The herald and news. (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, October 27, 1905, Page 3, Image 3
OUR SPEECH AND MANNERS.
Do Not Compare Favorably With the
European--'Pronunciation Bad
and Manners Rough.
New York Sun.
The question why New York wo
men of means in increasing numbers
are sending their young children to
schools in England, France and Ger
many was discussed the other day in
a studio near Fifth avenue during af
ternoon tea. The news that Mrs.
Blank was about to sail for Europe to
put her two children in an English
school started the discussion.
"During the last five years I have
noticed that it has become quite a fad
to send one's children to Europe to be
educated," said the woman who
brought up the topic.
"Fad!" repeated another. "You
think then that there is no sensible
reason which may be given for taking
such a step?"
"None, unless it may be that the
parents find it more economical or
more convenient or more in accord
wieh their tastes to live on the other
side. Our schools are qnite as good
as those in Europe-better, if any
thing."
"It is not a question of the ordinary
school studies," rejoined the second
woman. 'SIt is one of atmosphere."
"What do you mean by atmos
phere?" came from one of the group.
I mean that intangible something
inseparable .from older civilization
which fosters culture and love for art,
a love for beauty in the abstract as
well as in the concrete.
"In busy, hustling, bustling Ameri
ca we lose that atmosphere-or rather
we have never had it. We know ab
solutely nothing of the beaucy of re
pose. Repose is not a prominent as
set of America's rich men and rich
women.
"But-and this is enc.ouraging to
propagandists of the simple life
some Americans are beginning to find
that there are some things which dol
lars and cents cannot buy. Many of
these people desire to give their chi
dren some-chin'g different:
"Frequent visits to the old world
have taught them thiat the atmosphere
is different-and as an experiment, if
nothing more, they transplant their
children, put them in school abroad
for a year or two, maybe longer. In
nine cases out of ten at least, I am cer
tain it is not the thr-ee R's or even the
languages they have in mind when
taking this step."
"Undoubtedly there is truth in what
you say," acquiesced the former prin
cipal of a onetime well known school
'for girls in this city-an Ameri-can
woman who has studied educational
systems both 'here and abroad for
two-score years ,and more. "I am not.
however, disposed to 'be so elenient to
ward the New York schools as you
are and as our other friends here
seem inclined to be.
"For instance, I am sure that the
bestr of our private schools leave much
to ibe desired in teaching, 'spelling and
pronunciation. An American teacher
who pronounces as well as an Eng
lish teac5her is a rarity indeed.
There in
NN
GUN
75c. Sevent)
Se
"To be obliged to correct the pro- I
nunciation of an English child is al- I
most unheard of. If the child should
need such correction he or she would
show as much -mortification as if con
victed of poor table manners, like eat
ing withi a knife or something of That 1
sort. As a result the English are
good spellers.
"I was quite amused one day to
overhear one of my teachers, an
English woman, not long over, say to
her class:
" 'I do not wonder that you find
it such hard work to spell when you
pronounce so badly. I dis-cover that
nearly every girl -here has spelled "vis
ible" with, an "a" before the "b,"
solely, I think, because she pronoun
ces The word exactly as she does
'durable.
"In talking afterward this teacher
told me frankly that she felt herself
completely discouraged at the outlook
with her pupils where pronunciation
was concerned, and 'she seemed pa
thetically happy when I assured her
that I did not expect her to work won
ders and that few if any Americans
pronounced correctly, even not ex
cepting American teachers.
"Not long ago a teacher, when giv
ing a dictation in the class room of a
school patronized by New York's
elite, in order possibly to assist the
spelling o.f the word-although this
theory seems almost ri-diculous-di
vided and pronounced with emphasis
on each syllable the word righteous
ness thus 'ri-chus-ness.' And yet that
teacher was an accomplished woman
of 40.
"Last spring the principal of one of
New York's exclusive schools for girls
found -herself without an elocution
teacher. It was too late in the season
to get a first class substitute, therefore
she decided for the time being to ask
one of her regular teachers to take
dharge also of the elocution classes,
which would then be cut down to half
time. Then she looked over the list
of her teachers, some of them grown
gray in her service, trying to make up
her mind which one to call upon.
"Finally she went 'to a compara
tively inexperienced English womaL'
and asked her to fill the gap till the
end of thes eason. In consternation
the young English teacher listened
and then protested.
" 'But I have never taught elocu
tion, I never took an elocution lesson
in my life,' she said.
"'That doesn't make the least dif
ference,' replied the principal, 'I have
made this discovery: You know how
to pronounce the English language
properly, and you are the only teach
er in my school who does pronounce
it properly.'
"And, by the way, let me tell you
that I never heard yet of an English
teacher who came to America to teach
but got a job immediately, and kept
it, too.
"Another very obvious reason why
European schools have their attrac
tions for Americans-is that youths un
consciously acquire 'better maners in
Europe than over 'here. In New York
~the atmosphere is no't conducive to
good manners.
'iChildren are allowed more freedom
ever Ww!
ew berry
as cheap as
[w are Co's.
{-Five Cents u
rherr
n America than in Europe. They go
:o the shops, they visit theatres, they
:ravel more or less in the street cars.
"Supposing the school they attend
!d is out of New York, there are long
racations, which are spent in the hus
:le and bustle of thec ity. Now, I am
i dyed in th-e wool American. I do
iot want to be anything else. But I
lo not pretend that the rank and file
)f New Yorkers have good manners.
"On the contrary, I think in all cir
:les our manners are awful. One feels
:his more after a few months stay on
:he other side, where even shopkeep
!rs and mech'anics manifest a greater
-epose and graciousness of manner
han do. many of our so-called best
ociety in America.
