ople, foreign
languages or reading; that if they chance to have been in Spain, and have
picked up a little Spanish, they would not affect the airs of Spaniards;
that if males they would not make Tomfools of themselves by sticking
cigars into their mouths, dressing themselves in zamarras, and saying,
carajo! {2} and if females that they would not make zanies of themselves
by sticking cigars into their mouths, flinging mantillas over their
heads, and by saying carai, and perhaps carajo too; or if they have been
in France or Italy, and have picked up a little French or Italian, they
would not affect to be French or Italians; and particularly, after having
been a month or two in Germany, or picked up a little German in England,
they would not make themselves foolish about everything German, as the
Anglo-German in the book does--a real character, the founder of the Anglo-
German school in England, and the cleverest Englishman who ever talked or
wrote encomiastic nonsense about Germany and the Germans. Of all
infatuations connected with what is foreign, the infatuation about
everything that is German, to a certain extent prevalent in England, is
assuredly the most ridiculous. One can find something like a palliation
for people making themselves somewhat foolish about particular languages,
literatures, and people. The Spanish certainly is a noble language, and
there is something wild and captivating in the Spanish character, and its
literature contains the grand book of the world. French is a manly
language. The French are the great martial people in the world; and
French literature is admirable in many respects. Italian is a sweet
language, and of beautiful simplicity--its literature perhaps the first
in the world. The Italians!--wonderful men have sprung up in Italy.
Italy is not merely famous for painters, poets, musicians, singers, and
linguists--the greatest linguist the world ever saw, the late Cardinal
Mezzofanti, was an Italian; but it is celebrated for men--men
emphatically speaking: Columbus was an Italian, Alexander Farnese was an
Italian, so was the mightiest of the mighty, Napoleon Bonaparte;--but the
German language, German literature, and the Germans! The writer has
already stated his opinion with respect to German; he does not speak from
ignorance or prejudice; he has heard German spoken, and many other
languages. German literature! He does not speak from ignorance, he has
read that and many a literatur