PART 11.
FOURTEEN PAGES.
AMERICAN ART ABROAD:
ITS STATUS DISCUSSED BY
GEORGE BOUGHTOX, R. A.
HIMSELF AN' AMERICAN. BE SAYS THE
CHIEF DIFFICULTY OF AMERICAN
PAINTERS IS TO LIVE UP TO
THEIR HIGH REPUTATION.
London. August 13.
It is no mere figure of speech to talk of his
tvs **** m Great Britain. as. especially In
—-¦» later }¦««*• The American Artist— with
rte'full brand on him— has come much to the
f-Utjat of art in England. Indeed, one might
1 g ~ v -again": Since the days of Benjamin
t^t/neco-nd president of the Royal Academy.
-Pilcter in Ordinary to His Majesty." etc; Cop
uy stuart and N«u ton. there has scarcely been
»hen the American artists— more or less
t—^tly connect' with it occasionally— did not
,' r >^ |M pirtitrlT <and even respected and ap-
Z^tA^BSirmg their English confreres in art.
indeed th*:. showed the English artists of their
jL how to pair.t the battles of their own
Z^ t with some regard for truth of costumes
«d jurroundings. West was the first artist In
tvrHr.d who discarded the Roman toga and
\w classic "properties" when he painted the
teroe* if modern battles or events. It Is on
Icorf that >" Joshua Reynolds came to see
first important innovation in the New
in direction, and sat before it in a long and
t-nr«n& «'1"«. whicn flna!1 >' he broke by
Sly assuring West that he had won the day.
Thi' was the dawn (that broke from a western
& for a change), and its light has followed
the globe ever since.
Copley and Stuart managed to avoid the
-nlctaanda of classicism that had engulfed so
* of their time. And some of Copleys
vTttie subjects -The Siege of Gibraltar." "The
wnt of Bt- Helier's and Death of Major
i^Lf-mf among the best and freshest
«-n-ks ", that epoch and kind, and as modern
¦ •¦go" • treatment as if painted la this very
I- ef r^ism. But they were led up to by
XgLei "Death of General Wolfe." though they
nnrf, surpass that excellent work. In the Xa,
ti'oril Gallery in London there are several other
work* br artists affiliated to if not bom actual
, r Gilbert. Stuart. Newton
a-d I* Wtat (generally supposed to be En«-
UA or Dutch). In those days of the la«
re-ury ar.d the early days of the present one
African artists who did not go to Rome came
to England » study, and often to practise and
tet up their tents.
These few fore-words I feel to be called for
Vfore I com* to the portion and status of the
rreeent inheritor of the American artist :n
England* past. Now. lam led to suspect
jn<U:ng from the present "status"-th a t our
artistic forefathers must have been rather a
decent and honest sort. Otherwise our heri
tage would have been of chilling hate instead cf
irarm affection and <mmense forgivenc-M of
F«KBt sins and acknowledgment of any showa
bl« virtues. In speaking of present day— and to
a certain extent slightly past day— experiences
and observations anent my theme, I am. natu
rally, confined to that which is more or less
p*r*aMd to myself. And as I happen to be the
doyen of art pilgrims now here In England. I
hope ray modest Cairn will carry a moment of
r *iw-t. To be fair and square about the claim
for seniority. I will take leave to pot In a side
claim for the discoverer of •'-- D" *•• art of
making enemies." If any one interested in
American art abroad does Dot know who that
Is he may go to some "primary school" for all
me. I do hope that my dear old friend of the
••pe-.tle art" will some day write his own vie xa
of this matter: some day. when, like the dying
Spanish admiral, he has "no enemies to for
give" havlne; bad them "all shot").
My own earliest personal experience of Eng
land and its art nae wh^n I was quite a green
lad. filled with unpractical dreams and th«
gospel of Ruskin. I wandrred and wondered
ar>out the galleries of London. Alone and un
friesde's. a small frail chip ¦ a mighty whirl
pool, discouraged to bitter tears over the mag-
Eificene* of the great masters. A few montns
cf English. Scotch and Irirh green nature
bruught me bark to life, and soon home again;
where, perhaps, I should have remained, and
pleased the other art limpets. But unrest and a
*^nse at void and emptiness led me abroad asraln
for refining ar.d refreshment. After a couple
of years in France. r took London on my way
home to America, with my return ticket in my
pocket. But one BBC day I took the west side
of hajatt-st - .-. ,i of the east sMe, and
met a Gfrmin-Ara»ri' - an sculptor friend who
¦Hhovi me to his bosom — (really). He Im
plored me to sray and try my luck— which I
Sid— «?tfr selijr.g bach my steamer ticket and,
•o to pp*ak. "burning my b^ats behind me."
