11
AMERICAN VIEWS OF VERSATILE GERMAN ARTIST
In liA Poet in Dollarica ' Ernest Von
Wolzogen Tells of People and
Customs He Saw Here
Book Funny, But Author's Sarcasm;
May Jar Some of the Folks Who
Tried to Entertain Him
THE SUN, SUNDAY, APRIL 28, 1912.
i
r-"ltlS time It Is tho most versatile
1 artist In Germany who has taken
It upon himself to tell tis what
we look like. Ernst von Wol
lopen's Impressions of America nre Just
rut Ho calls them "A Fact In Dol
Urlca." Karon von Wolzogen Is n member of
one of tho oldest families In Oermnny,
much t" the fore In tho history of Teu
tonic letters. Ills grandfather tutored
Schiller's children, became Inter their
punrrilan and knew Goethe well. Tho
names of his father and grandfather
recur very often In the history of tho
classic period of Weimar and Jena. Von
Wolzogen'a mother was English and he
admits Inheriting from her a good deal
cf his refreshing humor.
It Is very hard to tag him. to cata
logue him, for the forty-odd volumes
that stand to his credit contain a little
cf everything stories of military life,
and a study of Abbe Liszt, novels,
farces, tragedies, plain history. Ho has
been actor, manager, poet, composer,
novelist and vaudeville star. Ho has
lectured on history and ho has also
tung to his own music and to his own
accompaniment his own poems In a the
atre of which he was manager. He
wrote the libretto for Strausa's "Fouers
not" Such Is the man. Now listen to
what he has to say.
"I am one of those men," he declares
In his preface, "to whom the careleas
Judgments and meaningless babble of
hasty travellers on the subject of for
eign nations, races, morals and Institu
tions aro perfectly unbearable. I must
therefore explain why, after a Btay of
about three months In tho l nlted
States, I allowed myself to put my Im
pressions of that country on paper, yea
in book form.
"I was Invited to lecture under the
auspices of tho Germanlstlc Society of
America before several colleges and uni
versities, and 1 travelled from the be
ginning of November, 1910, to the mid
dle of February, 1911, In the Eastern,
Northern nnd middle "Western States.
The Justly renowned hospitality of the
German residents and of the cultured
natives who professed a certain Interest
In things German, enabled my wife and
myself to observe the various communi
ties under the most favorable condi
tions. Far from me, however, to have
Jotted down any of my impressions I
whll I was still In the I nlted States.
"Iteporters, of course, nsked me even'
before I crossed the gangplank how; I j
liked America and whether I wns going
to writ n book about America. And l
the next day I read with Interest many
Interviews which did more credit to
the reporter's Imagination than to his
veracity.
"I didn't begin to write these lines
until I hnd settled bnrk Into my little i
poet's nook In Darmstadt. 1 then bought !
a load of reliable books on tho United
s .tes, checked up my Impressions with
hose of Importnnt men who had Is-1
!'ed the States before, gathered all the j
Information at hand, and then, only
thn, did I begin to write.
"In spite of all the documents with
which I had surrounded myself I still
had a few misgivings; nnd therefore I j
took good caro to put the emphasis
on the word 'poet' In the title which I
selected for my book. A poet, ne a cer
tain poet said, 'Is born to see life and
t reflect it.'
"A poet does not see or reflect things '
.Miut wmiM. A scientist's
Blanc- shoots forward or hackwurd In
n straight line or he sinks a plumb
straight to the earth. A poet, on tho
other hand, lets his eye sweep the
whole horizon; he builds bridges which
Live the consistency of the rainbow;
t dilon. things which would havo eluded;
fl Hi..ntlst'n cnlculutlons. The scientist
uh' scorns the drenmer is like unto
tie wiseacre who leaves his lantern at
I we when the culendar announces full
'""on for tho night.
It Is Indeed a hard task If not one
f i aught with bodily risks to write about
Young America. For the real Dollarl
inn has absolutely no sense of humor
w ien humor exerts Itself at his or at
lus (ountry's expense.
"Whenever I crlticisedanythlng Amerl
"in, tho English speaking American
called me a frivolous slanderer; the
German American sheets used, In speak
ing of me, various terms of endearment,
stnong which 'Krummer Hund' waa
sbout the mildest Some people were
kind enough to Inform roe by letter that
I would be shot If I ever dared to aet
foot again In Hoboken."
