad is that Americans have no
idcalism, when the truth is that they
are idealists in most respects.
The fact is that the feeling between
Germany and America is, on this side
at least, much as Mark Twain de-
clared the reports of his death to be,
greatly exaggerated" Americans
have too many good honest and peace
loving Germans in every community
to be much wrought up over Germany's
attitude toward the United States. To
be sure the socialists who come from
that country to stir up strife and dis
seminate atheism are undesirable rep
resentatives of their native land, but
they seem to become naturalized, as
it were, all through in the course of
a few years and vex their adopted
home but little, Our press likes to
caricature Germans as it likes to carl
cature every other nation under the
sun and spares not it's own dearly be-
loved statesmen and politicians, but
there is no deap-seated repugnance to
Germany, and little fear of any overt
act of hostility on the part of the
United States.
The Brooklyn Eagle pays Bryan the
left handed compliment of saying that
he talks uncommonly well for a man
who talks altogether too much.
An Uncertain Outlook.
The Dreyfus trial continues to bring
forth proofs of the racial prejudice ex-