Daily Kennebec journal., 1904-01-27
1.-THE Preposterous Yankee"
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Compliments. provided they are sin
cere and deserved, are nice things to
have coming ones way, but the next
best thing is criticism, artistically and
fe.linely framed. Perhaps, however,
criticism is not the word in which to
describe the lashing and scourging,
which American people get in the book
called THE PreposterOus Yankee,
with which the English people are now
amusing themselves. Considering its
contents, the writer is not to be blamed
for his desire to remain unknown. ana
so he subscribes himself on the title
page as Montague Vernon Ponsonby,
Esq. But whether or not we call his
work criticism, there is no doubt that
il is artistic in it's way, and that there
is no small degree of feeling in the
manner in which the author delivers
himself of opinions. If the book gains
any circulation on this side, there is no
doubt that it will amuse the American
ers at home.
First and foremost. this good English
brother thinks we tell lies with inartis-
tic yolubility. We are alleged to talk
of millions as though they were PEN
MES. We think in superlatives and
converse in the biggest adjectives to be
found in the lexicon. "American mil
Ifonaires," says Ponsonby, generally
Weld about 10 cents on the dollar when
they have died and have been assessed
by the probate court. The American
thousand is about three hundred. The
American newspaper circulation is 80
per cent. of the figures announced by
the publisher If you count a thirty
story American skyscraping building,
YOU will be lucky if you can find twen-
ty-six stories. Everyone is lying.
Americans lie in the pulpit. in court in
Congress, and in their sleep"
Amplifying this thought. Mr.. Pom
sonby finds that if an American says
he has been sitting up all night. II
means that he did not so to bed until
A. NJ If he converSeS cheerfully
about having made $1,000. it is evil
dence that he has accumulated $53. If
he declares that the theatre was so
crowded that the audience were hang
ing onto the balcony by their eyelids.
he wishes you to understand that it
was about half full. If he says his
wife's frock cost $500 and that she
bought 1t i'm Paris. he is trying to eX-
plain to you that she has never been
to Paris i'm her life and that her frock
store and that not of the first class
either"
We have no difficulty in placing Mr..
Ponsonby He lards and interlards his
literary product with references to the
drinking places of London. He is one
of those fellows who are always hang
ing around bar rooms to be invited up
to drink. We are inclined to think,
however. that he had failed to encoun-
the time he wrote the following para
graph:
"American progress consists in talk
. indulged in around barrooms. The
Americans declare that they intend to
conquer Europe but much of the con-
quering is to be done by persons who
can barely pay their fare to Europe
much less back. These boosters. who
come here on Cunarders and with pa
tent machines which are going tc
drive several Englishmen into the near
est workhouse. or with great schemes
into glue factory. stand around the
Hotel Cecirs American bar for few
weeks. never tagging in their boastina
and talking. and then go sit on the
doorstep of the American Ambassador
in n vain endeavor to induce him to pay
their fares back to the preposterous
country from which they came.'
1t is agreeable to find that Mr.. Pom.
sonby finds something to admire il
America. He declares that the Amer.
lean soldier is without vanities and af.
fectations of the European soldier. ant
have no hesitation in expressing tn,
view that he is the best and braves
soldier in the world" This admission
shows that Mr.. Ponsonby, however ig
norant he is in some things, has locke,
over 4 few pages in the history of hi
country. for surely if any nation in tn
world has reason to respect soldiers O
another nation. then England ha
reason to have high regard fo
the American soldier. But even il
giving this praise. the writer canno
refrain from getting in few side digs
and lie adds that Americans are tn