The Hawaiian gazette., 1903-10-16
AS OTHERS SEE Us.

man who visited Honolulu in 1896 while
on a bicycle tour of the world with
two professional friends, has Joined tht
growing army of Britons who have
written books on America. The title OF
his volume Is America at Work. The
author Is not partial to the United
States as n place of residence. He
thinks the people lack repose and are
TOO sordid to get much beauty out OF
life; but he contends that the Ameri-
cans, in the industrial field, are out
stripping Europe and setting an admir-
able example of courage, skill, enter
prise and hospitality to new ideas.
1t Is not necessary to follow Mr..
Fraser far into economic comparisons
which are already familiar to readers
of the commercial literature of the day,
but his notes on the social and business
manner of the Americans are altogether
readable. Americans" he says must
be right there within five minutes of
everywhere. In New York men coat
less and vestless, with their sleeves
rolled up--men are kept cool in blister
ing summer with a moving electric fan
smoke green cigars. There is NOV
able telephone at their left elbow and
IA
are mostly young men, tall, we'll built
and with nervous eagerness in every
line of their clear skinned faces. They
drink ice water. OF course. they drink
other things, but the American business
main is really water-drinking person;
and he hustles. Still, there is often
more hustle than haste. l have seen
man stand cursing for thirty seconds at
- oil TOW 10 a a
him to the floor below, when he could
have run down in fifteen seconds
The department store of America lays
II over anything of the kind in En-
gland THE American shop girl" says
our author, 'is not so ladylike and
polite as her English prototype, but she
is n bundle of intelligent vivacity. She
is neither anaemic nor languid She
treats customers with a familiarity that
would be met with rebuke in an En-
glish shop, but she means no imperti-
hence or cheekiness. You want to buy,
she wants to sell; and you are equal"
Mr.. Fraser declares that the keynote
of Washington is the air of democracy
which permeates every department of
the government. II have had" he says,
Experiences in various parts of the
ernments, from waiting fourteen days
in Chinese city for what might have
been provided in an hour to running
the gauntlet of British department.
the doorkeeper who doesn't know
whether Mr.. Cabinet Minister is to he
seen or not, and leaves you in n
draughty corridor for ten minutes, then
ushers you into a waiting room pro-
x,il ,,ritb tod iuh
teen months old, where clerk comes
and wants to know what you want
and then goes off and comes back in
another ten minutes and takes you in
to another room. dull furnished and
with n London directory as reading
matter; and there you fume until at
last, three-quarters of an hour after
crossing the threshold. you get face to |
face with the great man himself, and |
find him very English-cold, formal, |
but courteous"
Mr.. Fraser SAYS he carried his British |
notions to Washington. He went to n |
department and told the functionary at |
the door whom he wanted to see. The |
functionary discharged quantity of !
brown liquid into spittoon and. with |
out rising from his chair, said: ITO the |
sage" and in a minute the Britisher |
was shaking hands with a member of |
the American cabinet.
Here in America we are apt to make |
light of the official reports printed by |
the government and sent out to whom |
soever wants them. Mr.. Fraser thinks |
1T is fine thing and he comments on
it admirngly. Speaking of the labor |
In artt aNf fnr 10 H.
II have never seen such admirable |
articles anywhere except in the leading |
British reviews, and the publications |
have the advantage of never being |
theoretical, but always practical And |
there is no paying half dollar for the !
issue. There is no barrier of oficialsm |
to restrain inquiry. Any American is |
entitled to write and ask the depart |
ment any question on earth he is in |
terested in-the wages of Scotch fisher |
girls; why it is poor people have more |
children than rich people, etc or there
is the office, and you can walk in and |
get what YOU want"
1t will be n shock to learn that in |
spite of our palace sleeping cars and !
our well served dinners this English |
man regards the British passenger SER |
vice as superior to our own. He ad- |
mits that we outstrip the kingdom in |
handling freight and baggage, but he !
declares that las to handling passenger
traffic the American companies have
nothing to teach the British lines"
Coming to the conclusion of his work
Mr.. Fraser says there Is more sound
ness OF character In the Brton than in
the American. 1T is not, however"
he says, "by talking about our good
qualities that we can tread the road 10
success. 1t is by finding out our weak
points and putting those right. II we
are to learn anything from the Ameri-
cans 1t Is that If success is to be at
tained In business, conservative WAYS
must be abandoned. The British man
ufacturer has to learn that what has
oeen good for twenty years win not
necessarily be good for the next twenty
There is word-a word which have
frequently used in these pages, repre-