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Show MTUIUL POLITENESS. A CIIARACTEBISTIC Ot THE rEOrXE OF SV EDEN. The beautiful iiollteness and courtesy court-esy of the Swedes themseUes Is a thing that Is ery striking to visitors, says a writer In Temple liar. They have a large assortment of tows, bobs, courtesies and list liftings, according ac-cording to age and sex, but tlijs lifting of tho hat to mere acquaintances, acquaint-ances, reaches, I fancy, much lower down in Die social scale than elsewhere else-where in Kurope. It looks odd to seethe butcher bey In a blouse elaborately taking ott his lint to the baker's assistant. I suspect, on ex amlnatlon, Swedish liata would be found to contain a little extra stiffening stiff-ening in order to enable them to stand the wear and tear of these greetings. On one occasion, when going by steamboat to tjpsala, I not Ire-1 a i veiy quaint example of tins national trait. The steamboat, at it near? (Jpsala, passes through many shallow reaches of the Malar lal e, where the depth of water ii iiuufli-dent iiuufli-dent to allow of the nas-eu.ji rs uelnjr landed in the onilnarv minuer, directly on to landing stages, and they have to betaken on hoe In smjll boats. The feronun, on shipping his complement of passengers, passen-gers, would first take a dozen strokes or so in order to clear the screw ot the steamer, and then would care, fully lay aside bis oars, rise from his seat, and take oil his hat with a solemn bow to the people sitting in the stern whom he had Just taken oil" the deck of the steamer, lie o-stitil lliun mv An fifttn ftmt Wit them ashore. This did not occur as an isolated Instance, but regularly every time the passengers had to be landed by shore fcoats. I am afraid even cur English railway guards and porters, whom I had hitherto imagined to Le tkelxat-mannered tkelxat-mannered people on the planet, would not bear comparison with these nature's gentlemen. Lord Chesterfield himself would scarcely be In the running. Ex. |
