Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-02
At Home and Abroad


Maybe It's prejudice and rayle rot
said a man who had Just come back from
the other side 90 Star reporter tn. utIer
day. but it seems 10 m, that yuu meet
more deconcy and politguess In this country
IN return FOR a small expenditure OF the
same commod ~ than you do anywhere else
TN the world, Why. even New Nurll-auG
We not much use for that towu-clu give
London toc-wcEhts and trptiiug harness
and leave her hitchcd at the post wnr, Il
comes to the mere dcceucics uf life To hc
sure, a New York car conductor wants Won
IL husti" onto his car and hustle OF again.
50 as not to interfere with his schedule. hut
II you ask him a ciyil question IN tie mid
die of the block you will get "a civil answer.
Also. 1t is tue that cab fares are almost
prohibtive in many American cities as com
pared with London. But If you strike "a bar
gain with a cabman TO take You anywhere
for a dollar he does II. and doesn't grumhle
till YOU are cut of hearing becaus, you did
not give him half as much more for a tin.
Yes. l know the tipping game is pretty
fierce here. You are up against il in any
restaurant you go TO, and the better the
restaurant the more rapacous the waiter.
But there are few people on this continent
that YOU wouldn't offer tip TO. Now. |
don't know whether it is true. but they say
when Phelps was minister in London that
he declared lie had never actually TIMED Il
cabinet minister. but that he thought a
member of the cabinet was the only class If
person in the island that lie had not offered
a TIP to ana had il accepted with good
grace.
1T IS not as bad as that here vet
Now, Nou stroll into railroad station here
aft ~IH.a tim Il
exchange for a bit of ordinary civility and
see If You don't get the dogs set on yuu.
But that Is what l have seer done In Lon
don, and the man got away with the game
at that. | was going up To Paddingtum sta
uon one night with a friend and w wanted
to catch a man who was coming in on tine
late train from southampton. We only
had the haZieSt idea when or where The
train would get in But we hunted up the
station master and got the information lie
was very decent about it, and | would have
simply thanked him politely and let it go as
matter of course. But my companion,
who was older in London WAYS than / was
ished into his pocket and passed the sta
ton master half crown. Did he get Of
Tended? Not much. He tipped his cap and
said, Thank you" where / had expected
to see him throw my pal under the nearest
engine.
well, when ! lit back here the whole at
mosphere of life seemed changed. You
could get Il decent answer, even from a
policeman, without producing the coin. l
viii say for the London Bobby that ne iS a
long-sulfering person. and most polite. but
he does expect to be tipped and is disap-
pointed If he isn't But 1t was with the
storekeepers that l got the most decided yet
most refreshing shocks. y storekeeper herr,
whether he is the head Of a big department
store and one of the solid citizens or
whether he is running a corner grocery,
does not necessarily lose his Self-respect be
cause he is lin trade He doesn't meet
you at the front door. washing his hands
with invisible soap and imperceptible water,
and then scowl and grumble under his
breath if you don't buy as much as he
pected from the looks of your clothes. Also
he does not see if lac can cheat you out Of
Il farthing, which is half of American
cent, but goes on the principle that if he
treats you decently you Will be more apt
to see him again.
Now, | went into Washington jeweIry
store the other day just to see if / could get
an empty cardboard box that was fit 10
mail a small trinket in. Now If Il had been
in London | would have expected either 10
be told fatty that the trinket was not worth
mailing and l had better buy something else
there or that they did not furnish boxes for
other people goods, or begrudglngly fur
nished a paper box with the firms name
scratched off the top and charged six pence
a shilling for ii. Well, the Washington
man, and II was pretty swell store too,
took my cigarette case-that is what |
acknowledgements with II and was gone
about five minutes and returned with 1t
done up in wooden box that just fitted ii,
packed in tissue paper TO keep 1t from rat
thing, and wrapped in stout paper, ready
for mailing. l asked him what the damage
was and he laughed and said that he would
get even with me the first time i brought in
any work. AS a matter of fact my watch
needed regulating badly, and l told him L
would give him a chance TO break even
right there. and left the watch with him.
Next week l went after it, and when
l asked for the bill he said IT was not
worth charging for and handed me the
watch, which has been keeping good time
ever since. Do you think man is going
to lose anything by treating a fellow like
that? Well, not here. When / have any
real work to do that fellow is likely to
get it.
Another thing l saw after | had been
back here a few days struck me as radically
different from what you would see abroad
There a bunch of people waiting for an
avenue on the wrong side OF 9th street.
They were evidently strangers, but IL was not
at the rush hour and the car stopped and
picked them up. When the conductor came
through to get their fares he said pleas
antly, Cars stop on the other side of the
street in this town, but | didn't want TO go
without picking You up, and l thought
would just tell YOU The man of the party
said Much obliged, brother and that was
all there was to it. But | tell you it just
shows how a little politeness makes the
wheels go round. And this is the country to
find it in