PQ5ED FOR THE. ' &E.E. BY BOSTWlCK.jJ
Wave of Adulation for America Has Engulfed England
10ND0N, Juno 13. (Special Corre
spondence of Tlio Hot-.) With tho
Fourth of July ho near one can
think of no subject moro fascinat
ing than the changed sentiments to
ward America and her peuplu of those from
whom, at tho Hword's point, the colonics
won their Independence. And this is for
tunate, because Just at the time this letter
is written there lias been such n succession
of rcmnrkablo occurrences, beginning with
tlio Investment by Andrew Carnegie of $10,
1)00,000 of American money In Scottish edu
cation and ending in the double triumph of
our countrymen at Epsom Downs, with tho
receptions given to representatives of tlio
Now York Chamber of Commerce coming In
hotwecn, that It would bo difficult for an
American visitor to London to Ignore this
subject. Heally there lias been in theso
weeks a new apotheosis in England, and
tho gods beforo whom tho English people
are bowing down, who are they, do you
think but our own modest selves? If hcro
after American visitors do the least thing
to merit tho thread-worn English fling at
Yankeo loudness nud boastfulness, who will
bo to blamo? To stand so much adulation
ono must bo more than human. My own
humility never had such a shook. To crown
their other tributes and favors the pcoplo
of this realm ought now, In final proof of
their regard, to put a new petition in their
prayer book, asking that wo who are hero...
and arc compelled to sco ourselves from tho
English viewpoint, may not be unduly
puffed up.
Olil 1'liriiNc, ,i-tv Mi'iinliiK.
"Tho American Danger," a phraso with
which tho papers over hero have made us
very familiar, has now an altered signifi
cance for some of us. Originally It meant
tho peril to which English trade la exposed
by American competition, nnd tills "Ameri
can Peril," wp have b"en repeatedly assured,
is moro to bo dreaded than "tho Yellow
Danger from the East ' Does this mean, 1
wonder, that wo are worse than tho plague,
or docs it merely mean that wo nro harder
to control than tho plague? Not that it
matters in tho least, for to Americans win
aro In England Just now to see for them
selves what Is going on, "Tho American
Danger" means nothing moro nor less than
tho danger to which Americans aro exposed,
owing to the recent "Hop" In their favor of
England and all things English, of thinking
altogether too much of themselves. Even
tho weather seems to havo come our way.
It Is typically American, and oven moro so,
as mo might expect, for whatever Is an
Imitation Is sure to bo somewhat exagger
ated. Anil, would you believe it, thero have
been nothing but bright skies nnd genial
warmth In London since that gift by which
three wccKh ago Andrew Carneglo no com
pletely "Americanized" the Scotch universi
ties. KiiKllNltnion mill IIiiIiIIh.
Thus nt lasl Is thero a chance for the
average Englishman to emancipate himself
from ono of tho things which must surely
have been a serious handicap In tho race
for tho world's markets, I refer primarily
to his umbrella, but Incidentally, also, to
that alternative fad of his, tho walking
stick. Tho proverbial English dictum on
this subject, based on the emotional ten
dencies of tho English barometer, has si
ways been, "Ho sure to take an umbrella
when It doesn't rain please yourself when
it does." Hence tho Englishman and his
umbrella, or tho alternative to it, have be
come Inseparable companions, with tho re
sult, of course, that he has been to that
extent weighted In his struggle for com
mercial supremacy. In other words habit
has forced him n very trlval habit I grant
to think so much of himself and his be
longings that ho has not been nblo to think
so much ns his rivals havo of what ho must
do next, In a business way, If ho would
keep up with tho procession. A trivial mat
ter to mention that I've admitted yet
oven so light n thing as a feather may show
which way the wind Is blowing, and no
lees docs this ono little tendency lot us Into
tho secret of England's relative backward
ness at this time In realms of enterprise
which formerly wero all her own. It Is nil
tho result of habit. She Is too set in her
ways, too much attached to old customs,
too considerate of forms, too careful of
her dignity, too afraid of getting a little
wet, too determined to carry on business In
Just tho way In which she has always done
It In other words, too much attached to
her umbrella and walking stick.
Swret Soiikn of l'ralac.
To tbla charge tho English people them
selves are pleading guilty, and no American
pon could ever set forth moro strongly than
thoy tho Inferiority of their own methods
to ours or tho urgent need there Is for the
old mother to wake up and at the opening
of the now century take a leaf out of the
wonderful book opened !n tho laBt century
by her onterprislng daughter. It used to bo
that if tho American people wanted any
thing very good said of them over horc,
they had to say It thomselvcs, and every
body knows that to tho emergency thus
created by an unapprcclatlvo British public,
American visitors, as a rule, wero more
than equal, nut what a chango! Now all
ono has to do Is to Just sit still, keep
ciio's mouth shut and listen to nothing but
the big brass band of British adulation
from rosy morn till dewy eve. From tho
president of the Hoard of Trade speaking
beforo Parliament and Justifying tho gov
ernment In buying American locomotives
on tho ground that they are better nnd
cheaper than those mado In England, nil
tho way down to thoso nowspaper writers
who, npropos of America's double triumph
at Epsom, aro asking "Is England going
to tho dogs?" thero is only ono tuno kept
up. Thero are, however, two strains In
this tune, and I am wicked enough to con
fess that my chief amusement for some
tlmo has Veen an effort to determine which
strain Is produced with tho greater fre
quency, tbat In which the pcoplo simply
bemoan thrlr own former stupidity, or t.iat
which so heartily Insists that hcrcaftci
nothing mi'Pt Biifllco but tho adoption as
quickly ns possible of thoso trndo ideals
which havo et long dominated In tho United
StntcB.