Then began a course of sheer good luck, as
Plain and continuous M if it had set out to be
tauter:
To follow fast and follow faster till Its song
•»? burden bore.
I need not miv that I did not seek to impede
thu onward tw»*p of good luck by had tact or
•¦j &- of oncratly making enemies or by any
"**"• except work— and patience. My good
Cl a -An3erica n brought me fri-?n-ls who are
|«"ser mv dearest friends to this day. In ad
* to his support, I fauna 1 Mr. J. F. Cropsey,
an eaiaent American artist in London, ho took
c * to \trious leading English artists who re
555£ m ' with every kindness, even enthusi
¦•». and they are mostly atfll living and still
¦ friends. Now, this is dwelt upon to show
/!!' Vt '" U * ° f the American el»-rn-it M a fixed
(sore or legs) harbor of refuge and support, or
at lean consolation and advice, abroad. A con
u - * all. very well to the stranded sailor or
ked gambler, or the promoter of shady
-panles that don't adhere to the sympathies
the foreign Investor; but the stranded artist
a ' ' no sort of advise as to how to "place"
2 Pi«ures either In "shows" or privately.
J"* 1 any American raj tapist in his official ca-
r * ' Bj <ynt of lon -- continued good conduct
J* radiant amiability, one may favorably im
• the government representatives— and they
" "* llle "P 0 " rour efforts to have your works
home without too drastic a duty to your
)u»t <Orfril ' n<l " ho wish to keep you alive), but,
htir ** you get to love and trust each other, a
ttraager com*> B to office, and you have to
*SuJ° love each other " a " over again. In
*• fci« 0 the fresh stranger, to you. and often
* "ties, there are new and weird rules to
att!T n>H> *°* old on * 8 to •* unlearned—
<«« ¦ things go to depress and harshen ones
4 «- > _* >f U Dot for th f *«* Un S that there was
tt rr * Un^ rtn ß e*ii«. on the rpot, easy to
<»» * f " r comfort and advice, the stranded
*tsr?! eUber end his troubles in tragedy or
* ¦""^ a shattered wreck.
Bea^JJ*** ray own experiences and otwerva
18 * t^ X Wl£h cc * rt * ln variations. I assume
*** birth ° ° th * r artlßU claiming Amerl
<*e4 *i la or "prov*naiic*." and who have suc
la LovT salaJn X a foothold (more or less solid)
prefttj,^ T wlll come now to things of the
**& th*** " l would have commenced this paper
'°* Present day had I not wished to show
I
Mtm -Uipcric *$jtfs%Jßs£ . WtB .rate.
that this "status" has been continuous from
the early years of recognized English art.
When the American artist of to-day is taken
to the bosom of the Royal Academy, which event
la a little "history" that Is constantly "repeating
Itself." he has placed before him with much
antique formality a long parchment, containing
the signatures of all the pant and present mem
bers of the tody (placed there ere they received
their diplomas). It gives one the feeling of
adding another twig or branch to a great
ancestral tree. This feeling is further accen
tuated when he places his exacted work, which
he must send before receiving his second or
foil diploma to the permanent gallery contain
ing all such offerings. These date from the first
establishment of the Royal Academy. The asso
ciate member receives a diploma signed by the
president, in which he is styled "gentleman."
but the Academician's diploma is signed by the
Queen, in which he is styled "our trusty and
well beloved (so and so) Esquire"— which gives
him a right and title to this "status" and many
another worthy right and title beyond the mere
The nVayaJ Academy, too, as an "institution"
in the various senses of the term, has its own
"status." in many respects resembling the
French Academy, especially in respect to its
being about the best abused institution in the
country, particularly by those who know the
least about it. Whatever they may say, how
ever (to quote The words of a leading American
journalist). "The Royal Academy is. after all.
the Royal Academy, and as such must always be
reckoned with."'