If such were tho feelings hla apoken
utterances excited at the .time of hla
visit, one ahuddera at the thought of
what would happen to him should ha
actually aet foot In Hoboken after tha
publication of "A Poet In Dollarica."
The book la uproariously funny, and
while the author's lova of fun navar
bcrdtra on malice, Juat tha aaroa hla aar
aaam la aura to Jar many klad aoula
who made efforts to entertain htm. Wit
ness his description of soma receptions
given In his honor:
Poet at a Reception.
"The reception, this abomination of
abominations. In really the typical
American mode of torture. The Amer
ican's constant deslro Is to become ac
quainted with prominent people; and
therefore, everybody who Is In touch
with the society circles or the profes
sion to which the famous man belongs
tries his best to bo Invited to the recep
tion In his honor.
"This Is the way those extremely
painful proceedings were conducted:
They stood me in front of a column at
the narrow end of tho reception room
and posted my wife In front of another
column a few steps nway. A gentleman
usher and n lady usher took their re
spective positions at my side and at my
wife's side. These two. like marshals of
tho court, nro supposed to know the
namo and ocupatlon of every one
present.
"A long line of those who wished to
make our acquaintance marched toward
us singly or In pairs. 'Allow me to In
troduce to you Mr. and Mrs. John
Double U Weber' (pronounced Uebbah),
'one of our most prominent citizens, I
might say one of the founders of our
city, for he opened forty years ago In
the Indian settlement that occupied this
city's site the first store for the sale of
cotton handkerchiefs, whiskey, chewing
tobacco and gunpowder.'
" 'How do you do. Mr. Uolsogen,' gur
gles Mr. John Double U Uebbah, with
the porcine paunch, and he proceeds to
work my hand like tho handlo of a
water pump: 'come to see mo and I will
show you some fine things; bring Mrs.
Uolsogen If she likes antiques.'
"And Mrs. Uebbah, a lady of consid
erable bulk, who Is wearing on her ear
lobes brilliants the size of coat buttons,
grins nt mo with a motherly expression.
Her husband turns my hand over to her
and she begins to pump Into me the
conviction that I m quite lucky to meet
people who not only have witnessed tho
past history of this famous cjty but
who actually made that history them
selves. "'Move on, please!" The usher shoves
ahead the Imposing pair and Introduces
mn tn Mr. nnd Mrs. Isaac O. Waddle'
nnddlednddlo (or something like thnt)
'Mr. Waddlep' (or something like
that) 'landed here forty yours ago with
seven cents In his pocket nnd changed
his occupation n dozen times until he
Anally specialized In rat poison. He nan
been since at the hend of the Tatent
Vermin Destroyer Trust nnd Is worth
eleven millions.'
"Ills wife, whose gown Is cut very
jnw nnd who covers her exposure with
diamonds worth a small fortune, tells
nie how sorry she Is that her daughter,
who Is quite taken up with German
literature, was unablo to attend. She
has read many of my books, among
Ernest von Wolgoge-Tt
others the 'Master of the Mill.' Blush
ing and deeply touched by this exact
Information on the subject of my liter
ary activity, I confess that for the first
time I have known how It feels to be
famous on two continents.
The Implacable Usher.
"Mr. Waddlepaddledaddle (or some
thing like that) crushes my hand with
emotion and Mrs. Waddlepaddledaddle
(or someining IIKO maij nns sun an-
other question on her luscious IIpb. but
my usher Is already Introducing to me
dignified white haired old man. with
a clean shaven and spiritual face, tho
, famous professor of ethics. Dr. James
Cadwaledder B. Moplotree. The emln-
ent savant is so tommy oia inat i
would toko his word for It If he told
me that he had among his pupils George
Washington nnd Benjamin Frnnklln.
" 'Glad to meet you, Baron,' tho great
scientist begins, and knowing that his
time allowance Is short, he immediately
stumps me with a question on the study
of ethics In Germany considered aa a
scientific discipline and a conscious
form of expression of the people's aoul.