Why The) Submit.
Tho moro circumstance that recently tho
Massachusetts Institute- of Technology hold
in Iondon nn entrance examination would
of itself bo scarcely worth noting. What
gavo significance to It was tho significant
commont It solicited from tho London press.
In nil branches of technical training tho
English, upon their own repeated confes
sions, aro so far bohlid us as to bo posi
tively ashamed of themselves. To show,
too, how deep Is their present feeling of
humiliation and how sincere they are In
wanting to learn from us how to do things,
some of the papers Indulged comments like
this. "Perhaps," they said, "this tempting
of English pupils to American schools Is a
good thing for us. Wo must not forgot that
Germany got Its lessons In commercial en
terprise by sending young men to bo trained
In tho business offices of London, and possi
bly wo could not In turn moro surely pro
vldo for our own commercial future than by
encouraging tho youth of England to go for
a few years of training to the United
States."
ICIiiK Win KtllHod.
This reminds mo of the reception London
has Just given to tho representatives of tho
Now York Chamber of Commerce. It will
bo a back- number by tho tlmo this is read
nnd only for my conceit pardonable to un
Amorlcan sojourning Just now In England
In thinking I have something new to say
about It, I should not dare even an allusion
to such ancient history. Dut you perhaps
heard that while these men wero bore they
wero "patronized" In various ways by tho
royal family, the lord mayor and others.
That, I am sure, Is tho expression that
would bo used If the news was sont In tho
stereotyped English form. But don't be
lieve such nonsonse all tho "patronage"
was the other way about. Not tho slightest
disrespect la Intended to tho genial king
or tho lovely queen, for both of whom I
havo a regard which Is up to the full limit
of what any citizen of a republic ought to
feel for crownod heads. All the same,
though, It Is my persuasion that Edward
and Alexandra wero Just as glad to see
theso leaders of American flnanco ns the
men were to see and talk with them, and
I cannot doubt that when tho king looked
at them, as samples of tho kind of
men that had pushed American trade so
far ahead of England's, ho felt as little
llko condemning them ns Lincoln felt like
condemning Ornnt upon tho complaint that
ho drank n great deal of whisky, but was
rather Inclined, like Lincoln, to ask them
what brand of brains and enterprise they
employed, so that Inter on ho might give
a pointer or two on how to do things to
thoso heads of British trade which aro
now so painfully realizing for tho first
tlmo their Ignornuco and tnclllclency.
('mine fur 4iiMiil-iiliii-il Comment.
All this Is In perfect good nattiro on my
part, but really the chango of sentiment
toward America and her pcoplo has been bo
great In this country In recent months,
and was ho strikingly emphasized by the
visit of those Now York magnates, that one
can scarcely descrlbo It without seeming
to chuckle over It. One writes, too, with
tho four that because he cannot help
being n little playful on such a subject,
ho may bo suspected of exaggerating and
may not be taken seriously. Hut It is a
fact that, far from tho New York visitors
receiving "patronage," they throw this nrtl
clo about In great big, sugar-cooteil
chunks wherever they wont. And this was
Just tho thing to do. It was what the
situation called for, and the fact that these
shrewd business men so quickly sighted
the mark and then bo efficaciously hit It,
wns onother Instanco of Amerlcnn versa
tility. It showed, too, In what great kind
liness wo enn act toward pcnnln after
wo've licked them. Altogether It was very
umusliig, and yet It had its impressive
feature, nnd did not In the least tend, 1
can assure you, to lesson one's estimate
of what It means In these days to have the
Stars and Stripes for one's Hag.
What theso visiting millionaires found
was that John Bull was on l lie steel of
repentance bemuse he has learned so poorly
the latest devices In making biiKimss go.
It was evident In every paper they read and
in ovory conversation they held that this
hitherto self-atislled and rather conceited
old gentlemnn was quite out of the notion
of himself nnd was having a lit of tho
blues. Ho was taking on quite seriously
because ho didn't know any moro and hadn't
done any better, and was wondering, iib
many a man does when pride or self-will
gets n sudden shock, what would become of
him In the future. In saying thai this was
what thcBo men found when they reached
England, ono docs not exaggerate in the
leant, and in proof of this one might put In
tho witness stand, not only these men them
selves, but every slnglo London editor and
almost every mnn who about that tlmo was
discussing current business conditions from
English platforms. Nnturnlly, therefore,
the ono call upon these Influential New
Yorkers was for word of friendly rcas
suranco, and with tho true American genius
for doing tho right thing in the right way,
thoso wero tho sort of words they began at
onco to utter:
Knuluiiil'n Nun Not HrttiiiK.
