The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-10-30

were subject to the scrutiny and the
first and last impressions of the men
in the service, the tourist reaction of
Americans to Europe before the war
becomes almost meaningless. For the
tourist out for playtime usually saw
things that he wanted to see and ev-
erything more or less through rose
colored glasses. He was only too glad
to grant the perfection of the out
side of the platter without being too
critical of what was on the inside.
But that was not the way in which
the American army of occupation view
ed it's experiences or it's opportunities
in Europe. SO, as Kipling would say,
their re-discovery Of Europe on their
own account is quite another story.
Unfortunately for Europe, the story
of the re-discovery of Europe as made
by the average American soldier or
sailor or marine, private or officer, will
not lay the fattering JUNCTION Of I'M
qualified approval to the soul OF our
friends on the other side. Accustomed
as they have been to assume a ire
mendous spiritual as well as physical
superiority for their civilizations. and
also lulled by the continual adulation
of American writer's who have follow
ed the tradition of years and offered
the incense of admiration to every
thing that spelled 1.-The other side"
thau will hn ornotlr chnnEnH m 1aorp.
that the almost universal verdict of
these 1900, 900 inquisitors is that "Eu-
rope will not do at all" They are
emphatic in believing that it's pre-
tentions are unwarranted and that it's
differences in public and private Gus
toms and have in nothing
any element OF superiority in the mat
ter of comforts, c~onyeniences and ele-
gances in u own methods of life and
living. There is no question about this
verdict, just as there can be no ques-
ton about the sincerity and the true
breadth of feeling revealed in the
way in which the returning crusaders
thank God that they are back "in
Gods country" They near it in a
way that is going to put on the scrap
heap a great many books about the
Old World which all too frankly as
sumed the Old Worlds attitude of
calm complacency as to it's own per-
lection and the casual c~ondescensions
toward the supposedly Jaw and unde-
veloped civilization and this side Of
the water.
AS to our alleged lacks, it is true
that no less a person than the famous
French academician, Henry Lavedan,
has recently confessed that all Europe
a grossly misrepresented us and
misunderstood us for years, indiffer-
emily accepted unpleasant c~aricature
for supposedly literal fact; and in his
discovery of the real American" he
mas done us a service with his own
countrymen who, however, have been
put through a somewhat rough-and-
ready course in A~mericanism which
has not needed the assistance of liter
airy men to tell them what America
was like OF what Americans really rep
resented when you saw them day by
day, side by side, some three million
strong.
But ignoring for a moment what
Europe now thinks us and is going
to think of us, the great thing is what
we think of Europe, and if we take
the words of the youth who made-up
our armies and our navies, the product
of our public schools and our colleges.
they will have none Of it. A liking
for individuals and a remembrance
OF pleasant places and pleasant things
are quite in order, but if any one be-
lieves that the millions who have re-
turned are ready to indulge in the
feminine gush of the average tourist
of those curious before-the-war DAYS.
will find himself much mistaken.
is also useless to tell the keen critics
OF the things that they saw over there
but to despise them, that they saw
disorganized by two years
more of a great war, for they will
tell you very frankly that they allowed
for all that and that the American
mans Indictment is of Europe