Very fortunately I remember that I waa
a member of the ethical club that met
In the tap room of the Hofbrau cafe
in Berlin.
'"Move on, please.' aaya tha impla
cable usher, and the great savant haa
to repress hla thlrat for knowledge.
Then come along members of the Oar
man faculty, Yankees who have actu
ally read my 'Kraft-Mayr,' the princi
pal of a girls' achool, where they ara
actually using my 'Glorlahose' as a
textbook, and eome good aoula with
whom I would, lova to aettla down In
a corner and have a heart to heart
talk. No uae. 'Move on, please,'
repeats tha uaher, with a kind, aoft
voice.
"Still they come by the hundred, the
pride of tha Alma Mater, or tha pillars
of tha bourgeoisie, tha prominent and
tha unknown, little males and little fa-
"THE RECEPTION, THIS ABOMINATION OF ABOMINATIONS, IS
AMERICAN MODE OF TORTURE."
males who, with varying degrees of en
thusiasm, shake my hand and assure
me they ara so glad to meet mo and
then move on to another column and
ask my wife 'How she does do?' and
assure her they are so glad to meet her.
"Then It Is the turn of the young
ones, schoolgirls, who get It over with
the stereotyped 'How d'yo do?' or try
wlttfa giggle their broken German on
me. A college boy with largo red and
cold hands presents to ran his manual
of German literature, asking mo to au
tograph It.
" 'Have they got something about me
In this book? I ask him.
" 'I am sorry to say they haven't,'
he answers sheepishly, and I write
something to the effect thnt thts la a
rotten manunl.
"Thnnk God lt'a all over. There must
have been 170 of them. At last 1 can
sit down. Now they give mo n sand
wich or something of that kind nnd, of
course, some nbomlnabln Ice water or a
nlntP of the ubloultous Ice cream. And i
then I take some of tho men aside and
ask them to tell me upon their word
of honor whether they get any fun out
of these receptions.
"They agree with mo that they are the
worst piece of nonsense, but
lot another celebrity como and the whole
crowd will turn up aaln Mr. Waddle-
paddledaddle (or something like that),
Mr. and Mrs. John Double U. Uebbah,
ino original ana uermnn lounuer oi mis
flnK.lnl.lni. nnm m n I n n .1 1 1 tk
lumiiiuimj, m. ,.u mo
notables, their nrofessors and their
wives, and the elghty-'year-old James
Cadwalleder B. Mapletree, who will onco
moro ask questions about ethics in
Europe and will never get any an
swer."
American Women Beautiful.
It will afford consolation to those who
organized receptions for the cyn
ical Baron-and whoso efforts he so com
pletely failed to appreciate, to learn that
his sarcasm Is quite aa bitter when he
contrasts certain things observable In
his native land with certain things he
liked better here.
Ho frankly confesses that the treat
ment accorded to women In this coun
try has permitted them to develop Into
tho most beautiful women In the world.
He observes, also, that tho life In the
open which the early settlers were
obliged to lead has endowed the Ameri
can man with a virility which other
races do not usually possess.
"On my return from America," he
says, "I betook myself to my favorite
cafe In Berlin. When I looked nt the
people I saw tuere I must confess I was
appalled. I was overwhelmed by
their general ugliness. Those flabby
paunches, beer stomachs, bald pates,
knock kneed legs, those pasty faces,
brutish or weak, distorted by greed or
by anger, those belonged to my beloved
countrymen.
"And those overdressed Frauen, to
tally lacking In taste, lumbering around
In their ahapelessness, and those cheesy
faced girls with their lustreless eyes,
their slump noses and their thick
ankles it was extremely pain
ful to behold."
Elsewhere Wolzogen also contrasts
American and German achool Ufa, men
tioning tha fact that while German men
seldom like to recall their school years,
Americans often consider those years as
the sunniest and happiest of their life.
He also contrasts the pompousneu of
tho young German with the habits of
self help which do not mnko It humili
ating for a college professor of modest
means to go down to the cellar of a
winter morning and shake tho grate or
sweep the snow off the sidewalk. On
the other hand, that spirit of reliance
prompts the America n to engage with
out any special training In any line of
activity and to blufT his way through.
The result Is that whatever cannot bo
done by machinery Is very badly done.
