The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-07-10
WHY EUROPE NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. US.

nearly all uncultiVated persons, true OK
some cultivated ones. for there seems 10
be an impression among undlscipIineG
people that what they think. how things
affect them, are Of some Importance.
Only recently I met globe trotter. an
English globe trotter, who spread the
rs so thiekly through everything he
said that felt an almost uncomfortable
temptation to say, NY dear sir, we real
~ don't care what you think, recognize
ing the fact that you are not trained
thinker, but an unmitgated egotist end
al unmitigated bore" and studied Ger
man in Berlin with woman whose 'ich'
became so unbearable that ] ceased nay
lessons only TO be rid of It. The egoiss
IS TO be found everywhere. in every coun-
Try. and in every age. Wolssy Is not tie
only one to cry, Ego ct rex meus."
Every age and every country has not one
but many, who, If they did not cry in
had Latin Ego ct rex meus," feel that
II is a question of me and the king"
POIiteness Not Lost Art.
"Politeness has no value in the States.
It is not commercial attribute. and Is
the first superhuity that the emigrant
discards."
I ara quoting again from a recent
visitor on this side Of the water, and
from my very heart wish could deny
this statement. fer 'polIteness IS a main
ingredient Of culture-a kind OF witchery
that wins the regard OF ali assuredly as
diseourtesy gains their disfayor." and IS
charity covers a multitude OF sins be-
fore God, so does politeness before man.
and love my country enough TO want
TO see il stand first in everything-and
it does in so many things But, alasI
We are lacking In politeness as no other
nation on earth is lacking IN If.
After q long residence in Europe, II Is
the first thing one notices on arriving IN
New York-the lack Of courtesy the
Difference and politeness that is charac-
teristic OF every country and every class
in ElIrope-and so I cannot contradict
our recent visitor In this regard: but
can dispute her when she says that we
accept impoliteness as a matter OF
course; for the lack OF politeness that
one observes and suffers from is not
irnpoliteness, for irnpoliteness must be
intentional. and the seeming imp0lite-
ness is due TO lack Of knowledge and
training, not TO Intention.
There are no people IN the world kinder
hearted, more generous IN their dealings
than the public servants in New York.
I have seen a big, burly Broadway police
man take I'D little child and comfort
IT with as much tenderness and gentle
ness as its own mother might, but their
manners are the result OF a system. and
very bad system.
Public Servants Polite.
There is no space here 10 set forth
the difference between the municipal Cow
eminent in some Of the foreign cities
Berlin, for instance-and New York. but
/ the first requisite OF an empIoye OF the
city in Berlin is politeness; the first re-
quirement here is the ability to get
| there"
II the conductor OF a Berlin street car
should ten his passengers to step lively
or TO "git a move on yer there in the
German equivalents for these express
sions. he would be dismissed from the
| service promptly. and might be con-
sidered fortunate II he escaped fmprison-
ment OF fine; but hustlers are at a pre-
MUM In New York. and It IS the man
who ''gets there" no matter how who
| comes In for the greatest reward.
! One could I'LL pages with reasons for
the lack Of politeness In America, but
the main reason is the prevailing 7 am
as good and little better than thou"
feeling, the false pride, and the false idea
| OF what constitutes liberty. II we ex-
anime the question carefully we viii find
/ that there is much that savOrs Of slavery
in our much-boasted liberty, for we are
| the victims Of certain abuses that ara
| committed in the name Of that much.
misunderstood goddess; but there is one
thing typicaily American that keeps
/ hope in the hearts Of the most skeptic
among us, and that is, though we as frea
and Independent Americans resent critl-
cism and resent outside interference, wa
never fail 10 benefit from that same hated
criticism.
We Are Ala Foreigners.
But we have strayed far from our
mutton. One Of our recent visitors says
| that there are very few painters ana
soulptors who have taken a prominent
place in American history as American
artists. and even those have studied
abroad and utilized European methods
and models. Possibly. too-lf their anees-
tors were traced far enough-they would
be found TO be of foreign birth OF ex-
| traction.
The dear lady! We are all Of foreign
extraction. We Americans. as every stu
dent, even the most casual, Of history
should know. For our baby country was
only discovered in 1892, and not settled
until the early part Of the seventeenth
century. and all Of Us, save those who
claim descent from the aborigines, ara
of foreign extraction. Our ancestors
were Roosian. French CT Turk, or Proos-
sian, or perhaps I-ta-ii-ani but some OF
US. in spite Of all temptations to selees
an ancestor from other nations, preferred
an EngIishman with apologies to GiIbers
and Sulliyan).
Naturally. we can trace our ancestry
back to a foreign source only 10 us New
Englanders, who revere the memory OF
our English ancestors and cherish Eng
ish traditions. England can never be q
foreign country. Just as naturally. bav-.
ing IN the first hundred years OF our
existence to fight savages and build
homes and make farms In primeval for
ests, we have no time TO cultivate art
and So loving such things. craving such
things, needing such things, We go to
the other side for them; and we seek
there not only instruction and inspira-
ton In art, but all that the older civill-
zation OF Europe offers US.
We Go ArrogantIy.
We do not II Is tr1tn 20 hnrnbi,, cor,