Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1873-06-12
Baukrunt Takers.

It is almost impossible to mix much
in society without meeting a number
of unfortunate persons who NAV be
designated as bankrupt takers. Most
Of these people started out in social
life with high hopes and good pros
poets; there was no apparent reason
why they should not succeed Us con-
versationalists. But they failed. Now,
if they want to talk, no one wants to
listen if they do not want to talk, no
one regrets their silence. Their re-
marks are always below par. An offer
of them either excites no attention or
decided disapprobation.
These bankrupts may be divided into
several classes. One class consists of
those who do not know how to exhaust
or even fully treat commonplace sub
ject. If they suggest anything in a
conversational way or anything is sug-
gested to them, they will say little
about it and then let it drop. To con.
tinue the conversation, another subject
must be obtained. This is extrava-
gance, and no talker can afford it long.
There is hardly anything about which
q great deal that is interesting cannot
w otsAu3 OUV ~ OAtou ICSuIEco 6hll1 auu
address to say it. Still, he who has
not that skill is bound to fail as talk
er in society. OF course one may have
a windfall, and something extraordina-
ry may happen of which great deal
may be said without special effort. But
nothing ever happened which could be
satisfactorily talked about all the time.
Another class of conversational bank
rupts ore those who never tell anything
unless it is very remarkable or strik-
ing. Such people are bound ultimate
~ to fail. We are not speaking of per.
sons who draw the "long, " or anything
of that kind. We merely refer to those
who, not taking interest in common
place matters themselves, suppose that
nobody else does, and therefore con-
fine their conversation to the discus
sion of remarkable and uncommon
subjects. We knew such q man. He
had fine eye for the peculiar. He no.
ticed it acutely and talked about it
we'll. But he noticed, or at least
talked of, nothing else. It a thing
was not very we'll worth telling he
would not tell it. The consequence of
all this was that he soon obtained the
reputation of a liar. The common
mind could not comprehend how he
could become acquainted with so much
that was unusual, and SO, whenever he
opened his mouth people instinctively
looked for a tstretcher, to say the least.
Had he mingled his strange experiences
and observations with a good deal of
matter of an ordinary kind he might
have been a great conversational sue.
cess.
Another set of bankrupt takers owe
their ill-fate to their bad habit of Offer
ing counterbalancing experiences. No
one can ever relate an incident but
these folks can match it, and, what is
worse, can often tell something better.
Nothing is more discouraging to we'll
organized talker than one of these peo-
pie. No matter how much pleasure
we anticipate--and ought to realize
telling something novel and interesting,
a man of this class will hardly wait
until we have finished before he CON-
mences to relate the story of which
ours has reminded him. Our state
ment or narratiOn is not only deprived
of opportunity of consideration and
appreciation, but it is crushed and
humbled beneath the better story of
this inconsiderate person. And it is q
melancholy fact that the atories of
these people are generally better than
ours. It is in fact this futal excellence
which starts them on their road to
their ruin.
There are other divisions of the great
multitude of society people who have
failed as takers, but We have not room
to discuss them here. 1t is curious,
however, to note that there are very
few women among these bankrupts.
Women are generally not only econom.
ical in the use OF the odds and ends of
conversation, but they make q very
good show of them, and often astonisll
you by presenting you with some of
your own ideas, warmed up and served
SO nicely that you can scarcely recog
nize them. And then, besides the fact
that most women have an extensive
g sinking fund" on which to draw in
times of temporary conversational
embarrassment, they would always
rather borrow than fail if they can't
talk about subject themselves they
will make others talk, and no one is SO
successful as a conversationalist as one
who makes other people talk.-Froak
R. Stockton, IN ''H00ae and Society, p"
Scrabner's for June.