“My hero,” writes Mr. Howells, “visited this country when it was on the verge3 of great economic depression extending from 1894 to 1898, but, after the Spanish War, Providence4 marked the Divine approval of our victory in that contest by renewing in unexampled measure the prosperity of the Republic. With the downfall of the Trusts, and the release of our industrial and commercial forces to unrestricted activity, the condition of every form of Labour has been immeasurably improved, and[46] it is now united with Capital in bonds of the closest affection.”
Mr. Howells does not mean this passage satirically. He is really of opinion that Providence marked the Divine approval of America’s victory over Spain “by renewing in unexampled measure the prosperity of the Republic.” He believes, good easy man, that the Trusts have been humbled5, and that “Labour is now united with Capital in bonds of the closest affection.” Isn’t it delicious? Mr. Howells further informs us that the servant problem in America has been “solved once for all by humanity,” and that New York is no longer a city of violent and unthinkable noises.
“The flattened6 wheel of the trolley,” he says, “banging the track day and night, and tormenting7 the waking and sleeping ear, was, oddly enough, the inspiration of Reforms which have made our city the quietest in the world. The trolleys8 now pass unheard; the elevated train glides9 by overhead with only a modulated10 murmur11, the subway is a retreat fit for meditation12 and prayer, where the passenger can possess his soul in a peace to be found nowhere else; the automobile13 whirrs softly through the most crowded thoroughfare, far below the speed limit, with a sigh of[47] gentle satisfaction in its own harmlessness, and, ‘like the sweet South, taking and giving odor.’” It is beside the mark to note that Shakespeare did not write “taking” but “stealing,” and he certainly did not spell odour Mr. Howells’s way.
Our author proceeds to assure us that American men are not now the intellectual inferiors of American women, “or at least not so much the inferiors”; that American men have made “a vast advance in the knowledge and love of literature,” and that “with the multitude of our periodicals, and the swarm14 of our fictions selling from a hundred thousand to half a million each, even our business men cannot wholly escape culture, and they have become more and more cultured, so that now you frequently hear them asking what this or that book is all about.”
Later he says of the New Yorkers: “They are purely15 commercial, and the thing that cannot be bought and sold has logically no place in their life. They applaud one another for their charities, which they measure by the amount given, rather than by the love which goes with the giving. The widow’s mite16 has little credit with them, but the rich man’s million has an acclaim17 that reverberates18 through their newspapers[48] long after his gift is made. It is only the poor in America who do charity—by giving help where it is needed; the Americans are mostly too busy, if they are at all prosperous, to give anything but money; and the more money they give, the more charitable they esteem19 themselves. From time to time some man with twenty or thirty millions gives one of them away, usually to a public institution of some sort, where it will have no effect with the people who are under-paid for their work, or cannot get work; and then his deed is famed throughout the Country as a thing really beyond praise. Yet anyone who thinks about it must know that he never earned the millions he kept, or the millions he gave, but somehow made them from the labours of others; that with all the wealth left him he cannot miss the fortune that he lavishes20, any more than if the check (English, cheque) which conveyed it were a withered21 leaf, and not in any wise so much as an ordinary working man might feel the bestowal22 of a postage stamp.”
We have here, as I have said, views on America not by a shouting American bluffer23 or dealer24 in hyperbole, but by a man of recognised literary parts and judgment25. Furthermore, Mr. Howells is plainly not one of those Americans who[49] affect a contempt for their country. When he speaks of American success he attributes it to the favour of Providence; he can perceive a “vast advance” in the American’s knowledge and love of literature, and while he reproves the American millionaire, he does so more in sorrow than in anger. So that on the whole his testimony26 cannot fairly be traversed.
And reading between the lines of it, the intelligent observer will not be slow to discern that it amounts practically to a pretty severe indictment27 of the Americans. A man who has no place in his life for a thing that cannot be bought and sold, is not, after all, the kind of man one can be expected to admire, even though Providence may appear to smile upon him. Neither can I express myself violently taken with the man who is “not so much the intellectual inferior of our women”—and such women—even if you do frequently hear him asking what this or that book is all about. And Mr. Howells’s opinion of millionaires and their charity coincides pretty well with the opinion of Europe.
Mr. Howells, of course, is a well bred, well mannered and entirely28 discreet29 author; he sets down naught30 in malice31, his tendency being rather in the direction of a little gentle extenuation32. Irony,[50] sarcasm33, reproach, and, least of all, flouts34 and jeers35 are not among his literary weapons.
It goes without saying, however, that America has been written about in much harsher tones than those of Mr. Howells. From an American book published pseudonymously two or three years back, a book that does not appear to have received anything like its due share of recognition either in England or America, I cull36 the following picturesque37 details:—
“From the moment he takes his seat in his office, until he goes home, an American’s business consists of a succession of swindles. He either picks the pocket of each man he interviews, or the men pick his.”
“The American gloats over his ability as a liar38. He prides himself upon the fact that his lie is a plausible39 one and likely to deceive. If it does not come up to the specifications40 he regards it and himself as failures, and a shadow is cast upon his life.”
“The American who has just borrowed a dollar immediately rushes into the nearest bar room and announces that he has raised 500,000 dollars from a prominent millionaire who has become his partner, and will back him to any amount in any enterprise, sane41 or insane, in which he may[51] agree to embark42. Then for the succeeding three hours he talks about himself so loudly that the entire neighbourhood throngs43 around him to join in the debate.”
“The American trader in Europe has created the same feeling that prevails among a party of honest cardplayers when the card-sharper appears at the table.”