Of one thfng There is little doubt, and that is.
It lends a solid lustre to the American artist
whom It enfolds, and consolidates the basis of
his London "status" considerably, it may re a
surprise at first to him that the exact share
and value of his claim to be a true born Ameri
can ar~ not wrangled over, and hunted up and
down through th- press — ad inflniturn et nau
seam—ever the mere duration of his residence
here and the number of his pictures shown
harped on. Such facts may be merely men
tioned, but always in a kindly spirit. The value
ar.d quality of his work mill be spoken of first
of all as the real good and virtue in him. And,
if he happens to have any little extra claim in
the way of personal charm, it Is put to his
credit, mostly, and not distorted against him.
I have observed, by long experience, that the
most successful and the moat endowed with rest
ful genius, those who have risen to the highest
positions here, have shone out strongly In mod
est, patient, but determined qualities. Even the
"master." during his sincere and searching
studies and art practice. Fought perfection, un
hindered by his cultivation (gently and amus
ingly) of the enemy. And his worst success, in
that respect, laughs with him. I fancy, rather
than at him There can he no doubt at all that
the status of the American artist "residing tem
porarily abroad" — vide his ever changeable con
sular free (now and then) certificate — has a
much better social position in London than in
Paris. I doubt very much if they get anything
like the substantial encouragement there or
even at home that they get in England. For in
stance, some few years ago an American artist,
fresh to London, wan a?ked the price of his
Academy picture which was wanted for the
Chantrey Bequest. He came to me for advice,
paying that he knew not what to say in reply.
"In Paris," he explained, "the very highest price
given by the State, for the works selected for
the Luxembourg is about £80."' He has be*
advised, be said, to ask 1.000 guineas here, but
be thought 'he Bid vice was given as a bad Joke.
He scarcely believed me when I suggested that
he should try 800 guineas. He got it easily, but
he felt as if walking in a dream, compared to
Paris. And a? another Instance (this is the tale.
I give it as report had it), when the Whistler
portrait of Carlyle was. after many years of
¦waiting, wanted for the Glasgow Corporation
Gallery, the douce "body" waited on the "mas
ter" about the price (1,000 guineas). They
allowed it was a magnificent picture, but "do
you no think. Mr. Whistler, the sum a wee. wee
bit excessive?" The master asked blandly.
"Didn't you know the price before you came to
me?" "Oh", aye — we knew that." said they In
chorus. "Very well, then." said he in his most
srave tones, '"Let's talk of something else," and
as there was nothing else of interest to detain
them, they paid It. and a good bargain It was.
(• SI non c vero" — It's a pity.)
But I am leaving my real object in writing
this paper till the last. I am constantly seeing
in the American papers very badly Informed
comments on this very subject of the "status."
duties, perils and rewards < Incidentally') of
American artists living mostly In London This
I quote from a clipping lately sent m°:
Certainly the British, as a people, are much
better disposed toward us now than when
Whistler and Sargent and Boughton and Abbey
had to live down the insular narrowness that
saw no good In men and things existing beyond
the lovely chalk cliffs of Albion.
Now. bo far as my own experience of "living
down" any neglect or suffering goes. I. for one,
can frankiv and sincerely affirm that my own
and only anxiety from the first was to try to
"live up to" the excellent "status" that was
whelmed upon me from the first. And if I have
rightly heard and seen the praises and the sub
stantial awards given from the very first to my
confreres in this paragraph. I am bound to
Bay that I never looked upon them as the vic
tim* of either neglect or adversity. Indeed.
very much au contralre. I can well remember
Whistler's first Academy picture, the beautiful
"Girl at the Piano." which thirty years ago
was hung on the line, and bought by an Acade
mician. I remember many of his works finding
homes In some of the most refined collections
in London, years before they were known or
bought in any town in America. And this state
of London appreciation was going on when Paris
was hanging his superb "Woman in White" in
the "Gallery of the Refused" as worthy only
of derision. Sargent and Abbey can both afford
to smile at any living down" they hay.- ex
perienced. At the Royal Academy banquet last
year the Prir.ee of Wales in his speech referred
la words of highest praise to the "work of that
great genius Sargent" without even the prefix
of "Mr." (which takes him to a pedestal among
the immortals). The only hardship I can dis
cover in such a position Is to live up to it and
keep one's feet firmly placed and ones head
quite level, and that Is being done in the cases
in point.
