4. Social Conditions
Social Conditions An exercise given to students in an art school is to seat them all around a person or an object placed in the center, and ask them to sketch that person or object.
While doing so, some happen to be sitting in front of the object, some behind, and some at an angle; and they sketch it as they see it from their own perspective.
This does not mean that if we see the right side of the object in the picture, it has no left side; or that if we see the front portion in the picture, it has no back.
It merely indicates that only that side of the object which we see in the picture was visible to the artist, and not the rest. It is impossible for a person to see all the sides of an object while sketching it; the same applies to the description of the social conditions in a country. A single person is not able to see all aspects of a society; therefore one person's opinion of it cannot be assumed to be infallible.
Some English and American people have traveled in India and written descriptions of our customs and manners and social conditions. A perusal of these clearly shows that a foreigner sees the people of the country he visits in a very different light from how the inhabitants see themselves. Therefore, I have refrained from presenting any ¤rm and ¤nal conclusions that such-and-such is the nature of American society and that it has only these many types. Instead, I intend to describe how they appeared to me. This is the objective of this chapter and of the book as a whole.
The most distinctive aspect of American society is the public-spiritedness (concern for the good of all) of the people's thinking, government, and everything else of importance. In India, England, or other old nations, all facilities and conveniences are intended for a chosen class, and are not available to the general mass of people. Such a state of affairs is very rare in the United States.
The public nature of this system of government is the chief reason for the public-spiritedness in everything else. No one here believes that a king is the lord and master of the subjects, and that the subjects and all other things have been created on earth for his bene¤t; because here the subjects themselves are the rulers and everyone believes that only what is good for the people should be incorporated into the government. In this nation "of the people, by the people and for the people," all the people are consulted, and whatever is approved by the majority is accepted. The people themselves elect and appoint the chief of the country, state, and town. The people themselves get laws enacted as they want.
This country provides no scope for the willful activities of those who follow the whims of the ruler, impose an arbitrary government upon the subjects, and lead a life of pleasure.
This society does not have upper, middle, and lower classes.1 Although some class distinction and animosity is to be found everywhere, it is neither rigid nor detrimental to the nation, as is the case in the old monarchies, or like the caste distinctions in our country. A number of measures have been adopted for eliminating the existing class distinctions; chief among them is the free schooling provided to all children. The children of all the inhabitants of the United States receive a free education in schools where they learn to treat everyone in a friendly and civil manner as belonging to the same class and inhabiting the same country. They are taught that all are human beings and should treat one another as such, and not that some are socially superior and others inferior. Every child is convinced that even though he may be poor or destitute now, he can become the President of the country in the future, if he makes the effort. He knows very well that he will achieve a superior or inferior position in society depending on his quali¤cations. A person's ability, and not his class background, is his principal means for obtaining a high or low position.
In cities and even in villages, the streets, meeting halls, hotels, prices of goods, etc. are designed for the convenience of all the people. The large streets in cities are usually paved with round or square stones or bricks, and ¤tted with iron rails for the horsecars, in which one can travel conveniently and cheaply. Those who go about in a wealthy style in buggies, at the high charge of ¤ve dollars a ride, suffer quite a few jolts on these streets, but not the poor who travel a distance of four to ¤ve miles for a fare of a few pennies. This is one example of the measures introduced for the convenience of the general public. Every city in this country has very broad streets, because it is essential to have good, wide streets for people to move about without hindrance. There are paved sidewalks on either side of the street. Underneath the sidewalks or below the center of the street, sewers are built in order to carry the dirty water from the city's drains. The sidewalks make it unnecessary for people to walk in the middle of the street, which is used by carriages. This unhindered movement saves time in going to and from work.
Similarly, the absence of open gutters eliminates the foul odor emanating from drains.i It is the great good fortune of the people of the United States that their municipalities are not clever and conscientious like the self-governing, learned municipalities in our country. The learned members of the municipalities in our country spend a fortune on decorating and illuminating the city when a sahib comes on a visit,2 and on creating a well-endowed, perfect garden at his place of residence, so that they have no money left for keeping the city clean or for providing streetlights where the common people move about. Naturally the ordi96 The Peoples of the United States
nary person does not receive the facilities and bene¤ts of cleanliness and hygiene as much as he should. It is simply not possible for such a thing to happen in the United States. Here the residents of a city pay the house-tax for certain amenities. If they do not get these amenities, they do not stop at making a fuss about the negligence of the municipality; they remove from of¤ce of¤cials who fail to carry on their duties ef¤ciently even after receiving a notice or two. It is not the practice in the United States to decorate the city with municipal funds, no matter which sahib comes on a visit. Therefore the funds earmarked for street lighting and cleaning the drains are not wasted on erecting arches or raising banners in honor of the sahib.
