MILITARY POLITENESS IN GERMANY.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4453, 13 April 1883, Page 2

MILITARY POLITENESS IN GERMANY.

0 Eterything' in Germany is subordinate to'the army, and this subordination makes the officers perhaps the most arrogant set of men on the face of the earth; they walk ithe side walks and never think to give way to anyone, man or woman; whilst the least infringement of -their dignity calls forth the ;sword, which is used, by them with the utmost freedom. Sometimes they- find that with an American they go a little too far. LrDresden, Julian Hawthorne, the author, isjuredited with 4 the following exploit:* He had been driven from the sidewalk many and many a time: by the German officers, till finally one day coming over the Elbe on one of the bridges with a friendjihe vowed thafcf the next German officer he met should at least give him half of the sidewalk. He soon,met one, and neither being willing td'givjßi "away; they walkedHdirectly- jioto one another. Hawthorne did not budge, neither would the German; they glared atone another for a few moments,-:when the German drew his sword and attempted to strike Hawthorne with the flat of the bladei la a twinkling Hawthorne knocked the officer down, took, his sword away from him, broke it across his knee and threw it into the Elbe. The dis grace of having lost his sword was s6 great that^the officer never dared-mention (the circumstance, >so ; Hawthorne escaped -without"fine. As a rule, Germans have little, gallantry., for women;, seldom giving ?way to' "them pn th^e' sidewalks. The Bidewalks in the majority of st'reeis are exceedingly narrow, with only room for one to walk ;pn.,.. Once, in Dusseldorf, the wife in front, a German meeting us crowded her off the sidewalk :into' the gutter,' and on the impulse of the moment 1 pitched him off into the street with more vigor perhaps than was necessary. It took no end of explanations to soothe his 1 wounded dignity, nor could the officials—l had to go before the Mayo.l— at all understand why it was that a maa should ever give place to a'lady on the, sidewalk. ...-,: , f - , ... . , : |