There are several other American artists en
gaged In this sort of "living" (with some *'ups"
as well as "downs") here. And If the curious in
raeh mutters wttl look on the last page of tr.<->
"THE EDICT HE WILLIAM THE TESTY."
FVim the painting hy George H. Roughton. R A
September number of "The Magazine of Art."
1900, they will see in an article on the laj«t •';••• -
tion for a Member of the Royal Academy thai
there were three prominent candidate* out cf
some 151) who were in the last sifting — two
Americana and one Scotsman. The 800 l got it
just by eight votes. [The Melton Fisher's name
given is a mistake for Mark Fisher, of Boston).
The two Americans had bo trouble to ' liv<«
down any spite or jealousy of the unsuccess
ful, who were only amused, and merely re
marked. "Hou- funny!" -- — . . - —
Anoth«r late American paper. In speaking of
certain revelation* of the k!r.ir-»ss Of MlUal*
to other artists, remarks on th» evident ab
sence of jealousy among men of his position, or
ptatus As if that v*-ry absence were not the
very seal and sign of great minded men' There
came nor long since another small clipping
which, as lago said, "touches me nearly " Some
lecturer on art and artists, somewhere in rural
New-England, if I remember, did me the honor
to import my name Into his discourse — by way
of warning, probably and Informed his hearers
<younsr school people) that, "though born tn
America. I preferred to h* called an English
man (">": for no earthly >awn that I can fltv
ing here) make out. One's exact claim to some
r-sry shadowy or fractional degree of nationalltv
is never (or seldom* discussed over here. If
at all. it Is a shade better to be an American.
Y<"u are a nice sort of pet "cousin" when in
favor, and nothing wir^e than a "blessed
Yankee" when you are "off color" for the mo
ment. No. the best thing for an artist Is to do
his l«»vel best to Improve his wort; and let the
shades of nationality and even ancestry and
everything he AM not win himself off his
own bat fake any remote half light to repose
itself in as unobtrusively as ponHible: but If
his exact nationality is demanded of him. al
most at the revolver's muzzle, why not let any
f-invenlent hyphen bind the tie together. l"* e
rnto Anglo-American. Irish -American, or ev^n
the Yankee- Dutch, as they are fondly called in
the Catskills and other regions.
I remember an American woman artist, who,
after some years of successful exile In London,
announced to her friends her Intention to re
turn home again very soon. "Not for good"
some one hoped. "Oh, dear, no," she replied
cheerfully, "only to get cured again of home
sickness 1 "
She went every few years for the purpose. It
seemed. UEOROE H. BOUGHTON.
/V THE FLOWER STATE.
From The Kansas City Time*
Most of the women politicians of, the Sunflower
State have only "dried up" temporarily through
sympathy with the late drouth. They will begin
to spout attain with autumnal rains.
HELD UP BY PILOTS.
MONTREAL COMMERCE AT THE MERCY
OF A CLOSE CORPORATION OF FIFTY
FIVE RIVER POLITICIANS.
Montreal. Aug. 24 (Special).— "l have fol
lowed all inquiries Into accidents from 1896 to
Uu present time and I find that in nearly every
case the pilot was responsible." This is from
a speech delivered by the Hon. J. Israel Tarte.
Minister of Public Works, in the House of Com
mons, and refer? directly to the grounding of
the steamship Tlverton. which went ashore in
the St. Lawrence, between Quebec and Montreal,
in the early part of May.
The system of pilotage in force between this
city and Quebec contributes, according to all
authorities, more to the discomfiture of the
shipping interests of Canada than any other
distributing element in the trade. Time and
again men afterward proven Incompetent have
run fln» ships aground. Just as the pilot of the
Tiverton did. and owners and agents have
clamored for radical changes in a system which
permitted these things. But still the old order
is allowed to remain, owing to the political is
sues involved.
The Shipping Interest of Montreal, an or
ganization of representatives of all lines doing
business between here and European ports, has
struggled long and ardently wrrked against the
lawa governing the present pilotage system. So
far. however. It has only succeeded la having a
few trivial alteritLons mad* In the bylaws.- »nd
the act under which the pilots operate remains
as of old.