Attached to the municipality is a sanitary committee which visits different parts of the city and supervises hygiene without being reminded. It pays close attention to testing whether or not the vegetables, ¤sh, milk, butter, and other eatables sold in the market are safe and edible. Similarly, if an epidemic erupts in any part of the city, special precautions are taken to see that the drains there are kept clean, to investigate the causes of the disease and to eliminate them.
Public gardens and open grounds are provided throughout the city. These gardens are not laid out in the residential areas of a particular class, but in a place which is easily accessible to all. The rich may spend their own money to have their private gardens and install other amenities; but the municipality would not inconvenience the common people by spending the money of the poor to beautify the surroundings of the houses of the rich. Any kind of information is available without expending much money or effort. Cities and towns have a good police service. The police in our country arrive slowly on the scene of a burglary or street ¤ght, after giving the culprit time to escape, and then start to throw their weight about; the policemen in the United States have not yet learned this art. If a stranger needs information about the city streets, etc., he has only to ask a policeman who returns a courteous answer. At every crossroads, on crowded streets, in alleyways and at street corners, there are policemen posted at a short distance from one another to keep a watch. The drivers of public horsecars, train drivers, ticket collectors, and the like treat passengers with great courtesy. (I have something more to say about the railroad system, which I will mention later in the book.)3 Of all the civic amenities in cities, piped water is the most important and excellent. Water for everyday use is stored near the city or a little beyond. Sweet water being abundant here, there is no scarcity. The place where water is stored is called a "water reservoir." Water is carried from there into the city pipes with the help of a steam engine. Tap water is not shut off at any time of the day or night. Public cisterns and taps are provided for animals and for people at various places in the city. Water tanks are built at street corners at short distances from one another; in case a house or warehouse should catch ¤re, water is available
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nearby to extinguish it. The methods used for extinguishing ¤re are excellent and worth remembering. Fire stations, which employ courageous and expert
¤remen at very high salaries specially for this work, are built at short distances from one another. Just as our Government spends money beyond its means to maintain a vast army in order to sacri¤ce human lives at the place of execution known as the battle¤eld, the local government in the United States maintains this army of ¤re¤ghters to save human lives. Their drill, agility, and orderliness are excellent and astounding.4 Even their horses are well trained for their work.
The horses are needed for carrying the ¤re-¤ghting equipment, such as ladders, rubber tanks, hoes, axes, and the steam engine required for pumping water from the tanks. The equipment which is to be carried by the horses is kept in such excellent order in its proper place that it can be mounted on horseback without delay. What is more, the horses are so well trained that on hearing the alarm bell they themselves go and stand near the equipment, and nudge it so that it slides onto their backs. Their intelligence makes one marvel. Throughout the city, at short distances from one another, there are mechanical handles which signal the ¤re station. They are connected by wires and made to function like a telegraph system with the help of electricity. Every house owner knows where they are located. The handle is to be turned or pressed according to the printed instructions in the niche or box where it is located, so that the connecting wires ring the bell in the nearby ¤re station. The number of strokes indicates the neighborhood and street where the house is located. The ¤remen at the nearest station then get ready within ¤ve seconds, equip themselves with the weapons and armor necessary for ¤ghting the ¤re, and speedily proceed to assist the people in distress. No matter how tall the house which is on ¤re or how terrible the ¤re itself, they are never too afraid or lazy to climb up and extinguish it.
The people here are never lethargic in helping those in distress. If a carriage is stuck in the street, even very well dressed men step into the mud or the gutter to help extricate it. On such occasions the respectable people in our country would reason that the work is beneath their dignity and walk calmly on.
If the social conditions of a country are to be seen in their true state, one should not sample them in large cities like Bombay or Calcutta, but see the state of the people in villages. Since my arrival here I have had to spend most of my time in cities, but I have also had ample opportunity to get to know the villages.
It can surely be said that the States5 of Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts are examples of the old type and Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and California examples of the new type of social conditions.