"I am just back from a'six months
;tay in London,and ever since landing
t this port I a-m conscious of being
uffled and rasped in the shops, the
;treet, the public conveyances by the
>bvious lack of manners.
" 'On which floor is the furniture?'
[ asked an elevator man in a store this
norning.
" 'Fourth,' 'he snapped, almost shut
;ing the gate on my fingers.
"In England the reply would have
been, 'On the fourth floor madam,'
nd if space permitted an attempt at a
bow would accompany the words.
" 'Can you direct me to the rib
bons?' I asked a floorwalker in an
Ather store.
"For answer he waved qhis arm
vaguely toward the rear of the place
nd turned-his back on me. In Lon
don shops a floorwalker escorts an
inquier to the departimert mentioned,
places a chair and calls a salesman,
and if a customer steps into a shop
and there is no floorwalker in evi
dence for the moment a clerk immedi
ately steps from behind the counter,
if the customer shows uncertainty,
and acts as her guide.
"Incivility from car conducrors is
so infrequent in England as to be the
exception which proves the rule of
unvarying politeness.
"There is this to be said in favor of
the manners of the employees in the
New York shops and of th-e transpor
tation companies: They are not a bit
worse than the manners of the shop
pers and the travelers.
"My niece .needed q postage stamp
the other day in a hurry and stepped
into a drug store which is not a su'b
station and does not make a point oi
retailing postage stamps.
"'Will you be good enough to let
me 'have one postage stamp?' she said
somewhat apologetically to an elderly
man who advanced from behind the
prescription counter and who it turn
ed out was the proprietor of the place.
"The man almost stared at~her and
then he said, with a ple'asant smile:
"'I couldn't possibly refuse that re
quest. I should never deserve to have
any luck if I did.' Then in answer to
her puzzled look he explained: 'It is
so seldom that we are asked politely
for a stamp that a request lik yours
almost keels one over.
"My niece came home quite amazed
that her ordinarily polite request
should have made such an impression;
for in England women of all grades
of society take their good manners
; a time
that you
you can no'
We have th
p to $45.00 I
BetterFruits-Better Profits
Better peaches apples, pears and
berries are pro?uced when Potash
is liberally applied to the soil. To
insure a full crop, of choicest quality,
use a fertilizer containing uot less
than o per cent. actual
Potash
Send for our practi!:4 books of information;
they are not advertising pamphlets, boomi ng
special fertilizers, but are :thortative
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GERMAN KA0I WORKS
New York-93 Nassan St.,or
Br,ck!
Brick1l
For Sale by
C. H. CANNON.
*@+e+e+e**+O
'Piano Exhibit.
8We will make our Piano exhibit during4
the Fair at our new store, No. 1428, Main
Street, opposite Masonic Memple.
OUR PIANOS
are of the standard makes and are marked
# in plain figures. They range in price*
from '!225 up.
WE CHALLENGE 0
any house in America to show a bet er line
YOU ARE
cordially invited to call and see ourl
MALONE MUSIC HOUSE,.
1428 Main Street,
Columbia, S. C
PE IIEDS
ig to the woman who suf
. The eternal bearing
leucor=rhea, nervousnless,
and similar tortures are
>rth living, take
(ardulI
SRelief
mmation, purifies and en
ns the constitution and
ed conditions from which
)us, reliable.
0 bottles.
"I SUF!TERED GREATLY,"
wites Mrs. L. E. Clevenger, of Belle
view, N. C., "at my monthly periods,
all my life, but the first bottle of Car
duii gave me wonderful relief, and now
I am in better health than I have been
for a long time."
istory of
~ta
~vberry Hard
n price from
liars.
eCo.
when s hopping.
"Children of the rich as well as chil
dren.of the poor can't escape this con
tamination of bad manners. oarticuiar
ly when t.heir own parents sec a bad
example; consequently ambitious
Americans with neither time no-r in
clination to combat and counteract the
bad example choose the easier plan
of shipping .off their offsprings to Eu
ropean schools.
"I can't say that I blame them."
EXECUTORS SALE.
By virtue of the authority given us
by the will of Mrs. Matilda Beacham,
deceased.
We will sell before tihe Court
House at Newberry, S. C., on the first
Monday in November, 1905, withiin
the legal hours of sale, at public out
cry all that tract or plantation of land
situate in the County of Newbery, S.
C., and containing forty-four and
ninety-five one 'hundredth acres, more
or less.
Tract 'bounded by lands of L. B.
Morris, Wicker Bros., Rilla Smith.
Estate iof Rhoda Bedenbaugh, de
ceased and J. 0. Moore.
The same being the place upon
which thte said Matil,da Beach-am lived
at the time of her decease.
Plats can be seen on day of sale or
any .time before .that by applying to
the undersigned.
Terms of sale: Cash. Purchaser to
pay for papers.
J. 0. Moore,
W. L. Gibson,
Executors.
'4 GUARAV
.4 ~ ~ TEED
K4V DEPOSIT
- . . - ad Fare Paid 500
F SP Courses Cffered
;ardatCost. Write Quick
PAINfUL
Life often seems too lo
fers from painful periods
down, headache, backache
dizziness, griping, cramps
dreadful. To make life w,
Wine .5
Woman'i
It quickly relieves infla
riches the blood, strength
permanently cures all disea
weak women suffer.
It is matchless, marvel<
At all druggists' in $1.0
WRITE US A LETT'ER
freely and frankly, in strictest confi
dence, telling us allyour symptoms and
troubles. We wlU send free advice (in
plain sealed envelope). Address: La
dies' Advisory Dept. ,The Chattanooga
Medicine Co., Chattanooga, Tean.
in the H
could gE
w at The Nei
em ranging
%ortyvFive Do