If one laid imagine for a moment the In
habitant? of a village on Long Island Sound, of
nay five hundred people, dictating to the ship
ping trade of the rity of New-York as to how
Irs foreign commerce should b*" conducted, some
Idea might be gained of the position of affairs
in Montreal to-day. The pilotage ¦vs of this
port have been conceived at the dictation and
In the interests of r».*hambaul . a village on
the north bank of the St. Lawrence, between
this city and Quebec. Only a village, it Is true.
•:• it is there that most of the pilots live, and
their Influence, ptra-. a» it may seem, has
been such that succeeding Parliaments have
for many years ignored the question.
Rome idea of the powers of this little band
of French-Canadians for they number at pres
THE SWEDISH SCHOOLHOUSE IN CENTRAL PARK.
Which has been fitted up as a library of nature books.
ent only fifty-five — may be gained from
the fact that the shipping men. the Montreal
Board of Trade, the Montreal Corn Exchange
and the Marine Underwriters' Association have
all petitioned the Ottawa government to abolish
the system as applied between Quebec and Mon
treal, but still It stands, and all seem, unable to
cope with It.
In the summer of ISOS the pilots resolved
that they would become an incorporate body
and applied for a charter. The men of Mont
real making up the various trade organiza
tions already mentioned opposed bitterly the
granting of the charter by the federal govern
ment, and as a protest against this opposition
the pilots went on strike. For the apace of two
weeks the whole port was tied up. the only ships
going out being the passenger vessels, and they
were piloted up and down by the staff of the
engineer's office. The pilots, however, were
eventually obliged to give In on the threat of
having their licenses cancelled, and the owners
and agents of the steamships gained their only
victory on record.
The system by which the pilots control the
business had its inception in IS3O. and while
now and again the rules and bylaws have been
tinkered with the powers of the pilots' organi
sation remain Intact. As already stated, there
are fifty-five pilots only commissioned to do
business between Montreal and Quebec. Of, this
number fully forty live in this little tov/n of
Deschambault. the remaining fifteen being dis
tributed In other small towns between Montreal
and Quebec. The entire list Is a tangle of .
brothers. cousln3. brothers-in-law, fathers and
sons. There are six Perraults, five Belllalea, five
Arcands. and so on through the lot. With the
exception of the Franco-Canadian Line there Is
scarcely a ton of shipping afloat in the St.
Lawrence not owned by Anglo-Saxons, and still
under the existing state of affairs it would be
utterly impossible for an Englishman or an Eng
lish-Canadian to qualify as a pilot.
This is easily explained when the Pilotage act
is gone into carefully The act and the present
bylaws make it necessary that an apprentice
pilot shall serve five years or the river, the last
two years under indenture to a licensed pilot,
and even then he must make fifteen trips
between Montreal aid Quebec under differ
ent pilots before he can obtain his license.
This is the family compact, conceived in
the early history of St Lawrence naviga- j
tion, and jealously maintained until now. It
effectually prevents a pilot's certificate being
given to the mastor or mate of any vessel visit
ing the port, no matter how competent he
may be.
In the service of the different lines are masters
and mates having years of experience In navi
gating the St. Lawrence; men who have grown
gray In the service and who could without ques
tion pass any examination required of the pres
ent pilots. To these men the owners would
gladly Intrust their vessels, because they know
the river thoroughly : and. what is more impor
tant, because they have a thorough knowledge
of the peculiarities of their own ships. Ship
owners and agents have time and again ex
pressed the wish to pay the regular pilotage fee
for navigating the vessel, and then place their
own men on the bridge, allowing the pilot to
stay at home.
However, it is not the regular liner that gets
the worst nd of the pilotage bargain. Doing
the best they can under the present circum
stances, the different lines running regularly to
this port engage each year a sufficient number
of pilots for service on their several vessels, and
In this manner some forty- of the total are
picked up. leaving the nimatning ten for service
on tramps and other vessels not making the
port regularly. Years of experience have shown
the steamship people the fallings and capabili
ties of the different pilots. They naturally pick
up the most capable, and to the lot of the
tramp — with its officers and crew sometimes
utterly inexperienced in St. Lawrence navigation
— fall? the remainder. Thus a man who for one
reason or another is not judged to be a first
class pilot Is forced upon a ship which is utterly
strange to him and he is asked to bring her up
through 160 miles of Intricate waterway.