In small towns and villages, almost all the families live in their own houses, and also own the land on which the houses stand.6 The relationship of landlord and tenant farmer is quite rare in this country, though not entirely absent. A man is not considered great only because he is a big landowner or very wealthy; his
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status is that of an American like thousands of others. The laws governing the sale and purchase of movable and immovable property are very simple and convenient. Therefore, although a house owner or landowner is the sole possessor of his assets, he is not known as a large estate holder or landholder. In old countries like England and Scotland, there is a separate class of tenant farmers who are continually dependent on the landowners; it is not found anywhere in this country. The owner of even large lands farms them himself, with the help of his sons or hired hands. The owner of a small farm works on his land and in his house, and in his spare time also helps a big farmer in order to earn extra money.
This means that the hired help is not considered inferior to the rich farmer; this is the reason why poor and respectable men do not feel embarrassed to earn money in this fashion.
In the house, the wives and daughters of these men do all the work themselves. Domestic help is employed for a month or two during the very busy harvesting season. The women have the freedom to perform any task they are called upon to do at any time, from that of a scavenger, which is considered to be the lowliest in our country, to that of a teacher and preacher, which is considered the highest. There is no work which is considered to be beneath one's dignity, as long as it does not tarnish one's honor.
Thus it is customary for people everywhere to do all kinds of work. Even so, the villagers here do not appear to be boorish like rustics. Rare are the people who are paupers and dressed in tatters like beggars. A person who struts about through the village showing off his rich clothes receives hardly any attention.
If a man dressed in somewhat dirty clothes is on his way to work, and if a stranger offers him a little money out of pity for his poverty, it is considered very insulting.
In villages there is hardly any crime, and there are no vices other than drinking and smoking. There is very little fear of theft. Sometimes people go to bed without bolting their doors from the inside, and go out without even locking the house. A village of about a thousand inhabitants usually has a poorhouse or soup kitchen which supports, at the expense of the inhabitants, at the most ¤ve or six aged persons or destitutes who are too weak or sickly to work. Just as the villagers are accustomed to all kinds of work, they are also interested in education and learning. A village of a thousand people usually has a public library which stocks not inferior books but scienti¤c, historical, legal, and theological volumes written by very learned men like Huxley; epics (in prose and verse); books on the crafts, art, music, medicine; excellent novels; a few reputable and popular magazines published in Europe and in this country; weekly and daily papers—all of which are available to everyone. Such a village has at least one high school, and ¤ve or six elementary schools for small children. An illiterate person is rare indeed. The same man we saw in dirty clothes in the morning on Social Conditions 99
his way to his farm, a plow on his shoulder, or going to fertilize his farm or to chop wood, is seen in the evening in clean clothes, sitting happily by the ¤re chatting with his wife and children, or reading a book or a magazine like the Century, the Atlantic Monthly, or the North American Review. There is a piano in his parlor, and a couple of newspapers on the table; and volumes by scholars and poets like Milton, Tennyson, Longfellow, Gibbon, Macaulay, and others are kept on the bookshelf not for mere decoration but for serious study by the family.
At least ¤ve or six paintings are hanging on the walls. The family members are well informed about the events in their own country and in others. In the morning we saw his wife and daughters cooking, washing clothes and dishes, and doing other housework. In the afternoon or in the evening after supper, one of them is seen knitting socks or doing needlework, another playing the piano or painting ®owers and other motifs on porcelain cups or on canvas, and a third doing her daily lessons from a book on Latin grammar (with the intention of taking the entrance examination of a college to study there). Every morning and evening the master or mistress of the house reads one or two chapters from the scriptures and says the prayers; and the mother reads to her little ones from religious, historical, or other books to amuse them. Little children hear from their mother historical anecdotes about their brave forefathers who endured sufferings and hardships to create an independent nation and about their great deeds; or stories about one Lincoln who was a poor lad but rose to be President of their country, thanks to his diligence and excellent character. The children then develop patriotism, desire for advancement, and the hope that hard work will win success and excellence for them too, as in the case of Washington, Lincoln, and Gar¤eld.
Nor are the girls without hope. They too hear the lives of great and famous women and hope to be like them some day. When their mother goes to the meeting of an educational, philanthropic, or religious association in her spare time, they accompany her, and see the work that goes on there. This kindles in them an interest in education and a desire for philanthropy. They are not subjected to separation from their mothers and oppression in their husbands' homes, which results from the custom of child marriage prevalent in our country. The budding hope in the heart of an American girl is not scorched by disappointment and unhappiness [as in India] at the thought that she is only a woman and therefore incapable of achieving anything, that she will have to spend her entire life in subjection, that she is not destined for the joy of freedom; that, if her husband dies tomorrow, she will be disgraced as a child widow, tormented, starved, made to slave in the house against her will, cursed, forced to have her head shaven by the barber, or detested as a destitute; that she has no protector in this world or the next! No one humiliates her because she is a wife or a dependent daughter.
