Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1858-05-20
VOL. XII.
GOSSIP.

| From ga Woman's Thoughts about w omen y,
| One Of the wisest and best among our English
ethical writer's, the author of - Companions o
my Solitude. says, d. proyos of gossip, tba
one-half OF the evil speaking of the world arise.
not from malice prepense but from mere wan
OF amusement. And think we NAV even gran,
that in the other half, constituted small of mind
or seinsn In disposition, it is seldom worse tn an
the natural falling back from large abstract in.
terests, which they cannot understand, upon
those which they can-slas, only the narrow
commonplace and personal.
let they mean no harm, are often under the
deiusion that they both mean and do a great
deal OF good, take a benevolent watch over
their feiiow-creatures, and so forth. They
would not say an untrue word, or do an unkind
action-not they. The most barefaced SLAM
derer always tells her story with good motive,
or thinks she does; begins with harmless "bit
OF gossip just to pass the time away-the time
which hangs so heavy. and ends by becoming
the most arrant and mischievous tale bearer
under the sun.
Er. grattd.-Let me put on record the de-.
cline and fall, voluntarily confessed, of two
friends OF mine, certainly the last persons like
ly to take to little tattle being neither younr
nor elderly; on the whole, perhaps, rather
bright than stupid; having plenty to do.
and to think Of-too much, indeed, since thew
came on an enforced holiday out of that vor-
III ner professional
classes round and round, year by year, till at
last often nothing but handful OF dry bones
Is cast on shore. They came to lodge at the
village OF y, let me call it, rs being an
unknown quantity" which the reader will
vainly attempt to find out since it is lust like
some hundred other villages-has its church
and rector, great house and squire, doctor and
lawyer lalas. poor village, fear its two doc
tors and tUO lawyers y also its small select
society, where everybody knows everybody
that Is, their affairs; for themselves, one half
the parish resolutely declines " knowing" the
other haif-sometlmes premittenly, sometimes
permanently. Of course, not single souI
would have ventured to know Bob and Maria
as shall call the strangers-had they not
brought An introduction to one family, under
the shelter OF whose res espectability they meekIy
placed their own. A very worthy family il
was, which showed them all hospitality, asked
them to tea continually, and there in the sha.
dow OF the pleasing drawing room, which over
looked the street, iBdoctrinated them into all
the mysteries of Y, sometimes in this wise ::
Dear me there's Mrs. Smith she has on
that identical yellow bonnet which has been so
long In Miss hifin's shOp-window Got il
cheap, no doubt; Mr.. Smith does keep the
poor thing 80 close, Annabella child, make
haste; just tell LIE whether that isn't the
same young man who called on the Jopeses
three times last week. Red whiskers and
moustaches One of those hOrrid officers, no
doubt. My dear Miss Maria, never do like
to say word against my neighbors but be-
fore L would let my Annabella 60 about like
the JOness girl. Bless my life there's
that cab at the cOrnef house asain-and her
husband out. Well, if ever could have be.
lieved it, even Of silly, firty Mrs Green, whom
people do say old Mr.. Green married out of
London hosier's, where he went in to buy
pair of gloves What shocking place Lon
dor hn n l.
my dear :" And SO ON, and so on.
This, slight varied, was the stock conyersa-
tion, which seemed amply sufficient to fill the
minds and hours of the whole family, and. in
deed, Of every family at Y.
Maria and Bob used to 60 home laughing.
and thanking their stars that they did live in
that shocking place London. Bob made harm
less Jokes at the expense of the unconscious
household who,
"Pinnacled dim in the intense inanen
could drop down, hawk like, upon populations
bonnets, and beaus. Maria gave vent 10 a
majestic but indignant pity and both Rugged
themselves In the belief that never. under any
circumstances, cOuld Mey sink to such dead
level OF folly, vacuity, spite.
Weeks passed-rather slowly, especially
when, of autumn evenings thew found tbem
selves minus books, piano, threatre, concert,
society-in fact, in precisely the position Of
the inhabitants of Y all year round So,
as daylight was less dull than candleIight.
they used to rise ut unearthly hours; dine
shall betray the Goths at III 30 n. m.
take tea at p. IN, and go to bed as soon
after darkns they could for shame. At last
from very dullness, Maria got into the habit
OF sitting at the window and telling Bob what
was passing In the street, interspersed with
little illustrative anecdotes she had eau yht Nd
- just as bits Of human nature" One the
stock scandal Of the place, interested them
both 50 much, that they watched for the he.
reine's carriage every day for a week and
when at last Maria cried, F." There it is - Bob
jumped up with all the eagerness of Anpabella
herself, and missing the sight, retired grum-
bling: What nonsense L declare YOU re-
getting just as bad q gossip as anybody here -
IN. B.-Ihe masculine mind, in an accusatiye
form, always prefers the second person OF the
verb.)
Well" observed Maria, "shall give up
telling you any news l happen to hear 81
Oh no! You may tell what you like. As
the man said when his wife beat hint anuses
you, and it doesn't harm me
Finally-I have it from Maria's own confes-
sion-cOming In one afternoon absorbed i'm cog
itations AS to what possible motive Mrs. Green
could have in telling Mrs Elizabeth Jones she
wished to call on her, Maria and what ON
earth would be done If Annabels, whose nam
ma wouldn allow her even to bow to Mrs
Green; should happen to call at the same time
she was quite startled by Bob's sprnging up
from the sofa to meet her, with an air of great
relief
" SO you're back at last Well, whom did
you see, and what did they say to you? d.
SIT down, and let's hear all the gossip going "
Gossip" And meeting one another's eyes
they both burst into a hearty laughter, de.
claring they never again would pride them.
selves on being bit better than their neigh.
| bOrs.
THs lRoNHAsTERs OF FRANCE.-The most
invsterate and formidable enemies of free
| trade are the ironmasters-formidable from
their unreasonable Obstinacy, their organiza
tiOn, their great wealth-and the Population
over which they have control. When, at tn,