“The American politician never speaks but always ‘orates.’ If the matter under discussion in the legislative44 body is a question whether five cents shall be expended45 on pencils, or whether Mrs. Bridget O’Neill, or Mrs. Patrick O’Reilly shall be appointed scrubwoman of the Senate House, he considers it beneath his dignity to say anything that will not recall the diction of Cicero or Demosthenes. If the ceiling is to be cleaned and a three-and-elevenpenny contract is to be given out, he takes the floor and with a loud preliminary bellow46 announces that he is an American citizen, and anyone who says that he is not is a confirmed and hereditary47 liar.”
“If an American learns that a man has been bribed48 he does not hate him—he envies him.”
“In New York society no man is ever referred to as ‘Mr. Jones’ or ‘Mr. Smith.’ He is always referred to as ‘Mr. Jones, who is worth two million dollars,’ or ‘Mr. Smith, who is worth four million dollars and stole every cent of it.’”
[52]
“The average Chicagoan has not the faintest conception of the true meaning of right and wrong. Right is the method that succeeds in getting money. Wrong is the method that does not.”
I shall beg the reader to observe particularly that I do not myself make these stinging assertions. In the words of the late Sir William Harcourt, “I merely quote them.” In a sense, perhaps, they may be most correctly described as exaggerations. But they are exaggerations of a kind which have more than a substratum of truth in them. I commend them to the swaggering rubber-jawed American for what they are worth.
Did the scope of this book allow, it would be possible to cite numerous other animadversions upon American manners and customs by other pens.
No British author of standing49 has visited the United States and come back in love with the American people. Dickens loathed50 them, Thackeray could not put up with them, Mathew Arnold despised them, and Browning laughed at them, while as for Tennyson he absolutely refused to go near them. Even the sensational51 litterateurs of our own generation, such as Hall Caine or Bernard Shaw, have failed to find much or anything to shriek52 about. The[53] Bishop53 of London and Father Vaughan are not authors but diplomats54. Rudyard Kipling has been in America more than once, and remains55 dumb as to the whole concern. Mr. Zangwill is equally travelled and equally silent. Mr. Wells, who went out for the purpose, has written his book and said practically nothing. All of them, and others who might be named, recognise that what ought to be said would be better unsaid—unpleasant for the Americans, and consequently likely to provoke bad feeling. It is gentlest to the Americans to write of them without paying a preliminary visit to their native air. What would happen if a person who wields56 a plain blunt pen were to make a call upon them and set forth57 his impressions in good cold type and without fear or pity, no man may tell. Probably the Americans would shoot him.
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1
candid
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| adj.公正的，正直的；坦率的 | |
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illustrate
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| v.举例说明，阐明；图解，加插图 | |
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verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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humbled
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| adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低 | |
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flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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tormenting
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| 使痛苦的，使苦恼的 | |
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8
trolleys
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| n.（两轮或四轮的）手推车( trolley的名词复数 )；装有脚轮的小台车；电车 | |
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glides
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| n.滑行( glide的名词复数 )；滑音；音渡；过渡音v.滑动( glide的第三人称单数 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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modulated
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| 已调整[制]的，被调的 | |
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murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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meditation
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| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
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automobile
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| n.汽车，机动车 | |
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swarm
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| n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入 | |
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purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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mite
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| n.极小的东西；小铜币 | |
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acclaim
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| v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞 | |
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reverberates
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| 回响，回荡( reverberate的第三人称单数 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射 | |
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esteem
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| n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作 | |
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lavishes
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的第三人称单数 ) | |
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withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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bestowal
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| 赠与，给与； 贮存 | |
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bluffer
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| n.用假像骗人的人 | |
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dealer
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| n.商人，贩子 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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indictment
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| n.起诉；诉状 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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discreet
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| adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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extenuation
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| n.减轻罪孽的借口；酌情减轻；细 | |
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sarcasm
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| n.讥讽，讽刺，嘲弄，反话 （adj.sarcastic） | |
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flouts
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| v.藐视，轻视( flout的第三人称单数 ) | |
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jeers
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| n.操纵帆桁下部（使其上下的）索具；嘲讽( jeer的名词复数 )v.嘲笑( jeer的第三人称单数 ) | |
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cull
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| v.拣选；剔除；n.拣出的东西；剔除 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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liar
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| n.说谎的人 | |
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plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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specifications
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| n.规格；载明；详述；（产品等的）说明书；说明书( specification的名词复数 )；详细的计划书；载明；详述 | |
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sane
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| adj.心智健全的，神志清醒的，明智的，稳健的 | |
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embark
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| vi.乘船，着手，从事，上飞机 | |
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43
throngs
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| n.人群( throng的名词复数 )v.成群，挤满( throng的第三人称单数 ) | |
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44
legislative
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| n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的 | |
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45
expended
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| v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽 | |
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46
bellow
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| v.吼叫，怒吼；大声发出，大声喝道 | |
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hereditary
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| adj.遗传的，遗传性的，可继承的，世袭的 | |
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48
bribed
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| v.贿赂( bribe的过去式和过去分词 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂 | |
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49
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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50
loathed
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| v.憎恨，厌恶( loathe的过去式和过去分词 )；极不喜欢 | |
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51
sensational
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| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
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52
shriek
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| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
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53
bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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54
diplomats
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| n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人 | |
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55
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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56
wields
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| 手持着使用（武器、工具等）( wield的第三人称单数 )； 具有； 运用（权力）； 施加（影响） | |
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57
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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