Hand work Is performed carelessly.
America lacks skilled artisans.
Cooking He Found Here.
About American cooking ho says; "If
the way to a man's heart Is through his j
stomach It will be some time before
Lady Dollarlca enjoys witn men or tne
world anything npprouchlng tho popu
larity of French Marianne, Commare
Italia or even Aunt Austria. In mat
ters or taste ricnes count tor nine;
what countB Is a noble past of aristo
cratic culture, and you cannot In tho
course of three centuries of vulgarity
change gluttons Into gourmets. I
"Tho first settlers hnd no women to
cook for them nnd their rude fare was
prepared In primitive fashion on camp-
fires. In the eighteenth century a few
women came over, mostly from Groat
llrltain, where hardly nny women can .
cook. It wns only recently that real
culinary artists have hogun to cross tne
Atlantic Lucky Is tho American trav-
cller, for In comparison with his bar- j
barous home dishes tho bill of fare of j
civilized nations offers him n continuous .
scries of surprises. t
"Tho primitive and childish tastes of
the American reveal themselves at their
worst In the domain of cooking. Every-
thing must be sweet. You can't even
get a mouth wash In the United States
which hasn't been disgustingly sweet
ened. The day begins with a breakfast
of fruit, oranges, grapefruit or melon,
all burled under a thick layer of pow
dered sugar. Cakes are smeared over
with fruit syrup: toast or meat are
served with Jelly or preserves.
"The national dish. Ice cream, la cer
tainly responsible for the fact that
America haa the best dentists in the
world. The combination of hot soups
and Ice water, alzzling hot roasts and
Ice cream would make short work of
the most marvellous Ivories.
"Prime ribs of beef and steaks are
about tho only things which are well
prepared. Chicken Is generally stringy
1j " .".' .i.u
nnrt nnnnvmnils. T nlsn wish tn U'nrn '
the Inexperienced against tho unavoid
able sweet potatoes which taste like
sweet glycerine soap.
"As far as salads go, I am surprised
that no poet has yet sung the glory of
; American smnus. i nis is ni-ro w
I Imiplnntlnn ft AtTIOPlPnn PIlllllH TV
This Is whom the
r, -
geniuses is allowed to run riot. Tho
vegetable, anlmnl and mineral kingdoms
contnl" no substanco whatever which
"l,va "ul ,,,u',1
in hii siiiuricuri saiau.
"Those Balado are very easy to pro-
pore, for almost every Ingredient could
be replaced by some other substitute.
For Instance, If asparagus tips nro out
of season, Just chip off the tip of a
walking stick, for walking sticks are
no longer fashlonablo; also rubber shoes
cut up flno would very well simulate
truffles, especially If allowed to soak
In brine nnd then coated with molasses.
"Halads of fish bones and bullrushcs
dressed with pepperpods and fulminate
caps might bo good, too; I never ate
any, but I often dreamed of them after
some of those exciting meals.
"By the way, they always serve-fruit
pies with a piece of dry cheese; I
never could find out what the cheese
was for. The first tlmo I mistook It
for a rubber eraser nnd, as I can
always use this commodity In my busi
ness, I stuck It Into my vest pocket.
"The regular Yankee does not seem to
get hla gustatory sensations from the
paplllne of his mouth, but from hla
salivary glands. That child of naturo
drives much happiness from chewing
ond when you first land on tho Ameri
can shore you gain the Impression that
here Is a race which Is addicted to rumi
nating. On street cars, In stores, In
theatres, as well aa on tho street, tha
chewing organs of this curious nation
are always at work. The store girl
chews on her way to and from lunch;
soldiers chew on tho drill ground; they
would chew on the battlefield; the lover
chews while making his proposal; the
policeman chews while arresting a thief,
If Descartes hnd been born In America
he would have modified his 'Coglto ergo
sum' to read, 'I chew, therefore 1 am.' "
REALLY THE TYPICAL
Newspapers Criticised.
Of American newspapers ho rays:
"To cultured foreigners the press of
America, as It Is at present, seems only
fit for children and generally for peo
ple under age. There Is of course In
tho New as In the Old World a sharp
line to be drawn between tho old re
liable dallies and the modern, sensa
tional yellow sheets. Unfortunately the
word 'modern' and the word 'disrepu
table' have come to bo synonymous, and
tho tyrannical will of tho public has
obliged many of the serious sheets to
Imitate, In their outward appearance
at least, many features characteristic
of tho yellows.
