The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1870-11-25
OFFICIoUs PEOPLE.

Officious people can never let things
alone. No one can possess his soul in
peace or go his own way unhindered by
them. They stand at the cross roads of
all mems lives, pointing out to them the
path they ought to take, and whether
in religious faith or in house furnishing,
the choice OF a wife or the pattern of
boot, havea word to say, their advice
to give and their fingers to dip, what
ever may be the pie that is making.
Illness is one of their strong points,
and if they hear that you are indispos-
ed, whether slightly or gravely, they
rush off to proffer advice, which you do
not want and will not accept, ard which
probably would turn out mistake if
YOU did accept. Your disinfectant is
not equal to theirs, and they have
brought you the name and address of
the chemist where you can get theirs.
Your nurse does not know her business;
let them send for one of their own
choosing tonight. Your medical man
says you are suffering from a certain
form of illness. Well, of course he
ought to know; but to the officious it
seems very much like something else;
or, if they do not go quite so far, they
inquire, with the air of knowing all
about it, whether he had not ordered
if you say no, they urge you to have
their own medical man without delay,
as they are so sure yours is making
mistake. And SO on, till they have
worried you into fever; when they
take their leave and bewail your obsti-
macy to the next conner.
ANY calamity is a godsend to them,
for they have their innings when their
neighbOre are so PROSTATE by distress
that they can buzz about them at their
will. They are self-naturaliZed Samar-
itans, physicians without diplomas, min
listers independent of orders or the
Apostolic succession; and the unlucky
ones whom it is their pleasure to assist
must either keep them off with strong
arm, which may lead to q quarrel, OF
yield themselves helplessly into their
active and officious hands.
Old maids, they are great in the man
agement of children, and you may make
up your mind to much advice on the
best methods of feeding, instructing and
disciplining your rising family, if you
number an officious spinster among
your friends. They do not often err on
the side of tenderness, being generally
of decidedly Spartan way of thinking
but sometimes they start off on cru
SADIE of spelling, and interfere with you
because of your harshness, though on
the other hand they will rebuke and
even punish your little ones if they feel
called upon to testify in that form AMI
they will tell you what they have done
quite complacently, and think the, have
deserved your gratitude.
On their own account, and unasked
by you, they undertake to do your bus
mess, and nine times out of ten they do
it wrong. If even they have your per-
o1, 10
curate directions, they 60 off half-char-
ged, and have fired their shot before
they knew what they had to hit. If in
timately associated with them. they re-
duce you to the state of an imbecile,
with no will of your own, no indiyidu-
ality, no independent action-just a
manikin, to be moved according to the
will of your officious friend, the wire
puller.
If you are asked question they an
swer for you, and they make arrange
ments in which you are the principal
person concerned, to save you the
trouble of deciding for yourself. If
you are tired they mount guard against
your door, and defend you from the
presence of your dearest friends. whom
you specially wish to sec F.; they buy you
what you do not want, because they
thought such and such things Cooked
like :" they commit you to engage
ments you never dreamed of undertake
ing, and send you teachers, tradespeo-
pie, workers of all kinds, with an assn
rance that you are certain to employ
them.
If they know that you are invited by
a common friend they hustle over to
his house. and take it on themselves TO
inform him of your peculiar habit and
tastes, and you, who are shy and sensi-
tive, and hate to be singular or to give
trouble. are made to appear in a charac-
ter of all others most distressing to
you, because your officious friend chose
to betray your little weakness.
Women who are prosecuted by Off
cious friends in society find company
manners" and the serenity demanded by
their caste difficult to compass. The
officious male friend jumps up on the
smallest provocation and hovers about,
insisting on doing everything for his
victim she does not want done at all, or
that she wants somebody else to do,
and succeeds in making her life bur-
den to her for the time being. He spills
the wine or coffee in his struggle to hold
her glass or cup; caroms against her
in his endeavor to wrest from her the
light chair she is dragging after her,
with a pretty affectation of carrying
burdens that she knows becomes her,
insists on giving her foot-stool which
makes her seat uncomfortable, and over
which she trips when she gets up; and
takes her down to supper or her car
riage before any one else can offer,
when she is praying in her heart for
some other man half way across the
room and coming toward her now to
perform that pleasant office-some 9TH
er man to whom she has pleasant
word to say, and from whom she hopes
to hear one yet more tender.
In a word he makes himself nui- |
sance, and spoils the poor creatures
whole pleasure by his officiousness,
when he meant only to do her service. |
But this is just the way with your Off |
cious people; they always mean to do |
well, only they never manage to spc-
ceed.-Pdu Nall Gazette.