"Don't bo so frightened," I hoy mild.
"After all this Is n great country. Don't bo
down-hearted, old man. Don't think thai
tho star of England Is going to set. Wo'vu
beaten you In some things that's truo, but
that's only a rcnBon why you should pull
yourself together and go Into tho bnttlo
with moro vim. Ix)ok at u," thoy said;
"aren't wo of tho same blood with your
selves?" So did they express themselves
in substance, and then their pointed query
was. "If this spirit of triumphant enter
prise is In tho blood of tho duughtcr, why
Isn't It also In tho blood of the mother?"
And this last remark seemed to suit tho
patient better than anything, If ono may
Judge from the editorial comments upon it.
"Yes, Indeed," replied thctm good-natured
knights of the English quill, "that's Just
the point to tie to. It Is tho onergy and
adaptability of the Anglo-Saxon that havo
done these great things for Amorlca; now
let us bo encouraged by this to mako an
other supremo elfort ourselves, for aren't
wo also of this great raco?" And so, since
then, John Bull has been feeling better,
lie is more hopeful, dear old man, and I'm
glad of It, for I never saw him so really
down In the mouth beforo. But one re
flects again, what n chango! For It Isn't
so very long since this "snmo blood nnd
same raco" argument wiib brought Into
frequent service by tho leaders of pub'l
thought in England In qulto u dlffeiont
way
'I'll Mr I'l-nm Inn-iillyi'il.
They used to wonder whal would become
of us. Tho experiment of iL iimciaey. how
would It turn out? Badly, they feared,
badly. Yot, wo were Anglo-Saxons and
we ought to know how to me freedom,
whether wo did or not. Tho civil wnr and
Its great Issues nspoclally Its IsRiirs of
bitterness how eould theso ever adjust
themselves to a common ling? Thlr would
surely take general Ions, if not ages. Yet,
uftor all, was thero not Homo hopo, for Isn't
It ono of tho trails of tho Anglo-Saxon to
mako tho best of defeat, and Isn't ho nlBo
In vlclory u generous foo? Our working
class population with tho ballot In Its hands
in a country which was not so law-abiding
as It should be, how win that ominous peril
to lie avoided? Pioliably It wouldn't bo;
probably thero would be a lovolutlon nnd
all sorts of bad things. Yet wo might be
saved, oven though It wero by tho Bkln
of our teeth. And, of course, If wo were
tho saving salt In our national makeup
would be that wo belonged to tho same
raco with tho law-abiding people of Orcat
Brltnln nnd Irelnnil. So this "snmo raco
samo blood" nrgument used to serve tho
turn of theso English editors In tho yenrB
gone, nnd perhaps, ndmlnlstered nnd
brought to hear by them ns It wiib bo un
remittingly In every tlmo of real or Imagi
nary need pcrhnps under tholr wlso and
beneficent publication It did n good
turn now nnd then. But, O, tho whirligig
of tlmo, what changes It brings, for behold
now theso snmo editors bolstering up tholr
own hopes by tho Identical nrgument which
In years gone they ho mngnanlmmnly throw
nut for our salvation! Then, Amerlcn's
chnnco was In tho fact that In descent
sho was English. Now England's chance
Is In tho fact that, If sho only knew It, nho
In In spirit nnd capability American! So
thoy nro tnlklng and writing over hero
nt tho present tlmo nnd ovnryono will nd
mlt. that this altered condition of things,
whllo It certnlnly ought not to awaken In
Amerlrnns any feeling that Is not generous,
Is still not n matter for any apologies on
our pnrt either on thn glorious Fourth or
nny other day.
W'lii-n Joli ii Hull UiiIm-iiiIn.
nut, ns I Bald nt tho beginning, It Is bo
dallghtfu lo bo hero nnd nbsnrvo all these
things for one's self. John Hull Is very
plensant when ho unbends n llttlo, nnd that
ho has been doing Intely more than a llttlo.
Ills sentiments toward America and the
Americans are the quintessence of nmln
blllty. If our government wants to strlko
him for anything big now Is tho tlmo to
do It. pass tho collection box whllo the
feeling Is high. From thin tlmo on Eng
lish nobles will bo more than ever In love
wiib Amerlcnn dollnrs so look mil, girls'
One reason why tho English llko us better
than they did Is that they are coming
Into closer conlnct with us In international
politics. Another Is that we Hhowed them
ft few years ngo thnt we knew how lo light
Thoy like lighters, although It doesn't np
pear Just now that they nro much of n
success In thai lino themselves. But they'll
round up the line nil right, never fear, If
you only give them time enough. Isn't that
a snre jirophery?
This reminds me thnt John Hull's presont
amiability may bo duo In boiiio measuro to
his humiliation nt not being nblo to van
quish In shorter time an enemy which In
numbers Ih ho Inferior to himself. Only
that tho Boith came so near beating him
In battlo who knows that this proud pcrsnn
ng) would have acknowledged ao graciously
that America has beaten him In tho nronn
of commerce. But ns It Ih, thn situation Ih
simply delightful, for theso English nro
bo very generous and noblo when they
onco get ntarted that way.
HENRY TUCKLEY.