"Unfortunately all the papers are
I trying to appeal to every class of the
nomilntlon. nnd this Is loclcallv Imnos-
,i,lc. for something which rejoices the
nenrt of washerwoman Is an insult
to tlle iateHgcnco of a cultured man;
nn nrtci which would anneal to a
mature woman of the world would bore
to death the floor walker.
"This toadying to tho mob, of which
the whole press of America Is guilty, Is
n serious obstacle to the development of
a national culture; It lowers the taste
of ,ne rea(ler9 u demoralizing. The
fnct lhat the prtvncy of fe ls con.
stnntly Intruded upon by tho press Is
no( rounterhalanced by tho silence It
observes concerning sex mntters. For
purity does not consist In Ignoring sex
matters, but In assuming toward them
rpnn nmi honest nttltinlo nnd In eon.
trolling one's Instincts. Invest the mob
wtn thp dignity 0f n moral nrblter and
yoll wm Roon witnfSR nn nwrul evriiing
down of culture.
..Tho civilized world will not count
America one of the civilized nations
untll she can pride herself on a press
which has assumed tho sacred mission
of ruling tho popular tnsto Instead of
being ruled by It."
Freedom in America.
What Is the meaning of freedom, he
nsks nnd proceeds to answer the ques
tion ns follows: "Ask a German who
has nmassed a competence In the United
'States whether ho would ever think of
going back to Germany to spend tho
end of his life. 'No,' ho almost always
answers. 'Germany has advanced n
great deal, but sho does not know as yet
the meaning of freedom In a democracy.
Germany is still held In leash by the big
and the small ruler, tho nobility, the
clergy, tho conceited functionaries, tho
Inquisitive police. A German's life Is
bounded on all stdes by warning signs.'
"All this Is true, but the question Is:
T I, ........ I . 1 ... ........ I .1 ,. 1 . .
c ,,u " ""
i Intercourse between men, to protect or
der, life nnd property without any laws
which limit the absolute freedom of the
Individual, and without agencies for tho
enforcement of those laws?
"The republican government of the
United States has given to this question
decidedly negattvo answer. There is
.....
, no piac0 nn cartli whero tney are tiusier
mnl,inlr .... ,hnn . ttl iTninn. .
only Qt thc Cnpltol in Wut-hlngton, but
I , )fi Capltols of thn states.
-The German mania for regulation
and the Interference of tho pollco cer
talnly spoil a good many otherwise
j p,cnt.ant hours of our life, but nre things
much better In Americn? When tho
train reaches the border line of a pro
hibition State the black wultcr snatches
my glass of beer nway from my Hps; In
certain States I lay myself open to
prosecution If I offer a cigarette to n
friend; In Boston they would Jail ran If
I spot on the street and In New York I
would bo liable to a flno If I carried a
lighted cigar on tho subway platform.
"No, hero and there wo havo tho same
old maid who compels me when I am In
tho United StnteB to wash down my
meals with Ice water ns cattle do, unless
I obtain a glass of beer under false pre
tences; who shuts the door of theatres
In my faco on Sundays."
This censorship hns only one result,
Wolzogen thinks; It produces "a ridicu
lous nnd repulBlve hypocrisy nnd ham
pers artistic and scientific progress. As
the citizen of tho United States Is pre
vented, In so many localities, frtVn
quenching his thirst wltji alcoholic bev
erages, he loses tho good tradition which
regulates that form of sociability and
he stuplfles himself behind closed doors
with strong Intoxlcnnts."
Americana nre not any freer than
Germans as far as private and public
conduct Is concerned, but Wolzogen has
observed a fundomontul difference be
tween Germans nnd Amcrlcnns In re
spect to personal Independence.
Freedom Worth Hating,
"A Socialist lender told me," ho re
marks, "lhat It was u difficult tnt.il to
Increases the party's strength, bemuse
the people of the United States are not
amenable to discipline. There you havo
tho whole story. In Germany tho So-
clallst party Is waging a bitter fight
against militarism, nnd yet It Is pre
clsely to militarism thnt It owes Its tre
mendous ndvnnce nt the present day.
