The American Credo: A Contribution Toward the Interpretation of the National MindMencken, H. L. (Henry Louis)
General
The American Credo: A Contribution Toward the Interpretation of the National Mind
Mencken, H. L. (Henry Louis)
American wit and humor; National characteristics, American
That when Washington crossed the Delaware, he stood up in the bow of the
boat holding aloft a large American flag.
Sec.324
That whereas a man always hopes his first child will be a boy, his wife
always hopes that it will be a girl.
Sec.325
That the first time a boy smokes a cigar he always becomes deathly sick.
Sec.326
That a woman always makes a practice of being deliberately late in
keeping an appointment with a man.
Sec.327
That if, encountering a savage beast in the jungle, one falls upon the
ground, lies still and pretends that one is dead, the savage beast will
promptly make off and not hurt one.
Sec.328
That if one sits in front of the Cafe de la Paix, in Paris, one will
soon or late see everybody in the world that one knows.
Sec.329
That it is always twice as hard to get rid of a summer cold as to get
rid of a winter cold.
Sec.330
That a soft speaking voice is the invariable mark of a well-bred man.
Sec.331
That the persons who most vociferously applaud the playing of "Dixie" in
restaurants are all Northerners who have never been further South than
Allentown, Pa.
Sec.332
That the larger the dog, the safer he is for children.
Sec.333
That Catholic priests never solicit money from their parishioners, but
merely assess them so much a head, and make them pay up instantly.
Sec.334
That nine times in ten when one is in pain, and a doctor assures one
that he is squirting morphine into one's arm, what he is really
squirting in is only warm water.
Sec.335
That a German civilian, before the war, had to get off the sidewalk
whenever an army lieutenant approached him on the street, and that, if
he failed to do so instantly, the lieutenant was free to run him through
with his sword.
Sec.336
That while it may be possible, in every individual case of spiritualist
communication with the dead, to prove fraud by the medium, the
accumulated effect of such communications is to demonstrate the
immortality of the soul.
Sec.337
That an Italian who earns and saves $1,000 in America can take the money
home, invest it in an estate, and live like a rich man thereafter.
Sec.338
That all Mormons, despite the laws against it, still practise polygamy,
and that they have agents all over the world recruiting cuties for their
harems.
Sec.339
That when a man goes to a photographer's to have his picture taken, the
knowledge that he is having his picture taken always makes him very
self-conscious, thus causing him to assume an expression which results
in the photograph being an inaccurate likeness.
Sec.340
That if the lower line on the palm of one's hand is a long one, it is a
sign that one is going to live to a ripe old age.
Sec.341
That Italian counts, before the war, always used to make their expenses
when they came to America by acting as wine agents.
Sec.342
That a Russian peasant, in the days of the czar, drank two quarts of
vodka a day.
Sec.343
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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