She is as worthy of her parents' love and affection as her brother is. Like her 100 The Peoples of the United States
brother, she also has the facility to study, or learn the arts and crafts. And she has the hope that some day she can be her own mistress, the mistress of her house, and a self-reliant, free American citizen. While describing this happy
American family, I clearly see before me several families I have met in this country. It will suf¤ce to describe just one of them by way of illustration.
There is a small town called Gilbertsville in the State of New York, which I visited a year ago.7 In May 1887 I became acquainted with a number of students at Cornell University, one of whom invited me to visit his town and deliver a speech there. During the vacation he went home and made all the arrangements, and his mother sent me a letter of invitation. When I reached Gilbertsville, George (as the boy was called) brought his carriage to the train and drove me to his house, which was about half a mile from the town. George's mother and sister were standing at the door to receive me. As we reached the house, they came to the carriage, welcomed me most respectfully, and took me inside. In the meanwhile George led the horses to a nearby pasture to feed and let them loose.
In the evening his father and brother returned from their farm, in quite dirty clothes. His mother began to cook, and his sister began to set the table with plates, bowls, spoons, etc. When everything was ready, all the family members came to the table, having washed and dressed themselves in clean clothes, and sat down to eat. The people here do not follow the practice of the men eating
¤rst and the women afterwards! The master and mistress of the house and the children eat together. A girl, a boy, or someone else gets up to fetch anything that may be needed during the meal, and hands it to the mother. After ¤nishing the meal and the housework, the whole family assembled in the parlor. The mother went to the writing desk to write letters. The father and brother stood behind the girl who was playing the piano and singing sweetly, and began to sing along with her. After a while we spent a happy time together, talking of this and that.
The next morning, the master of the house, George, and his brother went to work on the farm. George's mother and sister were engrossed in housework. Our meeting was scheduled at two o'clock, after the midday meal; and George's mother was to preside over the meeting. She is the president of the evangelical and philanthropic society there. She made a good speech and conducted the meeting extremely well. Anyone who saw her cooking at home would have assumed that she had done nothing but cook all her life. At the meeting she was seen to be well-educated and conversant with social etiquette. Her husband plows the ¤eld, feeds the cattle, harnesses carriages, fertilizes the farm, chops wood, cuts grass, and supervises the farm. Seeing him at work on the farm, one would think that he has expertise only in this work, but no knowledge of anything else. But after returning home in the evening, the same farmer expounds philosophy, and discusses things like Greek pronunciation, the close connection
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between Greek and Latin grammar, the similarity between Arnold's poem The Light of Asia8 and the life of Christ, my opinion of Theosophy and its teachers, the difference between the English and American systems of government, etc.
The son is a perfect farmer when at home; but after the vacation he would go back to the university and, on graduating after four years, become a preacher or a trader. Another son has ¤nished his education and has a good job in New York
City. The third son stays at home and works on the farm. One daughter has ¤nished her education, married a man of her choice, and is managing her house and family on her own. The mother said, "I hope my younger daughter goes to Cornell University to study with her brother. My Georgie will work for a few days to earn enough for his expenses, and go back to the university to continue his studies. I am very keen that my daughter do the same. She is keen to go and study there with Georgie." How proud the affectionate mother must have been of both her children when she said this! And oh, how happy I felt to hear her wish that her daughter will go to the university like her son! When will the parents in our country begin to say this? When will they give up the awful belief that a daughter is less worthy or capable than a son?
On the third day it was time for George to return to the university. His mother packed a hamper for him with fruit, cakes, etc. His sister accompanied him in the carriage to the train to see him off. On the way the brother and sister started to sing happily. The sight of the innocent, happy pair, singing a happy song on their way to the train through the forest, put me in mind of the children of our ancient sages. How happy and cheerful the two were! Both nurtured the hope of their lives being ful¤lled, both possessed equal rights and equal status, and both had free access to the avenues of advancement. One of them is a female, but is not therefore doomed to disappointment born of a lack of freedom. The other is a male, but does not therefore behave arrogantly and humiliate his sister by word or deed. Both are hardworking and aspire to rise high. Because both have equal freedom, they will be able to obtain an education and wealth,9 albeit with diligence and hard work. It is hardly surprising that a nation where men and women, and all human beings, are equal and where people are the masters of their fate, their wealth, freedom and conscience should advance, and the inhabitants be happy.