"Mllltnry discipline has been Instilled
Into tho blood of five generations of
Germans. On tho contrary there Is
nothing the freo citizen of tho United
Stntes hates ns much as discipline.
While the mar's Instinct Is stronger In
America thnn In Germany, for nn old
culturo results In n deeper differentia
tion of personality, tho Individual In n
republic Is more Jealous of his personal
freedom than he Is In our country.
"This republican pride hns n very Im
portnnt bearing upon tho question of
mllltnry service. American patriotism
glorifies tho nrmy In a rnther childish
fashion, I.et a regiment march down
the street preceded by n band nntl every
one will feci tho thrill of national en
thusiasm. Only no one wnntn to bo n
soldier. Tho Government has to fall
back upon the old recruiting system.
Largo postern In garish colors nro re
lied upon to entice tlio sons of the coun
try Into Joining the army. Sergenntn
station themselves on tho public squares
of every largo city nnd with tho elo
quenco of nn Insurnnco agent promise
wonderful things to young men who
mny become soldiers.
"Their promises nro not Idle talk by
nny means, for no soldier of nny nation
enjoys ns much comfort ns tho Amcr
Icnn soldier. Every private Is treated
like a gentleman, well taken enro of,
well fed nnd well remunerated.
"It may be questioned, however,
whether such a picked body of men
could resist huge, unthinking masses
obeying their lenders blindly. Nothing
short of a national calamity. Bitch, for
Instance, ns tho occupntlon of California
by tho Japanese, would make com
pulsory mllltnry service acceptable to
tho American people. This might
prove a blessing for them, for lack of
dlsclpllno ami of altruistic spirit hns
nlwnys proved nn obstnelo to tho prog
ress of civilization. Ron! discipline is
tho prime condition of success for free
Mens nnd Institutions.
"The kind of freedom In Americn
which may nrouso our envy does not
consist In a complete disregard of dis
cipline, a frivolous scorn of law or a
growing Indifference towards tho main
tenance of the business and professional
standards; that freedom comes from
tha fact that In America talent and
energy can always make their mark.
Whoever has brain and brawn, who
ever has tho power to work nnd
the willingness to work, whoever
has a new message. Is sure to find n
field In which to display his activity,
ears to listen to him, hands to help him
along. Introductions, good connections,
Influential pntronogo and personul
means naturally pavo the way to many
a valunblo conquest; tho man of real
ability, however, enn forge ahead with
out any of those things.
"In this atmosphere of freedom grow
the real attributes of a noble chnracter,
daring, loftiness of sentiment", gen
erosity, confidence, good will townrd nil
human beings. Ono observes those
beautiful traits everywhere In tho
United Stntes, not only In the manage
ment of the great charitable and edu
cational Institutions, founded by mill
ionaires, but even In tho most Insigni
ficant actions of dally life.
"Tho citizen of n land which still
professes a smiling sympathy for
thieves of tlrst magnltudo will abso
lutely respect his neighbor's property
even when It Is left on the street. The
newspaper dealer can go off for his
lunch and leave his buniilo on tho side
walk. Whoever wants a paper will
help himself and leave his penny In ex
change, and no one ever heard of a
sneakthlef filching that handful of
smnll coin.
"When ft letter box is too full or Its
slot too narrow mall matter Is simply
left on top of the box and no one would
ever think of making away with It. A
gang may descend upon a saloon In full
daylight and hold up keeper and cus
tomers. That's simply smart. But to
touch things left on the sidewalk would
bo a mean breach of trust.
'"'""'OWWh
'"V'.Ji'.Y.
VH'EN THE TRAIN REACHES THE BORDER LAND OF A PROHIBITION
STATE THE BLACK PORTER SNATCHES MY GLASS OF
BEER AWAY FROM MY LIPS."
"Oh, If some one only could prevail
upon our Government to ship over there
a sniploau ol 1'iiiiisiines, uourgcois,
blackmailing Journalists, school sneaks,
otllco drudges, simpletons and Ict'them
for several years tnke a course in char
acter building under the direction of
Brother Jonathan!"