The incompetence of some of the men who.
under the present system, t.ike charge of prop
erty worth perhaps a million dollars ts shown
in the case of the Tiverton. This pilot in send
ing his resignation to the Harbor Board con
fessed having lost his head, and in broad day
light mistaking a red buoy for a black one. In
Justice to the man It might be mentioned that
a year ago he asked to be placed on the pension
list. But here again the monopoly of the pilots
worked to the injury of commerce, for they re
fused to grant the pension on the ground that
the applicant was not past the active age. He
may have been color blind or other* incom
petent, but as his pension would nave to be
taken from the pilots" fund they refused to con
elder his application.
The rule of th-=" Harbor Commissioners over
the pilots Is merely nominal. They can practi
cally do nothing without having the Pilotage act
repealed by the Ottawa government. A striking
example of this is given in the report of the
Harbor Commissioners tr. reference to the strike
in the summer of I^9*. The report says: "Had
it been In the power of the commissioners to
examine and license competent men. the num
ber of whom la with good reason believed to be
very large, it is more than likely that the strike
would not have occurred."
The repealing of the Pilotage act. so far as
concerns the St. Lawrence between Montreal
and Quebec, no government. Conservative or
Liberal, has ever dared attempt. These pilots
are above all things active politicians nd the
loss of one. two or perhaps three constituent 3
ha» deterred both parties from ever grappling
with the question. In the mean time amerce
to the value of $120.00(X000 annually and ships
to the value of many more millions are placed
in jeopardy, so that the feelings of fifty-five
French-Canadian river men may not be Injured.
"Free trade In pilots" is what St. Lawrence
Interests, through the shipping men and the
merchants, demand. It is a recognized principle
among them that In order successfully to com
feat -the. present, v lgh. marine Insurance rates
radical reforms are necessary. They fully recog
nize the desirability of having a body of trained
pilots, and many Individual pilots are highly
thon?ht of by the shipping men: but .it the same
time the present close corporation stem con
tributes largely, in their opinion, toward the
insecurity of the route, and its abolition ii looked
upon as absolutely necessary.
SMELLS [X THIRTY FOTRTHfT.
PART OF THAT THOROUGHFARE FILLED
WITH NOXIOUS GASES FROM TORN
IT SEWERS.
Conductors whose cars run across town from the
Thlrty-fourfh-s?. Merry are recoming experts .-.
treating fainting women. The trouble is due to
sewer construction work which ts unaer way in
that street. Several old sewers and leaking cas
mains have been opened. The odor is almost in
sufferable.
In a crowded closed car one hot afternoon last
week almost every passenger was thrown into vio
lent nts of coughing. Suddenly one woman, who
had been hanging to a strap, let go her hold and
fell on the floor.
The conductor stopped the car with a Jerk at the
bell and rushed on* after water. Before he could
find any and get back to the car th» woman had
partially recovered. She was helped into .1 neigh
boring drug store, and the car went on.
"She's the third one to-day." aaid Che conductor.
"I'm going to ask for a transfer to some other line
If they don't get those sewers closed up pretty
soon." .
"You can't make schedule time If you have to
stop every trip until a fainting woman recovers."
growled the motorman. He was used to the gas
fumes and they no longer troubled him.
Then the bell rang when the car was In the mid
dle of the block.
"There goes another one." he said as he stopped
the car.
It was only a fat woman, who thought she was
going . to faint, and who decided to leave the car
as a precautionary measure.
"It is a shame to run cars that smell as bad as
this one does." she said to the conductor as he
helped her down. "I'll report it to the Board of
Health."
Then she got a full breath of the outside air and
nearly fell into the conductor's arms.
- ¦Why, It Isn't the car after all." she said aa she
got on again. She held her breath until the car
reached the hill at Park-aye.
The streetcar men are wondering how the people
who live In the torn up part of the street manage
to stand it.
SUNDAY,
AUG. 25, 1901.
THE EASTFRX SHORE.
ALL. THE REST OF THE UNITED STATES.
WESTERN MARYLAND INCLUDED.
