Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-09-15

MI iand. Just little, little
AA land and not at all in
teresting to look at; strip of gray
sand or patch of green grass, and
you have been only few days away
from such things, yet somehow you
want to jump up and down and shout
for joy.
More than half the first class pas
sengers on our ship were Americans,
coming home, and I suppose they had
gone away because they wanted to go.
If they had liked they could have
stopped in their own country as well
as not, and heard some of them say
ing during the voyage that If they
could they would spend nine months
out Of the year in Paris. But they
made as much fuss over the first
lump of sand we saw as If we were
discovering the north pole. Some of
them had taken this trip dozen times
or maybe more but any one would
have thought it was as new to them
as to me.
1t seemed as if l were sailing in q
dream to dreamland, and everything
would be dream till l found myself
waking up at home. If any one had
pinched me l hardly believe l should
have felt it as / stood by the rail
while we steamed toward New York.
We passed big fort and some neat
little houses. which looked like Off
GERS quarters. There was Long Is
land and Coney Island, which Mr..
Doremus said / must be personally
conducted" to see some day when I
felt young and frivolous. And by and
by heard people exclaiming: There's
Liberty-there she Isl Bless the dear
old girlr'
While 1 was wondering whether
they were talking of lady or a ship
j caught sight of a majestic giantess,
obligingly holding torch up to light
the world. Then l knew it was the
statue which had read about.
"What do you think of her" asked
Mr.. Doremus.
"She's grande DAME" l said.
"Now / know why your girls hold
themselves so well. They're trying to
live up to the ideal American woman
But she isn't as big as / thought she
would be. Nothing ever is as big as you
think it's going to be, especially when
Americans have told you about 1t, fol-
one has been brought up to believe
that their big things are bigger than
anybody else's in the whole world"
$50 they are" said Mr.. Doremus
"only where all the things are big you
don't notice them for the high grass
And over there's some of the grass"
He pointed, and I saw a great mum
Der of enormous objects. shaped lik,
lchimneys and apparently about mn
high, scattered aimlessly along th
blue
Il What are they?" 1 asked. "Grea
strange factories of some sort?'
mo. Houses where pretty wome
live and offices where men make til
money for them to live on"
''You must be joking. Women woul
be afraid to perch up there in the SIX.
Besides, it would take too long to e
up and down"
Nothing takes long in Americ;
And it comes natural to our women 4
perch up high. Statues aren't the onl
things we buy pedestaIs for this sid
of the porpoise tank. You just wa
and see"
II don't need to wait to see thu
American men are nice 10 women
ssfd r. Perhaps no nicer than En-;
listmen. really. only you seem to tax
great deal more trouble. Fancy a
the men ct Mr.. Van der wlDdfs t.
be drawing lots every night for III
right 10 sit By her and the two Nissf
EzeffaaS. I don't believe IL woul
have occurred 10 EDglisbmen. I'll
ones who really wanted TO sit thel
world have tried 10 get 10 their plac,
first. that's all. do think It was pre-
'ty Of you
wasn't It? Especially supposir
none Of US particularly wanted-bl
never mind Talking OF pretty thing
here are the docks"
They were big enough TO satisfy eve
my expectations, and / wished th
I'd insisted on being taken by son
one long ago to visit the London docf
so that might know whether GU
were better or worse One new
thinks of going TO see things at hon
but began to suspect that / mig
some day he stabbed with jealo
pangs and need 10 be stuffed with
lot Of facts about England. thoul
until knew Americans I've been
fke kafs8s u tiIiakipg facts the lea