As to Christian Science.
Christian Science Wolzogen dellnes
scornfully with the Mntemont thnt It Is
merely "a form of hysteria."
"Wo can well understand how this
doctrlno according to which evil only
exists in our Imagination was bound
to become popular In America, where so
few people have hud any philosophical
training," ho says. "The optimism of
that youthful nation, which considers
as perfect every one of its achievements,
that blissful superficiality which at
tempts to solve tho most arduous prob
lems, for instance tho social evil, by Ig
noring them, tho gullibility which haa
brought wealth to manufacturers of
nostrums nnd clairvoyants, was bound
tfi pour millions Into Mrs. Kddy'a till
nnd to lend thousands of worshlppera
Into her church.
"The genius of that remarkable
woman revealed Itself more clearly tn
material thnn In philosophical things.
And nothing Impresses Americans more
than material success. A person who
crtti In such n short time extract so
much cash out of her contcmporarlea"
pocket books and build such a durable
organization must be Indeed a chosen
Instrument of Providence.
"For us Europeans tho history of
Chtlstinn Science Is merely a shameful
thlot cm mankind's scutcheon. In the
United States, however. It Is qulto risky
to express oneself on tho subject, even
before a picked audience. In tho most
cultured city of Americn, In Boston,
nnd before n group of professors, high
officials nnd other prominent men, I
was In a fair wny ono dny to make,
myself socially Impossible when I
broached the subject of Christian Sci
ence, very fortunately the distressed
glances nnd the warning cough of
obliging friends put a timely check to
my eloquence. 1 learned later on that
thc fellow sitting at my right and the
Important gentleman opposite me were
followers of Mrs. Eddy.'"
While tho scenery of tho United
States duplicates practically the nat
ural beauties of all European countries,
tho Baron deplores the fact that those
beauties arc not appreciated by tha
American public.
"Every point of interest." he declares,.
"Is spoiled by ono of those unpleasant
hotel buildings which exclude the man
of modest means. For tho wealthy
summer guests there nre tennis courts,
golf links, nnd polo grounds, motor
boats and yachts, dining rooms nt city
prices nnd little orchestras that play
tho latest musical comedy tunes or ac
company n Caruso record. This Is all
tho American wants. He never feels
the want of solitude and peace, of the
simple Joys of life, of intimate com
munion with nnliire.
Even In Germany we see Americans
patronizing only tho largest hotels,
flocking to the noisiest of International
amusement resorts. They go to our
mountains, our rivers or our lakes be
decked In fashionable attire, and they
cling stubbornly to their national
sports. They prefer the driving of silly
little golf balls to excursions with a
knapsack on their back Into Inncccas
Ible spots of marvellous beauty.
Nature, Art, Drama.
"They know nothing of the blissful
tramping away with now nnd then a.
snatch of song or n swig at the wine
flask, with a meal of bread and cheese,
and nights spent In haystacks; they
know nothing of tho love of nature
which drives one fur away from the
mob and from hackneyed sensations.
Even camping In the wilderness haa
been transformed by them Into a costly
form of entertainment.
"Yankees make themsf Ives frequently
ridiculous by their frantic efforts to
break Into our court circles, Into our
nrlstocrntlc society, and the slmon pure
republican of tho United States feels
Justly Indignant when ho sees his com
patriots ready to purchase for tljclr
daughters, titles Hnd family trees nt tha
cost of very fnt dowries. If we look
deeper Into this matter, however, wo
soon discover that It Is not the title aa
such which fascinates them, but the dis
tinguished assurance, the Inimitable
grand manner, which are the appanage
of tho old nobility.
"When those characteristic traits ara
lacking, ns In the decnyed nohlemen
who are struggling for a living, tha
charm falls to work. A personality
,.tf
which cannot impose Itself by its un
usual mental or physical gifts Is doomed
to fall Irrevocably Info the meat chopper
nnd to disappear in the great sausage
filled with nil the commonplace things.
"Art requires leisure, and while thera
Is at present u certain amount of leisure
In American llfo thu masses of the
population do not feel the need of art.
They do not even Hiispect the Impor
tance of art ns a factor In civilization
Continued on Tvilfih Papa.
A