The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1905-05-22
OUR AMBASSADOR.
In England He Is Killed With Kindness
and Cruelty Exploited.

10 fAVtAtAs
Now that Mr.. Choate is making what
are positively his last appearances on
the diplomatic stage, now that his sue
eessor has been appointed and the APP
pointment confirmed, a very delicate
point arises IN national, OF rather inter
national, manners.
Why are we so cruel to the American
ambassador.
We do not Of course mean to be. but
that does not alter the fact that we
are. Indeed, it aggrayates It. Our in
humanity is all the more inexorable for
being unconscious, and the chances of
reformation all the more remote be-
cause we are blanIly unaware that re-
formation is needed.
Instinetiyely we separate the Ameri-
can ambassador from all his colleagues
IN the diplomatic corps. He Is the only
one who really reaches the masses. lie
IS the only one in whom the people. as
a whole, have any interest. OF him
alone it is expected that he win ne
less OF an official and more Of man.
One never hears Of the Russian OF
German ambassador being asked to lee
ture before q philosophical or historical
society, OF invited TO literary dinner.
They and they colleagues are permitted
to stand outside all but fraction Of
the national life They may entrench
themselves behind the rampafts Of So.
ciety and oilicialdom, and none will seek
to drag them forth.
The public at large knows nothing
of them, and does not care 10 know any
thing. They are what the American
ambassador never is-Ihey are foreign
ers and treated as such. We surrender
them cheerfully To Downing street. the
Court and the West End. The vast ma Z
jority of the people do not even know
them BY name. a paragraph in the
papers IS enough to announce their adj
vent or recall; while their American col
league, on his arrival as wen as his
departure, receives full blown editor
ial salute from the entire London press.
The one is merely an incident OF Of
ficialdonl, the other is a national event
All this, no doubt, is very pleasant
and as it should be. We ought To make
a distinction and we do make a distinc-
ton, between the American and other
1t would be against the
grain Of nature if we did not. We
simply cannot help treating him rather
as a distinguished national guest than
as an accredited official. But the cues
ton is whether we do not commit the
worst crime against true hospitality by
being too hospitahle; whether we do not
ask too much OF our guest and drive
him too hard; whether, in short, there
Is not something pitiless and adaman-
tine IN the attentions we shower upon
him.
think there undoubtedly is. We
overClo our part. We never really give
the poor man moments rest. We might
almost be accused Of trying to kill him
with Kindness. Even before he lands on
English soil he is bounced on bv the
mayor and corporation Of Southampton.
an address Of welcome fred at him on
and speech extorted in re-
ply. And this il but d foretaste Of
what is to come. Throughout his STAY
among us we presume Unfortunately on
his acquaintance with English. There
must, | have often thought, be times
when we force him to wish that he spoke
Basue and Basque only, and did not
''the faith and morals hold that Mil
ton held So he might live among us
and possess his soul in quietude-a di-
and not a public character.
But as it is, no sooner has he present
ID his credentials than the bombardment
begins ! must admit at once it is
most vigorously replied to-. England
md the American ambassador set to8
forthwith to see which can spoil the
other the most. Chambers Of Commerce
'woop down upon him and bear him off
n triumph as their guest of honor. The
omar Khayyan Club points an invita-
ion at his head, demanding uncondi-
.ional surrender. The Dante Society
insists on his escorting it's members
q the internal regions. The Words
worth Society, the Browning Society,
he Boz club, the Sir Walter Scott club
AL. press their claims. The Birming-
lam and Midland Institute insidiouslv
lects him as its annual president, and
xacts BY way Of tribute an address on
Benjamin Franklin. The Edinburg Phil
sophical Institution bestows the same
ionor for the price Of paper on Abra
lam Lincoln.
And SO il goes on. The big public
chools, knowing that he Is an Ameri- !