The times., 1899-05-13
SATURDAY, MAY 10, 1899.
pewe,,. threatened Doom

Up TO the present time the assumption
has been that Admiral Dewey was to be
allowed 10 come home for sadly needed
rest. after the cares, anxieties, and heavy
RESPONSIBILITIES of the past year, which,
moreover, he has spent in an iron box
under a hlistering equatorial sun. But, If
his admirers could have their way, II is
evident on the strength of reports coming
in from all over the country that the bat
tie of Manila is regarded as only slight
bit of practice to prepare the Admiral for
the real serious business Of his life. which
is supposed TO be ovational attacks. seri-
atm, upon all the cities, towns, and VII
lages in the continental gazetteer. San
Francisco wants 10 be taken by Dewey
first, and San Diego and Santa Barbara
are Jealous, but all three unite in resent
ing the outrage of his landing on the At
lantic Coast The warlike competition be-
tween localities and social elements in the
matter of Dewey dinners is active and
alarming Ten dollars plate propositions
are sternly met by counter projects at
ten-ffty and eleven dollars; and one en-
thusiastic job lot of gentlemen, unknown
10 each other, and mostly to anyone else,
are contemplating feast which shall soar
10 hitherto unknown heights of dyspepsia
and vinous insanity at one hundred dol
lars a plate.
The wild and universal cry is: There
is nothing too good for Dewey" But it is
a mistake What all these excited prep
arations are intended to result in is alto
eether too good, or too bad for him. 1t
is quite unnecessary, in order to demon
strate a nations admiration and affection,
that the object should be pulled about all
over the Union and stuffed and exhibited
like prize pig In short, Admiral Dewey
must be saved from the general scheme
to victimize him. 1t is well that probably
he has little idea of the extent TO which
a movement calculated to land him in
lunaiic asylum has already progressed. II
is not only the hospitality of the great
communities that he needs TO fear Num-
berless small places are developing Dewey
mania IN peculiarly dangerous directions.
One of them owns the schoolmaster who
fogged him in childhood's happy hour.
The list being incomplete We cannot say
exactly how many villages hold the nurse
who pushed him around in baby car
riage. or the doctor who cured him of
Group, but they are legion. Wherever there
happens 20 be a man who knew Dewey
once, or who on some occasion had the
honor TO address him without previous ac-
quaintance that man Immediately con-
stitutes himself the head centre and
director of a Dewey celebration. including
the inevitable and indigestible dinner. In
ba Mon
Dewey is usually hampered and affronted
by more or less interference on the part
of the mayor and the president general OF
the village board of trade. but he can af-
ford to look down on their envy, for did
not the great Admiral once say TO him that
It was not fine day. when he had ventur-
ed the assertion that it was?
There will be municipal walls and heart
burnings, of course. but the matter is set
tied that Admiral Dewey is to come ashore
at New York This is eminently proper,
since New York is the national metropolis
and our greatest seaport. Ii is fitting that
the city most representative OF American
trade and commerce should receive the dis
tinguished citizen on his home coming
and express TO him the sense of his ac-
complishmepts in promoting the CONNER
cIal greatness OF his fatherland, felt by
every one of his fellow countrymen. Be-
yond this. and perhaps some dignifed re-
ception and celebration by one or two
other large cities, the admiral should for
mally receive the thanks of the Govern
ment and people at the appropriate place,
the National Capital. and then be left
alone to recover from the effects OF bat
ties, worries. and arduous life in a tropi-
cal climate. II would be poor return
for all Dewey has done for America to
catch him and throw him bodily to the
lions OF continental popular adulation and
TO the tigers who give dinners some at
two. some at ten. and some at a hun
dree sequins plate.