IS A FOREIGN LAND TO
THE NATIVES.
•The Lord rested on the seventh day. and on th*
eighth He made the Eastern Sho'." The visitor to
this belated country remarks at once that no ana
Is in a hurry there save himself. The land that
was a day late in creation has been content to
stay a day late. And when the outsider haa be
come reconciled to accommodation trains that stop
at every woodpile, and no trolley cars at all. h«
may settle down to the quiet resignation of ono
sojourner in the metropolis of the district who con
tentedly wrote home, "In the midat of life I ami
In Easton."
Scratch an Eastern Shore- man and h« bleeds
blue. The people of the eastern counties are more
conservative, more aristocratic, more Southern
than those of Western Maryland. Their slaves are
gone and their lands are diminished, but they still
live in their ample country houses after the free
and bountiful manner of the O!d South.
"The Eastern Shore is famous for Its pretty
girls," said on- of the prettiest of them to a North
ern man whom she had Just met. and he never
had cause to doubt the justice of her frank asser
tion.
The foreigner on the Eastern Sho 1 -and even pro
gressive Western Maryland is a foreign, land— can
always be certain of a hospitable welcome. East of
the Chesapeake, "noblesse oblige." A Harvard
graduate, born in Wisconsin, had honor done hls>
Alma Mater when a prominent politician of the up
per counties said to him. "Oh. yes. HVvard. raj
distinctly fo' that place." His native State, how.
ever, fared not so Wei For partner at a german
he had a delicately featured girl who might have
sat for Copley had she lived a century ago.
"I thought you were from the North." she said.
"I'm from Wisconsin," protested her partner.
"I mean the far North— New-York or Massachu
setts."
Sometimes innate cordiality makes the Eastern
Shore man tolerant of outsiders whom, were they
natives, he would avoid.
In regard to a family of recent settlers from
Ohio, who were at no pains to conceal their wealth,
or.c woman remarked, in confidence: "After all. the
Smiths are plain people. When I called on them
Mrs. Smith said she'd show me the rooms upstairs,
only they weren't *red up.' "
The county families, of course, draw the H def
initely at "plain people." One man el such origin
had made his way into society, but o? his two
brothers more praise was given to the one that was
true to his own kind than to the one that strove to
follow the brother that, had "arrived."
Alorg with this strain of social prejudice goes a
conservative respect for rank. The venerable
Bishop of the diocese, who is very fond ot children,
one day kissed the little daughter of one of his
neighbors as she was playing on the sidewalk.
With something very like precocious coquetry the
child ran in tears to her mother.
••I.or". child."' exclaimed that person, emphati
cally. "Go 'long an' stop your crying. You ought
to be proud to say a bishop kissed you."
It i 3 the good fortune of the stranger that he 13
accepted on hi 3 own merits, quite apart from" t?J9
social prejudices of the community, where upper
counties scorn lower counties, old families look
down on "plain people," Episcopalians hold them
selves above Methodists, but where pursepride ia
unknown. The chances are that, though on arrival
he may think he is in the valley of the 3hadow, be
fore many days are past the cordial people ar.d
their frank, out of doors habit have won him jt"<t
he feels that perhaps for the first time he is' now
tasting life.
No better example of the "Maryland way" can fc*
round than at Wye House, the ancestral home of
Colonel Edward Lloyd, a brick house built in the
"^pe of i?~) L's to symbolize the name of its
owners, oil t tftff most a ttrcict i v<* s^ox of the r»
gion is Myrtle Grove, on the Miles River, the an
cestral home of on^ branch of the famous Golds
boroush family. The house is a true 'Maryland
manor." built of English brick, in the eishteenih.
century.
The building is hi perfect harmony, from the en
pero brass knocker on the oaken door to the
: ghoat thauJUkkWJa -th« upper. Jiaiiway. *«r ghosts
are rife on the -Eastern Sho'." It , not be sa!d
they walk. As a matter of fact, they usually rtde.
<»r! a certain road in Talbot County a spectral car
riage passes and repassea the traveller, always
from the same direction. More than one house.
too. has its little bridge in the driveway, over
which horses gallop night after night but never
reach the door.
