The bystander., 1921-09-15
THE RIGHT THING
AT
THE RIGHT. TIME
By MARY MARSHALL DUFFrE
IN A STRANGE TOWN.

II am not q virginian-but an Ameri-
can."-Patrtck Henry.
TT is always bad idea to knock the
i other mans home town. Especially
poor policy is it when you are making
your living there. Yet there are al
ways young inen-and women, too
who seem to take peculiar satisfaction
in passing uncomplimentary comments
on the city or town Of their adoption.
They don't seem to remember that the
man or woman who Is at home in that
town Is in position Of host and that
to make scathfng remarks about the
town is almost as rude as to make
scathing remarks about the house Of
the man whose guest you are. Especial
ly is this so when the town Is small.
The stranger in town like New
York or Chicago really harms no one
but himself when he continues to pour
forth bis dfsgruntlement over the city
of his temporary sojourn. No one
takes offense. At most they are bored
or amused. But when a stranger in
a small town assures the natives that
1t is away behind the times, that the
buildings are atrocious, the streets the
worst paved in the country, the res
taurants and hotels the worst run, the
women the plainest and the movies
the oldest he is giving real offense,
besides, of course, making himself
very unpopular.
I 1t really Indicates nothing more than
q persons own narrowness to KNOCK"
another town In this way. If the man
from q large city goes to small one
he should take it for granted that
things would be different. If North
ierner goes South he should bear in
mind that Southern climates make
people more indolent and he should re-
member that If he remains there long
enough he, too, will possess something
Of that indolence. And IL South
erner goes North he should remember
that the natives Of the northern cities
have really nothing to do with the raw
climate and that the very progressive
ness which has brought him North to
do business robs daily intercourse
OF some Of the charming courtesy
that makes Southern life so different.
The real man Of the world soon for
gets any local prejudices he may have,
or rather he is wise and well bred
enough to forget them. He realizes
that it is through no fault Of the ma
tives Of the town where he sojourns
that he has to remain among them and
that theoretically at least he is free
to leave the town If he does not like
1t. Just at present there are a good
many shifts in business and industry.
The end Of the war and demobilization
Of the soldiers and the closing of
certain war Industries and the be-
ginning Of other peace industries have
made it inevitable that good many
young men should find themselves in
new environment. City men find
themselves in the country or village,
and country and village men find
themselves for the first time In the big
cities; Fasteners find themselves in
the West Westerners find themselves
East, Northerners awake to the fact
that great opportunities await in the
land of cotton and Southerners on dis
cmbarking In the northern ports dis
cover that there are opportunities for
them there that they have not at
home. II you are one Of these young
men IN new environment show your
good sense and good breeding by not
knocking the town OF your sojourn-
Ing.
fcopvrixht). ti