Not all American families are like the one described above. The saying "Every village has its Untouchable quarter"10 is applicable even to America. American villages also have superior, medium, and inferior types of people. Some are absorbed in shallow luxuries and prone to building castles in the air; some are of a serious bent of mind, hardworking and self-controlled; some are leaders of society and some followers; some egotistical and some modest; some are stupid, some clever or scheming—all these types can be found in American society. Even
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so, American society is free on the whole, and the signs of advancement, which stems from freedom alone, are seen everywhere in this society.
All the qualities of a sea or a river are present in each of its drops. So also, all the qualities which have given rise to a free country like the United States are present in each American town and each association. The excellent system of government which has led to the advancement of this country is the result of the self-governmentii enjoyed by its towns and its associations. It would appear that an American citizen is fed, along with milk in his infancy, the knowledge of self-government and administrative procedure. The people's unity and organization can be seen both in a small village and in a large city. Whenever anyone wishes to undertake a task, he gathers a few persons of his acquaintance, informs them of his objective, and does what is considered right by the majority.
No matter how small the task, it is undertaken by an association; and no matter how small the association, it is managed by at least three of¤ceholders: a president, a secretary, and a treasurer. Even two or three persons together can constitute such an association, and its procedure is laid down in a set of rules. Thus, most of the important tasks are undertaken by associations, the associations are assisted in their proper working by rules, the rules are framed by consulting all the members of the association, and the rules once accepted by a majority are adhered to. These main seeds of self-government are found almost everywhere in this country. It was these seeds from which sprouted the plant of local government; the plant put forth many branches in the form of county governments; it further ®owered into state governments; and these ®owers have produced the glorious fruit of the Federal Government of the United States. Children are taught this kind of self-government at home and in schools. At home their parents do all the chores according to a plan. In schools they are taught to decide by a majority vote what game is to be played during the sports hour, and to conduct themselves in an orderly manner. It is ¤rmly impressed upon children that, as far as possible, they should themselves do whatever is necessary, and not impose upon others and ask for help in small things.
The system of government in the United States is such that the Federal Government at Washington does not interfere at all in the work which the state governments are capable of doing; the state government does not help with the work which the county government can manage; and the county government does not intervene in the work which can be carried out by the local government.
This excellent system has made the American people experts in self-government, and has also made them self-reliant. Every family must contain the seed of such self-reliance; if it does, only then can a nation composed of thousands and millions of families possess this excellent quality. The American family system is like the government. The husband does not push himself to do chores which the Social Conditions 103
wife can do, and the parents do not offer to do the work which their children can manage.
This patriotism and national pride contain a great deal of egotism. The English used to consider themselves the most superior among all peoples. It is natural that the Americans have inherited their egotism from their English ancestors.
But this is a new country and everything grows fast in new soil. In keeping with this rule, their native egotism has also grown rapidly in this fertile soil, and these people have outdone their ancestors. While describing anything in their own country, they are in the habit of comparing it with things in other countries, and then pronouncing it the most superior. "Our factory is the biggest, our country is the best, our nation is the most superior, our brains and the arrangement of their cells are the most delicate and exquisite among all." Their habit of saying that they are the best is notorious. If you go to a church to hear a sermon, the preacher says that his own religion, society, or social custom is the best. If you read a book by an army chief like General Grant, he says that the American army is a better ¤ghting force than any other in the world. If you attend a meeting, the speakers are singing praises of the customs in their country and community.
They are dazzled by their own brilliance and think nothing of others. The common people display a particular want of modesty. Even so, on the whole, the American people do not hesitate to treat others with respect, because the lessons of self-government learned since childhood have developed in them the excellent quality of self-respect. He who understands the value of his own honor and is able to protect it, is also particular about the honor of others.
Notes in the Original Text i. In our country, men relieve themselves anywhere they like in the streets; no one does so here. It is very surprising that no one tries to stop this utterly shameless behavior. This improvement is as essential as all other social reforms.
It is both dreadful and harmful for respectable women and small children to witness such dirty and shameless things while walking in the streets. If the people of our country insist that the municipalities should build a number of latrines at public places, it can easily be done. ii. Self-government means well-considered conduct which involves exerting power over oneself without violating the rights of other people.
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