Good Manners.
Lord Rosebery, in an address to English schoolboys, wise and earnest as his addresses always are, asserted that "there has been a decay of manners in England, Scotland, and all over the world." I fear he is right.
The speaker went on to say: "Good appearance and good manners have an enormous commercial value in life.
Good looks are not at our command, they are a gift of the gods; but a good, straightforward, manly appearance, an appearance without self-consciousness,—which is perhaps the most disagreeable feature of all in appearance,—is within the command of every boy. Manners are even more important than appearance."
Not only for their commercial value did Lord Rosebery recommend good manners, but for their indication of character. "If we see the king going through the streets," he said, "we take off our hats to him, as a mark of respect to him in the first place, but in the second place as a mark of respect to ourselves." Thus also when young folks cease to pay respect to their elders, and when adults cease to render the homage of outward reverence to purity, dignity, wisdom, and worth, they testify only to a lack of nobility in themselves.
If manners are lost, it may be that men deserving of respect have ceased to exist—which is absurd; or it may be that common souls have lost the power to value them, which is sadly possible. Your manners are your recommendation or your condemnation. Which shall it be?