The most favorable time to visit the Eastern,
She' is the autumn. Week? of clear. Invigorating
days then succeed each other, and the sailing and
the ejstertßK for which the region i 3 famous. ar»
at their best. The tree?, of course, do not take on,
the brilliant hues that early frosts rsake general In
the North, but their <i(>ep. though sober, colorlns
lasts wen on to December.
LIBRARY l\ CEyTRAL PARK.
STrt>KNTS OF NATURE Wnj BENEFIT
FROM NEW nj OF SWEDISH
SCHOOLHOfSS.
A new attraction at Cemn! Park is the read!-:—
room just established for those interested in nature
studies, which was mentioned in The Tri>ur;o en
Wednesday. It i? in the building known as the
Swedish sc'rmolhouse. or cottag?. en the We?t
Drive, near that part of the park known as tha
Rambles.
Considerable interest attaches to th!s buiM!:v».
which win crtgina!!y erected by the Swedish Gov
ernment at the Centennial Exposition. t n i^s. At
the close of the exposition it was tfven to this city
and removed to Central Park, where it has stoo.j
ever since. It has been used for various purposes,
but chiefly as a shelter for cyclists.
A short time ago Park Commissioner George C.
Clausen cjecifled that the needs of cyclists no long?
demanded the whole of the building, and. as th»
neighberhoo.l Is eTceedlnKly p!cti:re«fjT:<» and raueyi
frequented by students of nature, he determined to
establish a library on botany, bud life and kindred
subjects in the quaint cottasre.
Accordingly Mr. 111 1 .<•••> wrote to the publishers
of books rerjuest'.n? their co-operation. Tha re
sponses were so favorable that las: week the reaii
tnjr room was opened to the public with a compre-.
henslve library of books foi their use. which will
be available each day from 10 a. m. to H p. m.
The library itself i* unique', beirjj In
the picturesque Swedish style of architecture. In
appearance it reminds one somewhat o? the Swed
ish Building at the World's Fair of Chicago, al
though it is much smaller. The structure is on«
story tn hetcht. with an attic, and includes a larg*
and well arranged reading room, a woman's toiiec
room and a kitchen, with a large, old. fashioned!
fireplace.
The books, which number about two hundred,
afford a comprehensive study of botany, bird life.
landscape gardening, entomology and natural his
tory. The general surroundings are among th«
most attractive of the park, the Rambles, Cave
and Lovers' Lane being near by.
CRIPPLED CHILDREN EyTERTAIXED.
Belmar. X J. Aug. -4 (Special).— The proprietors
of the Hotel Columbia, at this place, gave the in
mates of the Home for Crippled Children. whos«
seaside house is at Avon-by-the-Sea. an entertain
ment on Tuesday. in accordance with a long estab
lished custom. A dinner was served to the little
ones in the dining hall of the hotel, after which
they went to the large music room, where they
were amused by children's games. In the evening
a concert was given for the benetlt of the home at
which »00 was realized. On the last Saturday of
August there will be a series of aquatic sport* on
the ocean In front of the hotel, followed by a full
dress ball In the evening. On this occasion an or
chestra of twenty pieces will supply the music and
there will be supper provided cy the hotel to wum
up the entertainment.
AT THE SAGAMORE.
Sagamore Hotel. X. T.. Aug. •* (Special).— Th»
Sagamore regatta is taking up the entire at
tention of the guests and those coining: in the
neighborhood and every one Interested la sports.
All those entering the races are practising on the
lake, whose still waters at this time render such,
exercise a pleasure. It Is a pretty sight to sea
singles and doubles vying with each other In their
eagerness to cover the course in the shortest time
possible.
Camp Everett has seen its first celebration In th«
birthday party to Master Alfred Ingold. arranged
by Mrs. W. F. Infold. An elaborate luncheon was
prepared at the camp In Adirondack fashion. The
children were amused In manifold ways and en-
Joyed the entertainment to the full.
Golf is now taking the lead over other sports, and
upon the extensive golf links of the Sagamore
many parties may be seen dally. '
The recent arrivals include G. F Lan-'enbae l *<»-
A. F. Troescher. James I. M3tchett. Mr^ndjEl'
W. T. Mason. Dr. F. L. atvmoaka. D. QBmS
and Harper Stlliman. of New- York, and the Mk£s?
Dotter and George Kenyon, of Brooklyn.